Re: A few lingering cookie questions

In article <f0qus5$uit$1@xxxxxxxx>, nospam <nospamatall@xxxxxx> wrote:

AlexZ wrote:
Thanks everybody, I appreciate all the answers. I have a few
lingering cookie questions:

Are cookies browser specific, or does a user have only one cookie
file used by all browsers?

For example, I use both Safari and Firefox, each works better at
some sites. I'd have guessed that their cookies are kept in
separate places, but I see only one cookie folder and one "plist"
file in my Library folder.

Firefox's cookies are in the folder 'mozilla' under Library in your
user folder. Easiest way to manage without a plugin would be under
'Tools' in FF, last menu item, 'clear private data' which you can
configure to suit in prefs.

Finally, how do you tell what a cookie actually does? That would be
helpful in deciding whether to keep it or not.

Sometimes the website might make it readable, often it is just
gobbledegook. A good rule is if you don't need them, don't allow
them. Only allow them when something you want to access doesn't work
without them. That's why something like cookiesafe is useful.

I noticed before you were asking about if they can be used by other
sites. A company like doubleclick can have an ad or even just some
invisible thing on many different websites, and could thus track you
across those sites, even if you never go to their own website. It's
no big deal, but I prefer to thwart them. Their business model is
valid--website owners get paid for adverts--but their methods are
sleazy, underhanded and despicable.

Years back, doubleclick had a "opt-out" cookie. It would allegedly stop
any further doubleclick cookies being set. I don't know if it did what
they said it did, or whether they still offer this. I set one browser
to accept no cookies (Safari), and another to ask before accepting any
cookies (Camino).
.

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