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How do I place an order for a 2008 website?
If this is your first year running a basketball pool website at sportsfan, click the Order New Website link on the sportsfan.com home page. If you are renewing a website from 2007, click the Renew 2007 Website link on the sportsfan.com home page.

What is the URL for my pool website?
If you are renewing your pool from 2007, the URL will not change. If you are ordering a new pool website, the name will be http://your-name.hoops.sportsfan.com where you get to pick your-name. Your URL is used for your pool only.

Can I choose a different URL for my pool that I am renewing?
Starting in 2009, pool websites that are renewed must continue to use the same URL. If you want to change names, the only option will be to order a new pool website instead of renewing the old one. This year, we are allowing renewing websites to be renamed because we did not make it clear last year that the same name will be used each year. If you want to renew your website but use a different name, contact us after renewing the website with the old name and logging in to the updated website for the first time.

How long does the website remain online?
Websites remain online until mid-February 2009.

How much do the websites cost?
The cost is based on the number of entries in the pool according to the per-entry rate. The minimum cost of $30 is required as a down-payment when the website order is placed. Renewing websites receive a 10% discount off of the per-entry rate.

When will my website be available after I place an order?
Orders placed during our business hours (which today is 9AM to 2AM ET) are setup and ready for you to use within 15-30 minutes. We will have extended business hours during the days before and after "Selection Sunday".

What scoring systems are supported?
There is a wide variety of supported scoring options. We recommend visiting the demo at http://demo.hoops.sportsfan.com and logging in as commissioner using the Login ID and password "public". Then, view the "Admin > Pool Game Play Rules" screen to see all of the available options.

• As a summary of the scoring options:
• The play-in game is optional. You decide to score it or not.
• You can set straight numerical points to be awarded for each and any round.
• You can set points to be awarded based on the winning team seed for each and any round.
• You can set points to be awarded for each and any round depending on the seed of the winning or losing team, whether or not the game was an upset, the seed difference, and the round number.
• You can combine the above points if you want for each and any round.
• Special bonus points options include "bonus teams", picking all 4 #8/#9 or #7/#10 games, picking all 8 games in a region's first round, picking 3 final four teams, and picking all final four teams.

How frequently are the standings updated?
The website standings are updated after each game. It takes a few minutes for the calculation to be performed. At peak traffic times, please allow up to 15 minutes for the calculation.

How does the commissioner run the pool if there is no program?
The commissioner of the pool has access to the pool's administrative menu which contains all of the settings used to run the pool and control the pool website. The commissioner does not have to import entries or the tournament bracket since this is done automatically by the website. The commissioner does not have to import tournament results or update the standings and reports as this is done automatically by the website.

My pool is going to be very large. Can I receive a reduced rate for additional entries?
If your pool will have at least 3000 entries, contact us before you place your order for more information.

Can I run the pool on my own website?
The pool website must remain on the sportsfan.com server because we do not sell or release the software used to run it. However, using frames you can achieve the desired effect of using your website address for your pool. See this page on using frames to view your pool using your personal domain name.

Can the commmissioner enter picks for someone else?
The pool commissioner can add other people to the pool and add, edit or delete brackets even after the deadline has passed.

Can I collect an entry fee through the website?
Monetary transactions cannot be processed directly through the website. The included financial features such as "entry fee", "prize calculation" and "Finances" Report are to be used only where legally permitted.

Can I set a password to gain entry to the website?
The commissioner can set an "invitation code" that will be required to join the pool. Normally, the people in the pool will only have to login to make their picks and see "members-only" reports, but you can also require that everyone login to see any part of the website.

Can the same website be used to run a Sweet 16 Pool?
Each website can run 64-team bracket pool, a Sweet 16 pool, or both. If a website is running both, then each pool will have its own scoring system, standings and reports. A player does not have to be in both pools.

Do I have to pay for entries that are deleted?
Entries deleted before the "payment due" date of 3/24/08 will not be billed.

More questions will be added as they are asked.

Is there a scoring error?
If you think your pool is being scored incorrectly, verify that you set up the pool's scoring system as you wanted on the "Admin > Game Play Rules" screen. The most common mistake is to award extra points for only predicting an upset instead of for an actual upset (the predicting upset condition is best used only when combined with the actual upset condition). If you think this may affect your pool, you can contact us for clarification and we can help guide you in changing the scoring setup for your pool.

Why are some possible outcomes still listed as "TBD"?
Entries added by the commissioner after the end of the 3rd tournament round will remain as "TBD" because the possible finish calculations are only performed once. If you have added entries after the 3rd round, you must contact us and ask that your website's possible calculation be performed again.

When will the "possible finish" reports be available?
After the 2nd round is over when there are 16 teams and over 32,000 possible outcomes remaining, the "What If?" calculator will be available. After the 3rd round when there are 8 teams and 128 possible outcomes remaining the detailed possible finish reports will be calculated. These calculations will automatically be performed and the reports will automatically appear on the website. These reports require a lot of processing, and it will take up to 4 hours for all pools to be calculated.

Scores haven't been calculated for entries that I just added to the pool after it started
The entry score calculations are automatically performed after each game. Once the next automatic calculation occurs, the entry scores will catch up.

Unable to export to Excel
Internet Explorer 6 will not allow the export to begin in some cases. The only solution is to use a different browser.

Why haven't the standings been updated with the play-in game scores?
One of the options on the "Admin > Pool Game Play Rules" screen is whether to calculate the play-in game immediately or to wait until after the deadline.

When will the bracket be available?
The bracket will be available online at approximately 8pm ET on Sunday March 16th.

Can I add a counter to the website?
We recommend using the counter from www.webcounter.com which is quick and easy and free. To place the counter on the home page, use the "Customize Home Page" button at the bottom of the home page. Click the editor's "Source" button and paste the code where you want it to appear. To place the counter at the bottom of every website page, use the "Add HTML" button at the bottom of the website and paste the code in the "Bottom" area of the website.

Can I print a paper entry form handout?
An entry form bracket printout is not available through the website. It is our intention that everyone who visits the website understand that they must submit their picks online and the presence of a paper bracket may be confusing. However, many commissioners have requested this feature. We recommend that you add a link (on your home page or to the website menu) to a bracket printout available from one of the major sports websites.

Can the commissioner add brackets after the deadline?
The commissioner can enter, edit and delete brackets at any time using the "Admin > Manage Brackets" screen. All brackets must belong to a Login ID, so if the person hasn't already signed up for a Login ID, you will first have to create one for them using "Admin > Manage Members".

Can I add photos and/or a slideshow to the home page?
You can add photos using the "Customize Home Page" button at the bottom of the home page, but a built-in slideshow is not available.

Trouble uploading music or picture files
Music and picture file names cannot have spaces or punctuation marks and cannot be longer than 30 characters. Remove all spaces and punctuation marks from the file name (and shorten the file name if necessary) and try uploading again. If you are uploading a custom report, you have to type in the exact (case-sensitive) file name on the "Custom Report & Upload" screen. Make sure the music file is less than 512Kb (check the file properties) and the picture file is less than 400Kb.

More questions will be added as they are asked.