FAQ
Signup / Create New Pool
What’s My Pool URL / Web Address?
Can I Edit My Guess After Submission? / Managing Entries
How Many Participants Can Enter My Pool?
Share Link on Facebook
Control Panel - Pool Name
Control Panel - Introduction
Control Panel - Send Email: Invitations
Control Panel - Send Email: Updates
Login - Forgot Password
Enter Actual Birth Results (Pool Completion)
Starting your own baby pool involves supplying Your Name, Username, Password, Unit of Measure and CAPTCHA Text. The very next step is to log in which activates your new pool and takes you to the Control Panel view. At this point your site is live and ready to use. Typically, you would customize your pool, send email invitations and then periodically check back to see the guesses that have come in.
What’s My Pool URL / Web Address?
You’re pool has a simple short URL to share with others:
http://bebepool.com/<username> where <username> the one you chose when you signed up for a new pool. When navigating your pool site, you may notice the address as
“http://bebepool.com/go/?a=<username>&view=list” in public view mode (control panel view is different). This address works perfectly fine if shared, it’s just not as versatile as the short url for emailing or displaying on the web and elsewhere.
Can I Edit My Guess After Submission? / Managing Entries
When a participant submits his/her guess, there is not a way to alter some or all of the pool entry. This may be inconvenient in a certain cases, but it does protect the integrity of the information submitted by each pool participant. The pool administrator via the Control Panel can, however, completely delete any unwanted entry, so ultimately the person running the pool does have the power to screen all user-submitted data.
If a participant wishes to change a guess, he/she can coordinate with the pool admin as follows: Participant enters a new guess, then the pool admin can log in and delete the old entry (the admin could delete the old entry before the new one is submitted, but the reverse allows the participant to reference the original information as the new one is composed).
How Many Participants Can Enter My Pool?
Actually there’s no limit, so invite as many friends, family co-workers, etc. as you’d like.
You can make your bebepool site (http://bebepool.com/<username>) a link in Facebook’s “Posted Items”. Log into Facebook and look under “Applications” for “Posted Items”, then click
“+Post a link“. It should then show up in your Facebook Friends’ Mini-feed.
Customize the pool name (default is <Your Name’s Baby Pool>) which is displayed at the top of your pool site.
Customize the pool introductory message (default is Welcome to our baby pool. We look forward to your participation!) which is displayed just below the pool name.
Control Panel - Send Email: Invitations
The pool administrator can use the Send Email (Control Panel > Send Email) feature as a convenient way to invite family/friends your new baby pool. You’re customized invitation message is sent to each recipient individually (invitees will not see any other recipient email address in the To or Cc). However, the pool administrator’s email address will be in the Bcc and thus will receive a copy of each invitation that goes out. A link to your pool is provided at the bottom of each message.
Control Panel - Send Email: Updates
The pool administrator can use the Send Email (Control Panel > Send Email) feature as a convenient way to notify existing pool participants (if an email address was provided with his/her guess entry) about recent events, the birth announcement, or anything other related news. A link to your pool is provided at the bottom of each message.
If you have an existing account but forgot the password, a new one (randomly generated) can be emailed to the email address with which you originally signed up.
Enter Actual Birth Results (Pool Completion)
When the pool administrator logs in and uses Control Panel > Enter Actual Results to input the child’s information, the pool is then complete. When completed, the following occurs:
- Scores are calculated (lowest score wins). Each participant is ranked according to score and listed from 1st place down to last place.
- Pool is closed – new guesses are not possible.
- Pool can be re-opened if the pool administrator deletes the actual results row in the Control Panel view. When the actual results are entered once again, scores are re-calculated and the pool returns to being closed.