Refresh strategy - short version?

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ww52

DIS Veteran
Joined
Apr 2, 2001
OK - I know there is a thread on this already - quite popular and as of now 7 pages.

So I'm sorry to start a new one -
I'm an old(er) guy but I recently learned a new (to me) acronym: TL:dr (too long, didn't read).

So I'm hoping I can get this answered quickly and help those (like me) who didn't want to read 7 pages of comments.

True or false:
1. "Refresh" basically just means periodically checking for better times for your fastpass
2. You have to "refresh" the app (or even logout/login); the new availability doesn't just suddenly show up
3. It helps you get your "next" FP by moving up the time on your "last" one so you can use it sooner
(where "last" means the one you have to use in order to get another; "next" therefore can be 4th or 5th etc
4. It works essentially because so many other people are also juggling times so FPs free up almost randomly. (That is, what someone else may no longer want could be perfect for me)
5. Obviously(?) easier the less people in your group. That is, we have 7 people - not likely to suddenly find 7 FPs for 7DMT
 
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for 2: you don't need to logout and everything, just click back and forth on two different times when you are modifying.
 


For #5 - we had a group of 6 - 12 at any given moment in the parks and we could often find overlapping FP times via refreshing. Sometimes just within 10 or 15 minutes of each other. Then we could all still ride together. And yes you are correct it is easier with smaller groups but we have still found ways to make it work.

And sometimes our group split up and booked different FP at that point but we were able to get many same day FP together with a little refreshing.
 
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Good to hear I wasn't the only one. Of course it might eventually get long too (and here I am, adding to it!

But I hope my original post and the quick confirmation I got helps other as it did me.
 


1. "Refresh" basically just means periodically checking for better times for your fastpass

Somewhat. You need to check constantly. Over a period of 5-10 mins. If you check every 5 mins you might not find anything, but if you constantly check over 5 mins, likely you will find something.

2. You have to "refresh" the app (or even logout/login); the new availability doesn't just suddenly show up

You just go back and forth looking for different times (around the desired time) and wait for something to pop up (the 'WDW couple' videos do the best job showing this that I have seen on youtube -- I have always used the same method that they do). You don't log out.
 
For #1, I wouldn't call it checking periodically. You refresh constantly for a few minutes until you get something you want. Like if you are going for something difficult it may take 500 refreshes over 10 minutes. If it's something like HM or PoTC it should only take a few refreshes.
And you don't even have to click different times, you can click the same time over and over and it will refresh each time. Sometimes it's amazing the change from one refresh to another. You can refresh once and there's only Dumbo and IASW. Refresh again, literally 1 second later, and there's a whole list of things available.
 
For #1, I wouldn't call it checking periodically. You refresh constantly for a few minutes until you get something you want. Like if you are going for something difficult it may take 500 refreshes over 10 minutes. If it's something like HM or PoTC it should only take a few refreshes.
And you don't even have to click different times, you can click the same time over and over and it will refresh each time. Sometimes it's amazing the change from one refresh to another. You can refresh once and there's only Dumbo and IASW. Refresh again, literally 1 second later, and there's a whole list of things available.
The same time over and over works on Android devices but apparently not iPhone....if I had an iPhone I'd switch to Android just for that reason lol
 
The same time over and over works on Android devices but apparently not iPhone....if I had an iPhone I'd switch to Android just for that reason lol

Score one for Android. On iPhone, yes, I can verify you have to click back and forth on times. It’s still very efficient. If I want something at noon, I just cycle back and forth between. 11 and noon, for example.
 
OK - I know there is a thread on this already - quite popular and as of now 7 pages.

So I'm sorry to start a new one -
I'm an old(er) guy but I recently learned a new (to me) acronym: TL:dr (too long, didn't read).

So I'm hoping I can get this answered quickly and help those (like me) who didn't want to read 7 pages of comments.

True or false:
1. "Refresh" basically just means periodically checking for better times for your fastpass
2. You have to "refresh" the app (or even logout/login); the new availability doesn't just suddenly show up
3. It helps you get your "next" FP by moving up the time on your "last" one so you can use it sooner
(where "last" means the one you have to use in order to get another; "next" therefore can be 4th or 5th etc
4. It works essentially because so many other people are also juggling times so FPs free up almost randomly. (That is, what someone else may no longer want could be perfect for me)
5. Obviously(?) easier the less people in your group. That is, we have 7 people - not likely to suddenly find 7 FPs for 7DMT
1. Yes but you do it over and over and over all at once
2. No. It does just show up when you refresh
3. Yes, but this is not part of the refresh tip
4. No. It works because of some quirk in the Disney FP system. I know it's not because of people juggling times because I can be refreshing and see sets of times change based on how I search. For example.
I can click 9:00 and I'll see 9:15, 10:00 as available times. I'll click 10:00 and see 9:30 and 10:45 as times. I go back and click 9:00 and see 9:15 and 10:00 again. Neither will show all 4. I made it much more simplistic than the way I've seen results return when I refresh but if you do it enough you'll see what I mean. It doesn't do that, go back and forth with open times showing, if it was from others juggling. It's something else.
5. Yes.
 
