We have just released updates to the authentication portion of the website (logging in and registering). These pages now check your browser for cookie functionality, and will display a message if problems were detected. Cookies are used to maintain users’ logged in status. As this is a critical component to the site, we wanted to clearly communicate any issues to our users. Now, if a user tries to log in without cookies enabled, they will be redirected to the log in page, and a message will alert them to the problem.
The second authentication update provides flexibility with login credentials. Previously a user was required to provide their email address and password to login. We chose an email address for authentication as it is something that is usually easily remembered for users. However the old a2k used usernames for the login and since muscle memory is hard to overcome, and many people are used to signing in with their username, we have added this as an option. Users may now enter either their email address or their username to log in.