Server time guides

What to know before a ticket sale, a sneaker drop or class registration, based on clocks we actually measured.

• What is server time? Why a website's clock differs from your phone
  Ticket sales, sneaker drops and class registration open by the website's server clock, not your phone. What server time is, why it can be off, and how to measure it to the millisecond.
• When exactly should you click for a ticket sale, drop or class registration?
  A step-by-step plan from the day before to the opening second: how to find the exact click time from the server clock, why reacting to the clock makes you late, and why clicking a few seconds early is a gamble.
• Does internet speed matter when you click at the opening second?
  Is slow Wi-Fi why you missed out? How long your click takes to reach the server, compared with your reaction time and with how far off server clocks can be.
• Waiting rooms, draws and first-come sales: when click timing matters
  Not every sale rewards the fastest click. How first-come sales, virtual waiting rooms and draws decide who gets in, and where the exact server time still helps.