HELP
We receive a great deal of e-mails from people and most of them have the same questions. Because of this we have created a list of FAQ's (Frequently Asked Questions) with answers. If you are having problems on Sikhnet please read through here. If this section does not help you see the bottom of the page for additional information on how to get help.
1.I can't login to Sikhnet. It just keeps coming back to the same login page.
2.I can't remember my password.
3.I want to see the matrimonial contact information
4.Is my Sikhnet membership setup correctly?
5.I got recommended for the Chat Room but I can't login.
6.Where do I send my cheque to for Sikhnet Membership?
7.I can't listen to Sikhnet radio or the Gurbani Kirtan.
8.I don't see why we have to pay for a membership.
9.How do I edit or delete my matrimonial listing?
10.Why Can't I view the Matrimonials Contact Information if I have made a Global Display membership?
11.How can I upgrade by membership from a Standard membership to a Global Display or Platinum Membership?
12.How do I cancel my membership and will my access be taken away once I cancel my membership?
13.What is the difference between the different types of memberships?
1."I can't login to Sikhnet. It just keeps coming back to the same login page."
a. First make sure that your user name and password are correct. Make sure that your caps lock is not on unless it needs to be. Passwords are case sensitive which means that if you capitalize when you are not supposed to it will say the password is incorrect. If you entered your password (when registereing) as: "Khalsa" then "khalsa" will not work. You can get your login information e-mailed to you by going to: http://www.sikhnet.com/password or to modify registration information visiting and then logging in: http://www.sikhnet.com/registration
b. You may also be trying to access a section on Sikhnet which requires a paid membership. Please see the details at: http://www.sikhnet.com/s/membership for details.
c. Another possibility is that you have cookies disabled in your web broswer. Check and make sure that cookies are enabled. In your web browser select the following menu options and check settings.
[MS Internet Explorer]
"Tools" => "Internet Options" => "Security" => "Custom Levels"
- Allow cookies stored on your computer
- Allow per-session cookies (not stored)
"Tools" => "Internet Options" =>"Advanced"
- Use HTTP 1.1
[Netscape]
"Edit" => "Preferences" => "Advanced"
- Accept all cookies
2."I can't remember my password."
If you forgot your password or user name sent to you please go to: http://www.sikhnet.com/password and follow the directions.
3."I want to see the matrimonial contact information"
If you are a paying member of Sikhnet when you login you will be able to see all contact details (e-mail, phone, address, etc). Otherwise logging in will just take you back to the same page and the contact information will remain "locked". If you want to become a member, please go to the web page: http://www.sikhnet.com/s/membership and follow the directions. After signing up for a membership you will be able to see the contact information.
4."Is my Sikhnet membership setup?"
After signing up for a membership you can see your account status at any time by logging in at: http://www.sikhnet.com/sikhnet/membership.nsf You will see a list of all charges made to your account, next billing date, and status of account. If you signed up by credit card it sometimes take a few minutes for your membership login access to be setup. So if you can't access the member features right away....try again a little bit later. If you payed by check, then your membership will not be activated until we receive the payment in the mail. You will receive an e-mail notifications as soon as your membership is setup.
5."I got recommended for the chat room but I can’t login."
Please keep in mind that this takes time. And is being offered to you FREE of charge. Please carefully read the email that was sent to about being recommended. Please follow the instructions and be patient. You MUST send us your user name in order to be added to the chat room. If you do not have one we will not make you one. You have to go and register for your self. You can go to the page: http://www.sikhnet.com/registration. If you wish to have access to Sikhnet chat right away you can do so by signing up for a $10/year membership.
6."Where do I send my cheque to for Sikhnet memberships?"
- To sign up for a membership and pay by check visit: http://www.sikhnet.com/s/membership
- Click on the link that says: "Become a Member".
- Login with your username and password.. and then select membership type
- Select Payment Type "Check/money order"
- Fill in your information.
- After you finish the 3 step "wizard" you will be given the address (and e-mailed) all the information about mailing in payment.
7."I can’t listen to Sikhnet radio or the Gurbani Kirtan."
First of all you can only hear it if you have the RealPlayer software. You can download this program for free from: http://forms.real.com/real/realone/realone.html?type=eva Once you have done this or if you already the software make sure that your speakers are hooked up and working. As far as the Sikhnet Radio goes sometimes we have some problems with it. So if it is not playing, please come back soon and we should have it fixed.
8."I don’t see why we have to pay for a membership."
Most people don't realize the time and expense that goes into keeping Sikhnet running and "Fresh" with new sections and information. I feel really bad sometimes when in our effort to build and promote Sikhism through Sikhnet, people ignore this and make totally absurd accusations towards Sikhnet of just being here to make money and profit off of religion. This is especially hard to hear when for over three years I (and some others) have put countless hours into building Sikhnet to what it is today. Every free waking hour of the day/night (after my regular full time job) went into developing and building Sikhnet. Even when I started getting carpal tunnel syndrome (wrist problems) from working on the computer so much I had to quit my job and make a choice of whether I would rather make good money in my computer job, or quit that job and work full time on Sikhnet for a small monthly salary. Traffic to Sikhnet has grown so much that I was not longer able to do the work in my free time. Knowing the effect and potential of Sikhnet I was not about to let it fall. Especially when I see how many people are affected in a positive way every day by the services on Sikhnet.
