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Well, if you use SSL, it's useable by a "large number of browsers" since Netscape has such a large share of the browser market. And then all of the things you're doing w.r.t. authentication are hidden, at least from casual eavesdroppers and others too if you use more than the 40-bit option. There's really no other choice to reach a large number of browsers.

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Once again mister barber is being an idiot. netscape is not a "large number of browsers".

I have to apologize for this. Me having a bad day is not a good reason to call Jeff Barber an idiot. My aplogies.

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He is right that ssl is probably a good way to go. (shttp would be better :) )

SHTTP might be better if it didn't have to be "useable by a large number of browsers" -- since Netscape doesn't support SHTTP. (I'm sorry that you apparently find Netscape's success so frustrating, but it is a fact.)

Again, I probably went a little overboard. I just get worried when any one company has as much control over the technology (in this case net based encryption) as netscape has. That, and I used to work for one of their competitors and I get tired of people telling me that netscape is the only company out there. Sorry to be a jerk