Quick auto-login to Dovetail Agent (fcClient)
In a call center, most agents tend to stay logged into their CRM application all day long, as it is their primary use application. However there are also many other users who simply log in occasionally, do what they need to do, then log back out again. Personally, I fall into the later category. I log in and out of our Dovetail system all day long. Even more so, I log in and out of my development instance all day long. Which means every time I log in, I have to re-enter my password. Actually, I have to open IE, click my bookmark for my development Dovetail Agent site, enter my password, and click the Login button. Since I do this all day long, I wanted an easier way to do this.
One Click Access
Dovetail Agent (formerly fcClient) needs three pieces of information to login: Username, Password, and Time Zone. So, we can construct a URL whose QueryString includes these 3 pieces of data, and calls on the login2.asp page. Here’s an example:
http://localhost/fcclient/login/login2.asp?username=MyUsername&password=MyPassword&time_zone=Central%20Standard%20Time
I can add this as a bookmark (favorite) in IE, then I can simply choose that bookmark, and I’m logged in. Well, I still have to open IE, then click the bookmark. Or, I could add a favorite icon to my desktop and click that. Either way, still not good enough.
Keyboard Access
We can also use an application launcher so I don’t have to leave the keyboard. There are a few lightweight launchers out there, including Launchy and SlickRun. Personally, I use SlickRun. With it, you use its floating command line with magic words. I’ve created a magic word called "agent", that launches my development instance of Dovetail Agent. SlickRun is hidden, until you use its hotkey (Windows-Q) to make it visible. Then you simply start typing your magic word. You don’t even have to type the whole word, just enough to identify your unique magic word. For example, I have magic words for amazon, admin, and agent. Typing "a" isn’t enough, but if I type "ag", it knows I want the magic word agent.
Create your magic word:
Type in the SlickRun hotkey, and up pops the floating command prompt:
So, now I just have to do:
Windows-Q, ag, <enter>
Simple. It launches IE, navigate to the Dovetail Agent page, and logins. This saves me a little bit of time, many times a day. Plus, I think its just cool.
Security Considerations
Note that this strategy is passing your login name and password on a (typically) unsecured channel (a URL). So, this tip is best geared for accessing internal resources, such as your development or test environments.