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Score one for Android. On iPhone, yes, I can verify you have to click back and forth on times. It’s still very efficient. If I want something at noon, I just cycle back and forth between. 11 and noon, for example.
And this plays right in to my comment in #4. Each time I cycle between 2 times I can get 2 different sets of times show up. And the times shown with the first click go away with the 2nd and then exact same ones return when returning to the first time choice. In my logical mind, if you are clicking 1 times within 1 hour of each other all available times around those hours should show up. And they do not.
 
The same time over and over works on Android devices but apparently not iPhone....if I had an iPhone I'd switch to Android just for that reason lol
I think you over estimate how hard it is to switch between 2 times. LOL
Besides, see my #4 again, I get different times by switching times. If I clicked the same time over and over I'd be missing out on some FP
 
I think you over estimate how hard it is to switch between 2 times. LOL
Besides, see my #4 again, I get different times by switching times. If I clicked the same time over and over I'd be missing out on some FP
I'm not saying it's hard, just that if you're trying to find something like FOP and you reduce the number of clicks per minute by 25% for time to move times, that reduces your chances as you are not getting in as many refreshes. And for rides showing no availability at all I do not find switching between times makes any difference. You're waiting on someone to drop the FP.
 
4. No. It works because of some quirk in the Disney FP system. I know it's not because of people juggling times because I can be refreshing and see sets of times change based on how I search. For example.
I can click 9:00 and I'll see 9:15, 10:00 as available times. I'll click 10:00 and see 9:30 and 10:45 as times. I go back and click 9:00 and see 9:15 and 10:00 again. Neither will show all 4. I made it much more simplistic than the way I've seen results return when I refresh but if you do it enough you'll see what I mean. It doesn't do that, go back and forth with open times showing, if it was from others juggling. It's something else.

The FP system is indeed very quirky (I have booked at 74 days out before (long trip) and it can be difficult to get perfectly spaced Fps (even when they are all available, it's takes a lot of effort to get exact times sometimes). And one more complicating factor: When MDE offers you an available time slot, it holds that slot for a bit under 5 mins (KtP once timed this and found out how long he could wait). So if you pass by options, you won't see those same exact FPs again -- of course it doesn't mean you won't see a specific time twice in a row, but they won't be the identical FPs.
 
I think you over estimate how hard it is to switch between 2 times. LOL
Besides, see my #4 again, I get different times by switching times. If I clicked the same time over and over I'd be missing out on some FP

Today will be the first day I've messed around with refreshing on MDE in 6 months, but if I recall, it actually won't make a difference if you hit the same time or a different one. Say it's 11am when I do it, and I click on 3:00pm to search. I could be wrong, but if memory serves, it'll look for anything available that day. If it spots anything between 11am (current time) and 4:00pm (one hour after my desired time) it'll just show me those times right away with no wording. However, if the only things it finds are times more than one hour after my desired time, it'll still show those, but above those times it'll say something like "We couldn't find the times you wanted, but here are other times available", and there's a little yellow triangle (or something like that) right next to it. It'll do the same thing over and over and over if you keep hitting 3pm. It'll show you everything available, the only difference is in how it displays it.

That's how I've learned to be able to really do it without having to completely stare at my screen endlessly. If I'm looking for a 4th, 5th, 9th FP+ it's usually for something I want to get on right now or within a few minutes. When I refresh, if I see that little yellow triangle, I already know it didn't find anything within the next hour, so I just refresh again.

Hope that makes sense.
 
The FP system is indeed very quirky (I have booked at 74 days out before (long trip) and it can be difficult to get perfectly spaced Fps (even when they are all available, it's takes a lot of effort to get exact times sometimes). And one more complicating factor: When MDE offers you an available time slot, it holds that slot for a bit under 5 mins (KtP once timed this and found out how long he could wait). So if you pass by options, you won't see those same exact FPs again -- of course it doesn't mean you won't see a specific time twice in a row, but they won't be the identical FPs.
I don't go 5 min between clicks. More like 5 seconds. So it's not that the FP was held by someone else. Plus, they appear, disappear, and then reappear with each click. The exact times. I used to have screen shots that showed what I mean but I've deleted them. But I can see 1 min difference in the shots and see the FP offered with each time slot selection and 9:00 shows 1 set, 9:30 shows totally different times and 9:00 shows exact same times as it did the first time, all within 1 min.
I have no doubts whatsoever that it simply does not return every single available slot with each search of any particular time slot or time frame (ie Morning)
If it did, when you go to book for your long trip, you'd not have to work to get the FP back to back. All the times would return initially. But they don't. You have to often pick one that is for instance, 10 min off being exactly 60 min later and then go back and move it. The time needed to move it to is available it just won't show up initially. So annoying.
 
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