How to pay for yearly fee for ISY portal

[ctviggen1]

My checking program gave me a reminder that my yearly fee for the ISY portal is due today (June 6th).  But I have not received a bill, and I cannot find a place in the portal to pay the fee.

How do I pay the yearly fee for the portal?

[madcodger]

@Michel Kohanim With respect, I also echo that this is very difficult to find / use / pay. Same situation for people just signing up... It's obvious to you folks, I'm sure, because you use your own site/tools so frequently. But if you're not in there "all the time", it's not very easy to navigate. Just sayin', as I think it might be helpful in terms of marketing your services and selling more.

Thank You.

 

 

[Brian H]

Not sure if this will give you the needed information.

From the UDI Wiki.    https://wiki.universal-devices.com/index.php?title=Main_Page#ISY_Portal_Renewal_Instructions

[ctviggen1]

Thanks for that.

They should consider moving that somewhere else, as I would never have thought the payment was where it is.

[lilyoyo1]

37 minutes ago, ctviggen1 said:

Thanks for that.

They should consider moving that somewhere else, as I would never have thought the payment was where it is.

With a single isy, I think it could potentially be moved to the My profile link. However, since it was designed to handle multiple Isy's from 1 account, its current location is great for those managing 2 or more since it allows one to choose specifically which isy to update easily

[ctviggen1]

Interesting.  Why would anyone have multiple ISYs?  (Speaking from the perspective of a homeowner who only has one and can't really see why I would need two.)

[ctviggen1]

Hmm....Apparently, I paid for 2 years last year, so mine is not due until June 2021.

Ugh...Went to my financial program, and the reminder does say it's due in 2021. In my program, the longest I can set up a reminder for is one year.  So, for things that are two or more years, I have to "cheat" by setting up a reminder where the text says the actual due date.  I can then just "acknowledge" the reminder, and it will show up the next year too.  In this case, the reminders are being cut off, so when I went back in and expanded the window, I saw the actual due date.

[Brian H]

1 hour ago, ctviggen1 said:

Interesting.  Why would anyone have multiple ISYs?  (Speaking from the perspective of a homeowner who only has one and can't really see why I would need two.)

Some large installations close to the maximum links limit  or in two locations. Could have more than one.

I have one main one and a test one.

[lilyoyo1]

2 hours ago, ctviggen1 said:

Interesting.  Why would anyone have multiple ISYs?  (Speaking from the perspective of a homeowner who only has one and can't really see why I would need two.)

I have a test and main unit in my home. Some people have multiple homes or buildings out of range, installers managing other systems

[madcodger]

On 6/7/2020 at 5:57 AM, ctviggen1 said:

Interesting.  Why would anyone have multiple ISYs?  (Speaking from the perspective of a homeowner who only has one and can't really see why I would need two.)

Here's an example... I use only z-wave at one of our properties that has two buildings. I can't cover both buildings with just one ISY (and goodness knows I tried, even with repeaters, etc.). So, I have two ISYs at that one property (and it works great). Also, I have another property 500 miles away that has a different automation system at present, but I'll be putting an ISY there later year. So, that'll make three. If I add other properties with automation, I'll add more ISYs. So, those are a couple of "why" examples.

 

[Michel Kohanim]

Hello all, 

We send renewal notification emails with instructions. We decided against automatically charging everyone on their anniversaries.

 

With kind regards,

Michel

[madcodger]

18 hours ago, Michel Kohanim said:

Hello all, 

We send renewal notification emails with instructions. We decided against automatically charging everyone on their anniversaries.

 

With kind regards,

Michel

That's not really the issue, @Michel Kohanim. The original post was that even though the OP knew it was time to renew, your website / the portal don't make it obvious or easy to do that. I've noticed it, the OP noticed it, and others have, as well. It's easy/obvious for you folks because you built it. But coming in "cold", it's just not. It's hard to find/navigate WHERE/HOW to pay you folks. 

[lilyoyo1]

30 minutes ago, madcodger said:

That's not really the issue, @Michel Kohanim. The original post was that even though the OP knew it was time to renew, your website / the portal don't make it obvious or easy to do that. I've noticed it, the OP noticed it, and others have, as well. It's easy/obvious for you folks because you built it. But coming in "cold", it's just not. It's hard to find/navigate WHERE/HOW to pay you folks. 

