WHAT ARE COOKIES

Cookies are a mechanism for client-server communication, mostly encountered with web-sites. A cookie allows a server to store information on the client computer. Such a cookie can contain virtually every kind of information. If you visit a site again, which already has set a cookie, then the server loads the cookie from your client. George Orwell knew it ... but don't panic. This article illustrates, what a cookie is, how it works and how you can prevent a server from storing a cookie.

HOW COOKIES WORK

If a user connects to a page (to illustrate the example, let's say a sex page) for the first time, then the server sets a cookie, which contains the information mentioned above. Now this sex page offers different services, like chat, etc. Each of the pages, sets a cookie. If the user connects to a site again, then the server checks to see, if there is already a cookie set. If a cookie is set, then it retrieves the cookie. Along with the information in the cookie, which can contain further information, like the users name, e-mail address and else, the web administrator can generate a user profile, which exactly shows your preferences. Currently this information is mostly used to place advertisements according to peoples preferences. There are already some companies, who have specialized in this market.

If you are using Netscape Navigator 3.0, then you are lucky, because this browser allows you to be warned if a cookie is going to be set and further gives you the option to prevent the cookie from being set. To enable this feature in Netscape Navigator 3, locate the Options menu and choose Network Preferences. In the appearing dialog select the Protocols tab and verify that the option Show an alert before accepting a cookie is checked (First option in the dialog). Microsoft Internet Explorer 3.0 now also offers this feature. To enable it, locate the View menu and choose Options. Select the Security tab and verify that the option Warn me before accepting cookies is enabled. This option is located in the top third option group as the last option. For all other browsers, try to search your harddisk for files or directories named cookie (Extensions can vary) and delete them. Because then a server finds, that there is no cookie set and sets a new one but can't retrieve any information.

NOTE: Be careful when deleting files and especially directories. Always back them up in a save place (a server can't find, where a cookie is stored) and check if your browser still runs smoothly

USING COOKIES TO CUSTOMIZE A WEB SITE

Apart from the above negative usage of cookies, there also is an interesting new way, that cookies can be used. Have you already visited the Microsoft Network or Netscape's Site ? Both sites offer a customized start page you can create yourself. Just a few clicks and declaring your special interests and you have a customized start page. But how do those web servers know when you connect ? How do they know which start page to display ? The answer is easy. They can use cookies. Your user defined settings you specify are stored in such a cookie. When you reconnect to such a server, the cookie is read and your settings are restored.

Cookies might also be used in the near future to exchange settings between more web pages. Microsoft's new Web scripting language, Visual Basic Script, makes use of this feature. If the user enters some settings on one page, then these settings are stored in a cookie and will be read when you browse to another page.