15. How can I use Ding on a Mac or on a PC at work where I cannot install software?
a. (nsx and agt) As of March 2006, Ding is available for the Mac. The bad news is that the new version does not allow our prior techique to make Ding portable.
But thanks to agt, if you can get the installation file for version 1.00 of Ding (the original version), you can use Ding at work or elsewhere without having it installed on the PC. All you need is serial number information from an installation of Ding version 1.00.
The latest version of Ding, version 1.04, does not support the technique described here.
Using a version 1.00 Ding installation executable (available from a fellow Flyertalker if you don't have it), install Ding at home or on a friend's PC. Click the Update Registration link at the very top of the Ding window. This activates your default browser. (Make sure it's not set to work offline.) You will get a web page for updating your home airport. Look at the Address (URL) field of your browser.
Copy the address field and paste it into Windows' Notepad (found under Start > Programs > Accessories) or some other editor. You will be copying and pasting the 15- or 16-digit number that follows "installId=" and the 16-digit number that follows "cksum=". You can also get the installId and cksum numbers from the address of any Ding sale, again for version 1.00 of Ding only.
[Note: the current version of Ding, version 1.04, replaces the fixed installId and cksum with a "disc=" string that is much more complex and time-varying. This change makes version 1.04 unsuitable for this technique.]
Edit this user-specific string into the following link:
Code:
http://ding.southwest.com/cgi-bin/systray?action=getMessages&installId=xx&cksum=yy&os=WinXP&version=1.00
where you replace xx with your specific "installId=" number and you replace yy with your specific "cksum=" number. You can omit the http:// part if you like, but be very careful that you don't make any spelling errors. The slightest error, for example replacing a single uppercase character by a lowercase character, will prevent the link from working properly.
You can paste your customized Ding link into Windows Notepad, save it as a text file, and transport it to work on a memory stick or floppy disk (remember those?). Or you can set up this link at home, add it to your browser favorites (bookmarks), and store it at mybookmarks.com, where you can access it from anywhere.
When you go to this customized Ding address, you will see a line or two of links to active Ding sales. Just select and copy the link text that begins
Code:
http://www.southwest.com/cgi-bin/systray?action=getHeadlineDetail
Then Paste this into the Address field of your browser and hit Enter. That's it. Now you can use your Ding whenever and wherever you want.
b. (nsx) The reason you need to get your own installation serial number is that southwest.com limits the activity on each serial number to 50 pulls of each sale. Using this method, your Ding sales can be correctly targeted to your home city if and when Southwest decides to target Ding sales.
c. (nsx) Note that the first multi-digit number in the cryptic results from the Ding server (ding.southwest.com) indicates the number of seconds remaining until the sale starts. If this number is negative, the sale has started and the details are retrievable.
How it works: The Ding software polls the headline retrieval address every half hour. The headline server will post a new sale about 35 minutes before it starts, giving all Ding programs a chance to get the headline. Each Ding program counts down the seconds to zero, then they all display the new headline and make the Ding sound at very close to exactly the same time.
d. (nsx) You can use this technique to gain instant access to multiple home city sales. Using your home PC, install Ding version 1.00 for the first home city. Save the installId and cksum number and make a note of which home city they correspond to.
Now disconnect from the internet and uninstall Ding. (luv2ctheworld has confirmed that this step is necessary.) To disconnect from the Internet, you can unplug the cable or you can right-click the network icon in the system tray and select Disable.
When the uninstall is done, reconnect to the Internet. You can right-click the network icon in the system tray and select Repair if you used the Disable trick.
Now install Ding for the second home city. Again, save the installId and cksum number and make a note of which home city they correspond to. Disconnect from the Internet, uninstall, and reconnect to the Internet.
Lather, rinse, repeat.
When you are done you will have a list of installId and cksum numbers for all the home cities you installed. Use these to construct http shortcuts as described above in 15(a). Add these shortcuts to a Favorites subfolder* in your browser at work, and you will have nearly instant access to sale fares for all the home cities you installed. Any cities you didn't install you can handle by changing the home city and waiting as described in FAQ 14.
*If you're using Firefox, you can right-click your Ding folder under Bookmarks and select "Open in Tabs". You will immediately get Ding sale pages for all the cities you set up. Opening several favorite pages in one operation is one of the niftiest features of Firefox.
e. (nsx) If you want to change your home city and you do not have access to the Ding program, you can plug your installId and cksum values into this URL:
Code:
http://www.southwest.com/cgi-bin/systray?action=updateRegistrationForm&installId=xx&cksum=yy
After changing your home city, you will need to wait 10 or 15 minutes for the new headlines to become available.