Although the auction allocation process runs continuously, there is no need for you to be directly involved at all times. Your Buyer agent can bid automatically for you, after you configure it with a profile of the value you place on bandwidth.
You indicate your budget limits, bandwidth quantity needs, and bidding strategy in the Valuation and Strategy windows in the Merkato user interface.
Once you configure your agent you can either bid from your PC using a Java-based application or communicate remotely with your agent in the “Garage.” (The Garage is the repository, on the Merkato server, where player (Buyer and Seller) agent configuration profiles reside.)
Bidding from your PC or operating a remote agent each has advantages. On your PC, the Merkato desktop display gives you real-time information about the auction and its participants. If you are not interacting with the agent, you can configure the agent and upload it to the Garage. It will continue to run, and you avoid the chance of ceasing to bid if your PC crashes or you have network connectivity problems.