Help & Frequently Asked Questions!
The Basics
- How does iDance.net work?
- How do I find the lessons on the site?
- When I'm looking at a list of lessons, how do I preview a lesson?
- When I'm looking at a list of lessons, how do I buy a lesson?
- Once I've purchased my lessons, then what?
- I think I've downloaded a lesson...Where is it?
- What browser do you recommend for viewing iDance?
- How do I decide which lessons to buy?
- What Level am I?
- How Can I earn more complimentary credit?
Video Questions
- I Can't hear the audio in my downloaded video. Wassup?
- The preview looks choppy / low-quality (or has no sound)! What's up with that?
- How do I download lessons to mobile - Android, iPhone, iPad, iPod?
Check Out / Payment
- How do I change my credit card or other personal information?
- Why is there a processing fee sometimes when I check out?
Didn't find your answer?
How does iDance.net work?
Follow these simple steps to begin downloading dance lessons from iDance.net.
- Create an account or sign in
- Search our library and find the lessons or lesson packs you want.
- Add items to you Shopping Cart, and checkout
- That's it!
- Your lessons will be available for online viewing or download on your My iDance page or the lesson detail page.
How do I find the lessons on the site?
The quickest way is to use the search form on the Lessons or Lesson Packs (groups of themed lessons) pages. This lets you browse through lessons by style, instructor, keyword search, or difficulty.
When I'm looking at a list of lessons, how do I preview a lesson?
There are two ways. When you are seeing the thumbnail view (when lessons are in a list), you may click on the image thumbnail, and a modal window will open with a preview you can play. You may also see a preview from the lesson detail page.
When I'm looking at a list of lessons, how do I buy a lesson?
Purchases are made by adding products to the shopping cart, and then checking out. Once you click on the shopping cart button to add a product, you may be prompted to sign in if you're not currently signed in to the site. If you don't have an account, you will be asked to create one.
Once I've purchased my lessons, then what?
You now have access to download that lesson or view it online. To actually initiate the download, click one of the buttons for your preferred download format. You can do this from either from a lesson quick preview modal window, or from the lesson detail page. To see a list of lessons that you purchased that are downloadable (in the dowload time window), visit your My iDance page.
The preview looks choppy and low-quality! What's up with that?
Video quality and internet speeds have improved drastically in recent years. For some of the older lessons on the site, the lesson previews were created in an intentionally lower quality and included no audio to ensure faster internet streaming. However, since bandwidth capacities have gone up in general, all recent lessons have been created with a higher-quality, audio-enabled preview. Regardless of the preview, all full-downloaded versions of all lessons are full-quality and contain sound.
How do I change my credit card or other personal information?
First you must be signed in. Then visit your My iDance page (either you will be redirected there automatically, or you can click on My iDance Once you've reached your My iDance page, you can click the link called "edit account info" to change/update any of your information.
Why is there a processing fee sometimes when I check out?
This is simply to compensate for the transaction fees that our payment gateway charges for every purchase transaction. On very small purchase orders, this gateway fee reduces our already very modest profits as dance educators.
I think I've downloaded a lesson... Where is it?
That is actually up to your web browser's settings. By default, most browsers ask you where you want to download the file to. Browsers sometimes also allow you to check a button that will allow automatic downloads to a pre-configured directory, often the desktop or into a Downloads directory. We recommend trying to download another lessons, and seeing what directory the browser prompts you to download into.
Throughout the use of your browser, you may have intentionally or accidentally changed these setting. We recommend exploring your browser's menu, looking for "preferences", "settings" or "options". Once opened, you can usually find a spot that lets you set your "default download location". Once you've found it, we recommend creating a special folder/directory in which to store your lessons so that you later know where to find them. We also recommend making a backup copy, in case this folder gets accidentally moved or deleted!
What browser do you recommend for viewing iDance?
We strongly recommend using the most recent version of your favorite browser, and to not wait more than 4 months before updating your browser. This said, we recommend the following browsers in this order: Google Chrome, Mozilla Firefox, Safari. Microsoft Internet Explorer is in the "not recommended" category indefinitely for crimes against humanity. We'll still love you if you choose to use it though :)
How do I decide which lessons to buy?
First determine what level you are (see What Level am I), then visit the Lessons or Lesson Packs search pages for your favorite dance style, and for lessons at your level and above.
What Level am I?
All levels are relative to that style. For instance, you might be an experienced West Coast Swing dancer, but if you have never done Balboa, then you should first look at the level 1 lessons for Balboa. Beyond that, follow these simple loose guidelines:
- Level 1- You have no experience in this style.
- Level 2- You know the basics. You are building your repertoire.
- Level 3- You are busy learning everything about the dance, from all the common (and not-so-common) patterns, to the details of good technique.
- Level 4- You are an advanced dancer in this style, and would be recognized as such by the top instructors in the field. You are developing a strong personal style and are working on some very difficult steps.
- Level 5- You are a master of this style, and your main interest now is in seeking out fresh new ideas and staying inspired.
How Can I earn complimentary credit?
Earning complimentary credit on iDance.net is pretty darn easy. Apart from the seasonal and special coupons we offer, we have many volunteer opportunities for those who have a little more time than money, or who are looking to get involved. Please contact us to learn more about volunteer opportunities. We'd love to hear from you!
I Can't hear the audio in my downloaded video. Wassup?
The world of video codecs is wonderous and aweful and frequently frustrating. All lesson on iDance.net have been verified to contain proper audio. This is an uncommon complaint, so if you're experiencing this, it's probably because you are trying to view the video on old software, or on an older operating system that perhaps does not have modern codecs installed.
Our recommendation is that you try different video viewing software. Quicktime and VLC are common free viewers. In a pinch even modern web browsers should be able to play these video files (the mp4 format) without a problem, so you could try open the videos through your web browser’s “open” menu. Also all mobile devices including tablets and phones should play the videos without trouble. Also if you were considering updating your operating system, now is a great time :)
How do I download lessons to mobile - Android, iPhone, iPad, iPod?
Apple doesn’t play well with downloads of any kind since it doesn’t operate like a file system. So you cannot directly download videos to your iPhone as there is no place to put it. The method to put media onto your iPhone or iPad is by downloading from your desktop an using iTunes to transfer your videos over. Sorry about this, it’s not something we really have control over. You might also want to consult this link.
For the Android family of devices this is possible, since they have local storage and usually removable SD cards. This should be pretty straight forward by selecting the location to download to.
None of these were my question! How do I contact you?
After you have read all the FAQ's and made sure none of them can answer your question, you can send an email to customer service by clicking here. Make sure to state your name, your username, and every detail that is relevant to your problem so that we can help address it as rapidly as possible!