-----BEGIN PGP SIGNED MESSAGE----- To: cypherpunks@toad.com, aeisenb@duke.poly.edu Date: Tue Aug 06 11:14:00 1996

Dave:

Thanks very much for responding. Yes, MSIE3.0b2 does support cookies. I have several more questions based on your answer, if you have the time:

1. Does it ask you each time a cookie is sent? Some sites send many, many cookies. This would mean that you are in some instances constantly declining, even dozens of times. Have I got this right?

I have IE3 configured to ask me for permission to accept a cookie. Yes, some sites send (n!)+1 cookies during a session. If they send too many, I personally move on to another site, after sending them email (!).

2. Is "refuse-it-if-it-doesn't-expire" actually printed on the screen? I understand that some servers set short expiration times. Does Netscape actually say, "tell us what expiration time you want?" Or is it done some other way?

Sorry for the confusion - the refuse-it policy I mentioned is a personal policy; there's no option (yet) to configure something like that in IE3. The only two things I've personally seen have been cookies with specific expiration dates (which I usually accept, if the date is reasonable [IMHO]), and cookies that don't display an expiration (which I refuse out-of-hand). It seems to be a compromise that suits _me_; YMMV.

3. If you can't automate, does this mean you have to refuse every time? (This is, I guess, the same as question 1.) Many, many thanks.

I can 'automate' to the extent of automatically accepting all cookies; yes, by not accepting every cookie, I'm obliged to make a decision for each request. One of the 'benefits' of being somewhate security-aware :-) Dave - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- PGP Email welcome and encouraged. Visit my web site at http://www.shellback.com/p/merriman for my PGP key and fingerprint "What is the sound of one hand clapping in a forest with no one there to hear it?" - -----BEGIN PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- Version: 2.6.2 mQCNAi3uZ2MAAAEEALWQtxX77SZSaFls6cVbPp+fZS4MNyKK3ZFYQo0qWyj+0tMq YgRTPRJRaCQixo63RttknogfPp514qdVMZw5iPeOXmD+RxrmTTwlbGqA7QUiG1x5 LG2Zims5zk4U6/rt8hwLh0/8E4lIb9r5d31qc8L1A9Twk/cmN8VrTvyYOzAZAAUR tClEYXZpZCBLLiBNZXJyaW1hbiA8bWVycmltYW5AbWV0cm9uZXQuY29tPokAlQMF EC6sAl+SAziJlog3BQEBxX8D/05ub986Io1PaGJgDtVlbMOPh2pjdB3QSpA8T7bh ngpsTbogz7LnFY6nLTH24dVswnzRGzX2XYN2FXQzYLEKpbuJPF85620EqEJt7eck kDSr0MdCorCZ3ntHGlaRIEOG8En7r/NUxtPJSbeANHyKV0pZTJ0ZF3p71yAZoCU1 JJWoiQCVAwUQLqcRtKljmJBIq8VdAQFFCQQAidBWF05UfZ3HdLTZ2BjhkiztbHIL fCMVAzMkNobRLH0jcQ+o4N9Ny7gAP2bHreadCYQAiyx24LWZaWB+LkG48vVXvSa1 Zv+ksrEp19U30jReTaDHMRg2IDQ0S7T/+YykWf4cx/L4x0ll55zfT29THWHVqpeA 4w0PnSBJubMsG6iJAJUCBRAt7mhNxWtO/Jg7MBkBAWyPA/9BYsA3G33jcg1SfuxC Fh4yMVZCBrvgK2FBJZUdxkgR1WfVYe5/GzV3jRzJxuXGdt0yzFb8HsocRUvnA4vi O6Jngza+seuc+dNC8X1LyyuW0rkogVZE6ds/v4qI2P+uticCh8xBLp7ieAjvGIcc tdQnXrMxF+w6V80cSy/dqxJjtg== =WVf6 - -----END PGP PUBLIC KEY BLOCK----- -----BEGIN PGP SIGNATURE----- Version: 2.6.2 iQCVAwUBMga4f8VrTvyYOzAZAQFSHQP+PDyrhYPZ6AMVyTk3ZSvlyF3rba9Xn7jZ iGk3hN/2yPwdk2Oyaf7NOsL6WyyFPQOvfYgOhgb2Q49EPfhmqmo5PkZLEqb16f35 otKOAcAdKwMxwcG8aS7zEBrT4zquGoVRHxldJhfv71PUWihpsIxc4ZJKed9q+uCq DjkRUtAW+2U= =s19M -----END PGP SIGNATURE-----