what do you use cookies for?
2007-02-28 05:38:16 · 8 answers · asked by josi g 1 in Computers & Internet ➔ Internet
I'm afraid all the answers above are mostly wrong, except Mousepad's, and even he is not entirely correct. Persistent cookies are text files that many web sites need to use for their web application to function properly. To put it technically, it's web site's way of keeping state, because HTTP is a stateless protocol.
What's given cookies a bad name are third party cookies, which can be used to track the web sites you visit, and it's almost always done for marketing purposes. Your browser on default settings already blocks many third party cookies. You can block all third party cookies if you increase the Privacy settings of the browser.
2007-02-28 06:07:36 · answer #1 · answered by Raymond 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
All the above answers are correct, but let me add another instance. We'll be simple here. Say you go to Yahoo all the time, it sets a cookie when you do. Now you know you see ads on there all the time. Cookies help the Yahoo servers from showing you the same ads twice. If you clear "all" your cookies, you will start seening ads you saw before. Nothing really bad about it except after a period of time these cookies take up space on your drive...
2007-02-28 05:52:00 · answer #2 · answered by pakratts 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
Cookies are very useful..
Many examples I can think of:
- To remember the language you selected for a page
- Remember your username
- Keep you logged on a page next time you visit it without having to re-enter username/password
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You can basically store anything in it.
For example, you visit website.com
Website.com doesn't need you to login to access its contect, however, last time you switched the language from english to spanish, next time you visit the site, the site will read the language variable from its cookie setup on your computer and will see: ES, oh, that computer wants its content in spanish. So you don't have to switch the language again.
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As mentionned above, it's also used to track movements. If a cookie is setup by website1.com, website2.com doesn't have access to that cookie. And cookie can only be written and read by the website, cookies don't "read" info on your machine. They are pretty much harmless and the privacy issue is an old myth about privacy. Privacy issues goes far beyond the use of cookies, which are just a practical tool.
2007-02-28 06:04:09 · answer #3 · answered by Mousepad99 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cookies are small information of advice that web content positioned on your computing device in case you positioned your risk-free practices settings to allow them. between the settings is to ask each time a request is despatched. the coolest issues that cookies do is shop your signon call and password for the positioning so as that once you bypass returned to bypass to the positioning knows of who you're - like Yahoo and WFAA-television do me. The not so good issues are that some classes use cookies to maintain track of the place you have browsed and then sell that advice to different companies. proscribing cookies to purely people who're tied to a particular internet site is sweet.
2016-10-16 23:01:00 · answer #4 · answered by dusik 4 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cookies are dropped on your computer when you visit a website so that page views can be tracked and your computer can be identified next time you visit that site.
Disk clean up will usually remove any cookies.
However if you have asked for a website to remember you next time you visit for log on purposes, doing disk clean up may remove that cookie.
2007-02-28 05:44:17 · answer #5 · answered by The Best 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
You don't use the cookies ..they are put there by the sites you visit as a way for te pc to go to the site you visited so that you go back to the site easier than having to search for it again..most of them are of no consequence ..but now and again you get one that is more forceful..so to get rid of them ..go to start.with right click on mouse/explore/find cookies/from there you can delete them..I do this every few weeks just to clear out the junk...
2007-02-28 05:48:00 · answer #6 · answered by silver44fox 6 · 0⤊ 1⤋
cookies are like 'post it' notes for the web
when you visit your favorite store and they give you an offer for
the new swimsuit - you get Cookie A
next visit - the store sees you have cookie A and gives you the
beach ball offer - and Cookie B
next week when you shop - you get the soda cooler with ice offer
- and cookie C
and that's how they keep track of what to offer you!
by counting your visits
2007-02-28 05:45:01 · answer #7 · answered by tom4bucs 7 · 0⤊ 1⤋
cookies is another word for biscuits. Its best used when one feels hungry. Justkidding.. I just felt like it Sorry
2007-02-28 07:52:19 · answer #8 · answered by takala 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