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By: Da Sissop
Date: 10/22/99 3:45:14 AM
# Replies: 18
The Nunnery is now coming to you from a new NT server box, and I'm not entirely sure if I've got all those annoying power-conservation features turned off yet, so, umm, I guess just let me know if you notice any major slowdowns or other problems.
Incidentally, you are mere weeks, maybe even mere DAYS away from seeing the new Active Server Pages WebNuns 2000.
Hope ya really like cookies....
Response #1
By: Ralf
Date: 10/22/99 6:53:38 AM
Mmmmmmmmm. Cookies.
Response #2
By: Katt
Date: 10/22/99 9:39:35 PM
that's alright, I've written a program that deletes them on every boot..
Response #3
By: Ralf
Date: 10/23/99 8:09:37 AM
What's wrong with cookies?
Response #4
By: Da Sissop
Date: 10/23/99 9:28:31 AM
I think I can answer that. The problem is that frequently they're used by websites to aid in the collection of demographic data... to learn your browsing habits and build a profile. That gives *good* cookies a bad name. When Good Cookies Go Bad....
The new Nunnery will be using cookies since that's the default method that Active Server Pages uses to track user "sessions"... it's easier for the initial board development, and it's *much* easier down the line when I impulsively decide to add new features. (Making modifications to this current cgi-win Nunnery is nightmarishly tedious, thanks in large part to the manual session management). These session cookies expire when you close your browser.
Additionally, you can elect to receive a "login cookie", which expires in the year 2018 I believe, and will allow you to bypass the manual login screen. This one won't do ya much good if you regularly delete your cookies, though.
Finally, there is an optional "View Archived Messages" cookie, which expires at the end of your session. Normally archived messages are hidden from view, but if, for whatever reason, you'd like to browse through the old classics, now you can.
Response #5
By: sooz
Date: 10/23/99 10:21:15 AM
I like my cookies, and I don't care who's keeping track of my browsing habits. I have a list of passwords as long as my arm in case something happens to my hard drive, but dang, I don't want to have to use it.
Response #6
By: Homer The Brave
Date: 10/23/99 2:37:58 PM
Talk about your mixed metaphor:
A world wide web with cookies.
Response #7
By: Ralf
Date: 10/24/99 9:44:26 AM
How can a web site track demographic data about me by putting a small file on my computer? It's THEIR cookie -- they created it. If the data in there comes from me filling out forms on THEIR site, I've waived my right to confidentiality, right?
(I'm just trying to understand the hysteria cookies induce in some folks... my dad becomes apoplectic with anger when he sees the "\Windows\cookies" directory.)
Response #8
By: Da Sissop
Date: 10/24/99 10:42:04 AM
Well, there's the simple matter of a single site using cookies to gather data about your browsing habits within their own site... and maintaining a profile of your interests based on that...
Then there's the slightly more SiNiStEr matter of third-party sites planting cookies by way of maybe a banner ad or other image element that's included in the page. You're looking at CNN's website, but since there's an embedded banner ad that phsyically resides on www.porn0matic.com, that website can *also* plant a cookie, and retrieve it any time you access any website that also includes their banner ad.
Now again, how big of a threat to privacy is this? I dunno. You may have a bazillion different disjointed "profiles" floating around in companies on the net, and probably some of these companies have figured out how to link them together for a bigger picture. And it's certainly possible that at one of those websites you gave them your name, address and phone number.
I might point ya to www.doubleclick.net for the Official Company Line on why all sorts of various advertisers might want to route their ads through a central server for the sake of accumulating a clearer user profile... AND while you're there you can OPT OUT of their particular tracking system.
...Course, they do it by planting a special OPT-OUT cookie...
Response #9
By: Ralf
Date: 10/26/99 7:01:33 AM
I dunno; I think it's far more sinister the way search engines customize their banner ads for me.
Response #10
By: Katt
Date: 10/28/99 12:36:30 AM
I just think they're a waste of space and browser speed. In the day and age where the base install for my OS is 250 megs, the last thing I want to do is have another 1,000 or some odd small files wasting space in the event I might go back to that web page again.
Cookies that expire at the end of a session, that I wouldn't mind at all. One for login, that's not bad really.
But, the more that a directory contains, the longer it takes for the browser to read them, ie, the longer it takes to process a request for one, or to load the browser. Browsers are slow enough already.
But then, I'm using a K6-3 450mhz and it seems slow to me.
Response #11
By: Da Sissop
Date: 10/28/99 8:02:54 AM
Psst.. sooz... he said "day and age"...
Well, umm, when I say they "expire", I don't think that means they automatically instantly go away. I think that just means they're first in the exit line when some other web site needs the cookie space...
But I guess *could* put an explicit "Delete All My Nunnery Cookies" command somewhere on the board... like a "Logout" button at the Main menu.
Response #12
By: Ralf
Date: 10/28/99 8:38:52 AM
Lemme get this straight. You're complaining about a 1K file taking up space when you can buy 19GB hard-drives for $159?
Response #13
By: sooz
Date: 10/29/99 9:07:09 AM
Katt's a boy?
Response #14
By: Gowan McGland
Date: 10/29/99 6:58:38 PM
Hey, could you make the borders between the choices at the bottom of the screen either wider or a different color so they stand out more? It just BUGS me.
Response #15
By: Da Sissop
Date: 10/29/99 7:47:43 PM
I could maybe do that. It looks great under my IE5 or Netscape 4.7 tho... Here's how it looks to me... is that not what you're seeing?
Response #16
By: rorschach
Date: 10/29/99 9:31:53 PM
yep, but a 3 dimensional isometric buttone looks neater IMHO
Response #17
By: Ralf
Date: 10/30/99 8:17:38 AM
You should change it to a giant 3D rotating shrimp head, and if you click it JUST SO during a specific revolution it does one of the four functions.
Response #18
By: Homer The Brave
Date: 10/30/99 7:18:27 PM
<HTML STYLE="pedant-mode : on">
Strictly speaking, tables should contain tabular data. Like, an actual table of information which has two axes of reference.
A client-side image map with ALT and TITLE tags would be more appropriate.
</HTML>
Oh, and include more <BLINK> tags at random throughout the pages.
