But I had naively given a complete salary history when asked early in the process I think that was the mistake...it's never a bad idea to have more information

But I had naively given a complete salary history when asked early in the process I think that was the mistake...it's never a bad idea to have more information when going into the negotiation. By giving them the salary history, you gave them more information, and they didn't give you the same courtesy. Why should you provide a salary history if the company doesn't have to. With sites like GlassDoor, now they do, even if it's without their knowledge. By using online salary info and not revealing my own salary history I have managed to get an average 20% increase over my previous job for the last 3 job changes, even during the economic downturn.