How could they make it clearer for people? What are your suggestions? When I renewed mine the first time, I found it in the wiki without any issues along with pictures that showed where (same link from above).

Outside of renaming the wiki to ISY full instruction Manual, I'm not sure how simple it could be without putting individual links for everything on the home page (which would be even worse

[Teken]

For the benefit of others I received an expiry subscription notice (email) a few days ago.

That email provided links to all the required information and payment system. I don’t believe anything was missing as it literally took 10 seconds to click, submit, and pay.

One of the few subscription services I don’t feel like I’m being robbed or offered nothing!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[madcodger]

You know what, @lilyoyo1? I don't have any more suggestions. None. And I'm not going to spend my time dissecting the site/portal. Some people have noted a problem, and it's far from the only time that has occurred. If a person doesn't act on the email reminder and just goes to the site/portal (which people sometimes do, oddly enough, when they have a strict policy of never clicking on an emailed link as part of good online security practices), I think it's hard to figure out where to give UDI your money. Others (maybe those who don't spend most of their obviously ample free time on this forum) seem to think the same. I recently sold a house to a smart, successful person and left my ISY there for him. When it came for him to create his own portal subscription and pay UDI, he found it hard to figure out how to do so. I found it hard to figure out as I tried to help him, even though I had done it in the past. Over the years, I think others have reported the same. Most suppliers want it to be easy for a customer to give them money. But if no one cares, I sure don't, either. I'll take an extra 10 minutes to figure it out every two years or so, and move on. I'm sure UDI will benefit tremendously from your obviously robust marketing experience, so I'll just step away. All I care about at this point is that they are around to support the products I own. Anything more is not my responsibility.

[larryllix]

Perhaps the wrong email is registered with UDI.

Even after you delete the email it is quite easy to find it in the trash of any email client software I have used.

OTOH: I have suggested previously, we should have a ISY Wiki link at the top of every forum page. There is a huge blank banner space with only a UDI logo at one side.

[lilyoyo1]

18 minutes ago, larryllix said:

Perhaps the wrong email is registered with UDI.

Even after you delete the email it is quite easy to find it in the trash of any email client software I have used.

OTOH: I have suggested previously, we should have a ISY Wiki link at the top of every forum page. There is a huge blank banner space with only a UDI logo at one side.

Thats a good suggestion @larryllix. It's nice when people can offer ideas for improvement vs simply saying something is bad.

[Teken]

Thats a good suggestion @larryllix. It's nice when people can offer ideas for improvement vs simply saying something is bad.

Don’t come to me with problems . . . Come to me with solutions!!

Got it . . .


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Michel Kohanim]

@madcodger,

Can you please submit a ticket and include the email address with which you login to ISY Portal? We do send at least 2 notices before the end of subscription with all the links and relevant information.

With kind regards,
Michel

[lilyoyo1]

1 hour ago, madcodger said:

You know what, @lilyoyo1? I don't have any more suggestions. None. And I'm not going to spend my time dissecting the site/portal. Some people have noted a problem, and it's far from the only time that has occurred. If a person doesn't act on the email reminder and just goes to the site/portal (which people sometimes do, oddly enough, when they have a strict policy of never clicking on an emailed link as part of good online security practices), I think it's hard to figure out where to give UDI your money. Others (maybe those who don't spend most of their obviously ample free time on this forum) seem to think the same. I recently sold a house to a smart, successful person and left my ISY there for him. When it came for him to create his own portal subscription and pay UDI, he found it hard to figure out how to do so. I found it hard to figure out as I tried to help him, even though I had done it in the past. Over the years, I think others have reported the same. Most suppliers want it to be easy for a customer to give them money. But if no one cares, I sure don't, either. I'll take an extra 10 minutes to figure it out every two years or so, and move on. I'm sure UDI will benefit tremendously from your obviously robust marketing experience, so I'll just step away. All I care about at this point is that they are around to support the products I own. Anything more is not my responsibility.

I actually wasn't trying to be a smartass in my post. The fact is, if you have a complaint then a suggestion would be nice from your standpoint. If udi did change it, there is no guarantee the change would make things simpler for you. By adding a suggestion, you now offer insight to what you feel could work better for yourself and others.