Well, back to the question about money and funding Sikhnet: For two years we attempted to raise funds through donations and the sales of two screen savers that I created from some of my photography when I was in school in India (http://www.sikhnet.com/ScreenSavers ). There were some gracious people that appreciated the services on Sikhnet and made donations, but, due to the high costs of running a web site the size of Sikhnet these donations were just not enough to keep Sikhnet going (at the rate that Sikhnet was expanding and new people were coming). We tried and tried to encourage people to take ownership for this service by supporting the effort, but to our surprise, most people didn’t respond in the way we were hoping. Some people were in the mind-set of "Everything Sikhi should be free," but not caring to see that in order to have free Sikhi services SOMEONE has to give their support.
After our failure in getting people to make enough donations to support Sikhnet we decided that it would be better to charge people some money for special services rather than have Sikhnet "die" due to lack of funding. We introduced a "Sikhnet Membership" which gives some special features and services to it’s members. (If you would like more information about the membership you can visit: http://www.sikhnet.com/s/Membership ). Ever since we introduced the Membership service we have been able to do much (overdue) expansion with Sikhnet.
Money that comes into Sikhnet goes right back into it for maintenance, equipment and creating more services. I know this is a lot for you to read, but I felt it my duty to let you all know what is happening behind Sikhnet. My goal with Sikhnet has always been to help unite Sikhs around the world. To help people interact and share ideas and knowledge in a positive way. Basically, a cyber Sikh community. Sikhnet is not anything new either. It has been running since 1986 (in a different "incarnation" as a BBS system), even before the Internet was really known or used much. (You can read about the history of it at: http://www.sikhnet.com/s/SikhnetHistory ).
I hope you all appreciate the effort that goes into Sikhnet and take it upon yourself to give your support in either words or donations.
- Sikhnet Donations: http://www.sikhnet.com/Donation
- Sikhnet Membership: http://www.sikhnet.com/s/Membership
9."How do I edit or delete my Matrimonial listing?"
If you wish to delete your Matrimonial, go to the matrimonial page. Click on the button that says "Edit Listing." You will then be prompted to login. After you login you will be shown a page that has your listing. It will be highlighted in blue. If you have created two or more listings it will show all of them. Click on your listing to edit it or delete it. When you enter the matrimonial you will see in the top left corner a little button that says "Delete This Matrimonial Add" Just click on this button and it will be deleted. If you just wish to edit it, just go to the area you wish to change and change it. After you are done editing it just go the bottom of the page and click on the button that says "Submit Your Matrimonial Listing." This will save your listing and changes.
10. "Why Can't I view the Matrimonials Contact Information if I have made a Global Display membership?"
The Global Display Membership is a special membership. With this membership, you can not view the contact information on other people's matrimonials. What it does is, Your contact information on Your Matrimonial add can be viewed by people who are not members. So everyone who looks at your Matrimonial can see your contact information.
11. "How can I upgrade by membership from a Standard membership to a Global Display or Platinum Membership?"
We have thought about this thoroughly and this is a problem because of the way our billing system is setup. Unfortunately we do not have a way to let users "upgrade". We have tried to think of ways to let users upgrade but the solutions are too complex and could lead to many problems in the future. It's unfortunate...especially for the yearly members....(like yourself)...but we are just unable to do it. If you wish to have the Global Display feature you will have to open up a separate new (Global Display) membership.
We appreciate your support towards Sikhnet and hope you understand our situation.
12. "How do I cancel my membership and will my access be taken away once I cancel my membership?"
Canceling your membership is very easy. Start by going to: http://www.sikhnet.com/sikhnet/membership.nsf and logging in. Then click on the link that says "Canceling your Sikhnet Membership." Then Click on the "Cancel My Membership" link. You will then be asked one last time to confirm. You will also be asked which membership to cancel so please make sure that you fill this part out. Once you are done, click on the "Cancel Membership" button on the bottom of the page. You will have access to the appropriate membership sections for as long as you paid for. So if you paid for a one month membership on 03/03/00, you will have access until 04/03/00.
13. "What is the difference between the different types of memberships?"
All of the memberships get access to the Chat Room.
The Matrimonial memberships also give you access to The Match Maker Agent which sends you an email when someone creates or edits a matrimonial add that fits specifications of someone you are looking for. Just click on the Match Maker link that is on the matrimonial page.
The Standard Membership Lets you view all of the contact information on every single matrimonial that we have on our web site. But non members can not view your contact information your Matrimonial add.
The Global Display memberships makes it so that every person who looks at Your Matrimonial add gets to see your contact information. But you can not view non members contact information on their Matrimonial adds.
The Platinum Membership puts together the two memberships, by giving you full access to the matrimonials, so that you can have your contact information displayed and view everyone else's contact information also.
The Chat Membership gives you access to the Chat room. But you do not have any of the Matrimonial privileges.
If all else fails and you really don't know what to do, you can get help by sending us a detailed e-mail of your problem to: [email protected]