Logging Out

nhmartens
nhmartens Member ✭✭

Next to logging in, logging out is the next most common action taken. Please put a 'Log Out' link on EVERY menu. This avoids the need to click on the ICON to pull up a drop down list THEN click on Log Off. it's not like you don't have the real estate on the menu bar for this link.

Thank you.

2
2 votes

Reviewed · Last Updated

Comments

  • jacobs
    jacobs SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta
    edited April 2023

    @nhmartens I'm confused by your request.

    First, I don't know of any other software which has a Log Out link on every menu, do you?

    Second, what are you logging out of? Are you referring to the Quicken program, or this website. (I realized after initially posting that you put this request in the Community Improvements category, so now I'm thinking you're talking about this website. Is that right?)

    What icon are you clicking, and where are you even seeing "Log Out"? I must be completely misunderstanding…

    If you are talking about this website, there's no need to log out (unless perhaps you're on a public computer). I don't think I ever log out; any time I return to this website, I'm logged in from a prior visit. I'm not even seeign a place to Log Out; there's a "Sign Out" on the menu if I click my account icon in the upper right — is that what you're referring to?

    Quicken Mac Subscription • Quicken user since 1993
  • nhmartens
    nhmartens Member ✭✭
    Obviously, I'm talking about a website. To exit the Quicken program I just click on the 'X' in the upper righthand corner.

    These are a few sites that do it: my city's water billing website, my financial advisor, PG&E, shall I go on? Besides, just because everyone doesn't do it doesn't mean you can't be a good guy and do it. For instance, on the PG&E website, on the menu that appears on every page (no matter how many levels you click down) it shows on the righthand side my name followed by a slash followed by 'log out'. That makes it easy to log out after I've been on the site for some time and have clicked on dozens of windows. I get into the habit of opening almost all links in a new tab so that I can simply close the tab(s) by clicking the 'X' when I'm finished with that particular task. It beats having to click the back button to return to the home page where my profile image sits so that I can log off. I know, at least this website does keep the main menu available at all times so I could be 6 levels down and the log off is 2 clicks away. I'm just saying it would be even nicer if the log off was only one click away.

    You never log out? Wow, what an inconsiderate user you are. Being logged in takes computer cycles even if you're not doing anything. You multiply this by the number of users and your vendor is wasting a lot of computer power. That's not very good etiquette.

    Do you keep your computer powered up 24x7 even when you're not using it? I doubt it. Or your car engine running when you get out?

    Anyway, I'm only asking for a very small enhancement. It wouldn't take much to add a log out link to the menu. There's plenty of real estate.

    Thanks.
  • jacobs
    jacobs SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta
    edited April 2023

    You never log out? Wow, what an inconsiderate user you are. Being logged in takes computer cycles even if you're not doing anything. You multiply this by the number of users and your vendor is wasting a lot of computer power. That's not very good etiquette.

    Wow! Well, let me just say that's absolutely not true. The state of being logged in to many websites is stored in a cookie or a token on your local computer; when you close the website tab/window, the website isn't tracking you constantly. Financial websites typically log you off for security reasons, but many sites allow you to remain logged in for very long periods of time. I subscribe to a few news websites where I stay logged in pretty much indefinitely, although I don't have an open tab; for a few forums I follow regularly, I often leave a tab open so I only need to click a refresh button to get the current menu of posts. I leave my gmail open in a tab most of the time. If this type of activity was a drain on web servers, they would simply log you off after a short time, but that's not the case.

    Oh, and yes, I generally keep my computer(s) — and my cellphone! — powered up 24x7. The computer goes to sleep when it's not being actively used, although some activities (like backups) can take place when scheduled. The phone sleeps too, but continues to run background processes such as downloading email.

    – – – – –

    Anyway, back to your request, I can only say I guess among the hundreds and hundreds of websites I've used, I've never been aware of one with a logout option on every menu. I don't doubt what you say that some websites do it.

    But I still don't understand the usefulness of what you're asking for. After you read or post a message, if you want to log out, you want to be able to pull down any menu and select logout, right? So why not click the profile icon and select Sign Out? Are you saying that you feel clicking the icon and clicking Sign Out is more difficult than clicking a menu and dragging down to the last menu entry? That's a click and a drag in lieu of a click and a click. I don't see how one's much easier than the other. You talked about not wanting to track back to the original page to log out — but you don't need to on this site, because your profile icon is always available in the upper right corner of every tab/window. Select Sign Out, then just close any other tabs/windows you have open. I don't see how adding a Sign Out command to every menu would make it any easier to log off.

    Quicken Mac Subscription • Quicken user since 1993
  • Jon
    Jon SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta

    Being logged in takes computer cycles even if you're not doing anything. You multiply this by the number of users and your vendor is wasting a lot of computer power.

    This isn't true. But there are good reasons for logging out of websites when you aren't using them - session hijacking for instance. I don't worry about that with something like the Quicken forums, but I always log out of bank web sites when I'm done using them.

    Quicken Mac subscription. Quicken user since 1990.

  • jacobs
    jacobs SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta

    Yes, I always log out of bank, credit card… any financial websites. But they log users out within a few minutes of no activity anyway.

    Quicken Mac Subscription • Quicken user since 1993
  • lubell
    lubell Member

    How about some clarification to those of us that expect to "log out" like other sites, and spend useless time trying to find out where one logs out.. I had to search to find this information that you do not need to log out. Why have a login name and password if you don't need to log out? Very confusing…

  • NotACPA
    NotACPA SuperUser ✭✭✭✭✭

    @lubell, click your icon in the upper right corner of EVERY PAGE in this forum and then click "Sign Out".

    QED

    Q user since February, 1990. DOS Version 4
    Now running Quicken Windows Subscription, Business & Personal
    Retired "Certified Information Systems Auditor" & Bank Audit VP

  • nhmartens
    nhmartens Member ✭✭

    It' amazing how much digression and downright animosity has become part of our 'humanity'.

    I asked a 'simple' question and was attacked. If that's the way you feel, keep your animosity to yourself. I don't need it. I would rather have you simply ignore me rather than come after me.

    You may consider this discussion closed.

  • jacobs
    jacobs SuperUser, Mac Beta Beta

    @nhmartens I just re-read this thread from the beginning, and I don't see any animosity or attacks directed at you. I'd note that early in the thread, you are the one who made a derogatory comment, calling me an "inconsiderate user" because I didn't log off the site; I explained that you had an incorrect understanding of how websites worked, but there was no animosity in my reply.

    Several replies to you were just trying to understand what your concern or expectation was. Once your intent was clarified, it was pointed out that you can sign out at any time simply by clicking on your user icon and selecting "Sign Out" from the drop-down menu, similar to most financial websites. Again, no animosity: just a simple answer to the question. I'd encourage you to re-read the thread to see that no one was attacking you.

    Personally, I'm still not sure I understand how adding the same "Sign Out" option to every other drop-down menu in addition to the User menu would make logging off any faster or easier. But you're certainly entitled to your opinion and to the Idea request you originally posted. If enough fellow users agree that this would be a desirable change and vote for the Idea, it will be reviewed by Quicken for possible implementation if it is feasible. (This site isn't designed by Quicken; it's commercial forum software from a company called Vanilla Forums, and it may or may not be possible to add Sign Out to other menus.)

    Best wishes.

    Quicken Mac Subscription • Quicken user since 1993