I tend to read manuals before asking questions, so navigating through things generally isn't an issue. However I realize many don't. With that said, Criticism is 1 thing but adding a suggestion can make a world of difference when it can help you and others so that something is improved properly vs making a change that does nothing to improve user experience.

For someone who complains so much about what someone says to them, you sure have no problems with what you say. 

 

[larryllix]

Complain about systems, complain about devices, complain about how things work, OMG complain about ISY, but never complain about  the person (negative ad hominem)  without expecting a created negative response from possibly many more posters.

[larryllix]

2 hours ago, Teken said:

Don’t come to me with problems . . . Come to me with solutions!!

Got it . . .
 

 

Will hand sanitiser work?

[madcodger]

6 hours ago, Michel Kohanim said:

@madcodger,

Can you please submit a ticket and include the email address with which you login to ISY Portal? We do send at least 2 notices before the end of subscription with all the links and relevant information.

With kind regards,
Michel

No, I cannot. I don't currently HAVE a problem paying for it, because I spent the time to figure it out a few months back. What I'm trying to say is that when one must do that, it's not easy to do. Others have noted the same.

Here are some suggestions, since some of the forum members noting a need for additional specificity in suggestions don't seem to be able to follow things without a schematic, so here goes:

On the "My Account" page, how about showing the date when a person's subscription expires? I just checked my account page, and that information doesn't appear there.

On the same page, how about a simple button that says, "Renew your ISY Portal Account", and then a link to entering the payment info, right there?

I find it fascinating that such otherwise bright people on the forum can't figure out that what I had posted earlier would have been sufficient for almost any company to take five minutes and say, "Hey, we probably COULD make it easier for people to give us their money."  But it's probably a lot easier to just call the person a complainer, and go back to your screen. Anyway, I hope those suggestions help. I'll try not to make the mistake of suggesting something I thought would be helpful to UDI, again. And I will certainly not make the mistake of doing so on the forum.

 

[madcodger]

On 6/9/2020 at 2:39 PM, Teken said:

For the benefit of others I received an expiry subscription notice (email) a few days ago.

That email provided links to all the required information and payment system. I don’t believe anything was missing as it literally took 10 seconds to click, submit, and pay.

One of the few subscription services I don’t feel like I’m being robbed or offered nothing!


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

So let me get this straight... You received an email that was ALLEGEDLY from UDI, and you clicked that link. Is that correct? 

If so, you would have failed a fairly basic test of online security practices in many companies. I know you are a VERY smart guy, so if you can be convinced to do that, it might explain why this is something we train hard to prevent our employees from doing (and those in our household). It's one of the most surefire ways cyber criminals trick very smart people into letting them into their system. No one should EVER use a link emailed to them unless they JUST requested that link (e.g., a password reset). In your case, it was obviously legitimate. Fantastic! But the fact that this is the only easy way to renew a portal license speaks volumes. UDI could fix it with some very simple changes to the portal account page, and by also making it easier for new users to sign up for a portal account, as I recall. Here's to hoping they do that. They're great people with a super-reliable product. But they need to improve this particular thing, which is all I was trying to say, earlier.

Now, flame away, folks. Everybody needs a hobby...

 

 

[asbril]

23 minutes ago, madcodger said:

So let me get this straight... You received an email that was ALLEGEDLY from UDI, and you clicked that link. Is that correct? 

If so, you would have failed a fairly basic test of online security practices in many companies. I know you are a VERY smart guy, so if you can be convinced to do that, it might explain why this is something we train hard to prevent our employees from doing (and those in our household). It's one of the most surefire ways cyber criminals trick very smart people into letting them into their system. No one should EVER use a link emailed to them unless they JUST requested that link (e.g., a password reset). In your case, it was obviously legitimate. Fantastic! But the fact that this is the only easy way to renew a portal license speaks volumes. UDI could fix it with some very simple changes to the portal account page, and by also making it easier for new users to sign up for a portal account, as I recall. Here's to hoping they do that. They're great people with a super-reliable product. But they need to improve this particular thing, which is all I was trying to say, earlier.

Now, flame away, folks. Everybody needs a hobby...

 

 

madcodger is right. When I receive a message from one of my service providers, I do not click on a link in that message, but log on the way i usually get to the service provider's website.