# Cookie problem? **URL:** \ **Category:** About This Message Board\ **Created:** [November 30, 1999, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554 "1999-11-30T00:39:00Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 1999, 12:39am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/1 "1999-11-30T00:39:00Z")
Okay, the board isn’t “remembering” my name and password, the lightbulbs are not showing up (neither lit nor unlit) and the pink/red “new since last visit” folders are not showing up either (all topics show an open yellow folder). * * * Your Official Cat Goddess since 10/20/99. “I get along well with everybody.” --I.M.F. ---
**Author:** ![Kat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/b19c9b/32.png) [@Kat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kat)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 1999, 12:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/2 "1999-11-30T00:50:00Z")
Nevermind, yeah, it appears that it was some kind of cookie problem. With luck, it is fixed now. ---
**Author:** ![Lissa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/85f322/32.png) [@Lissa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lissa)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 1999, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/3 "1999-11-30T04:57:00Z")
That’s been happening to me, too. Every time. It’s driving me bonkers. I keep deleting the old cookies and installing the new, but it keeps on happening. ---
**Author:** ![UncleBeer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/977dab/32.png) [@UncleBeer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UncleBeer)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 1999, 3:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/4 "1999-11-30T15:51:00Z")
I think nearly everyone has this problem from time to time. Just another marvel of technology. * * * **Dopeler effect:** The tendency of stupid ideas to seem smarter when they come at you rapidly. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [November 30, 1999, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/5 "1999-11-30T16:06:00Z")
I would appreciate it if someone could tell me which cookies are related to this site. My cookie folder gets filled with junk and I tend to just wipe them all out at once. This is the only site for which I actually want to retain cookies, and I would do so if I could decipher the lingo. I don’t know if this is a cookie problem or not, but often I am in the middle of jumping around the message boards on this site and my “back” button (IE5) just up and quits. Why does this happen? Another question, unrelated to cookies: Why is it that sometimes a link opens up another window, and sometimes it replaces the current active window? I see no pattern. I need answers all you smart computer-types! (Louie?) ---
**Author:** ![TubaDiva](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tubadiva/32/507_2.png) [@TubaDiva](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TubaDiva)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 1999, 2:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/6 "1999-12-01T02:48:00Z")
Let me kick this over to our ace tech folks, see what they have to say. your humble TubaDiva for the Straight Dope ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 1999, 8:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/7 "1999-12-01T08:13:00Z")
The name of the cookie for the SDMB is "ubbcgi/… [Cookie:user@www.straightdope.com](mailto:Cookie:user@www.straightdope.com)/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ Lissa, don’t delete the cookie above, the cookies save your preferences for the board. divemaster, > [@](#): > > I don’t know if this is a cookie problem or not, but often I am in the middle of jumping around the message boards on this site and my “back” button (IE5) just up and quits. Why does this happen? I have no idea, that happens to me too only in IE5. It’s probably slobby programming in IE5 that’s doing it. > [@](#): > > Why is it that sometimes a link opens up another window, and sometimes it replaces the current active window? I see no pattern. Link 1 : \test1\ (using \ code) Link 2 : \test2\ (using URL=web address UBB code) Link 3 : [http://www.yahoo.com](http://www.yahoo.com) (UBB automatically linking web address) ---
**Author:** ![Louie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/c68b51/32.png) [@Louie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Louie)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 1999, 8:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/8 "1999-12-01T08:27:00Z")
Let’s try that again… Link 1 : \test1\ (using \ HTML code) Link 2 : [test2](http://www.theonion.com) (using URL=web address UBB code) Link 3 : [http://www.yahoo.com](http://www.yahoo.com) (UBB automatically linking web address) Link 1 should open in the same window, while Link 2 and Link 3 should open in a new window. So any links done with UBB codes will open in a new window, and any links done by HTML will open in the same window. Man I’m bored. ---
**Author:** ![EvilGhandi](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/f17d59/32.png) [@EvilGhandi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EvilGhandi)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 1999, 9:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/9 "1999-12-01T09:31:00Z")
Right clicking on the link will give you a menu of options. You can then choose to open it in a new window no matter how the link is set. ---
**Author:** ![divemaster](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/divemaster/32/78_2.png) [@divemaster](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/divemaster)\ **Post date:** [December 1, 1999, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/10 "1999-12-01T14:59:00Z")
Thank you for your answers, Louie and EvilGhandi. My cookie folder shows a “ubbcgi” cookie and another called “preferences”, but no mention of “straightdope.” I’ll try deleting all but those two and see if my preferences are still set. ---
**Author:** ![Shayna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shayna/32/17976_2.png) [@Shayna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shayna)\ **Post date:** [December 10, 1999, 4:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cookie-problem/554/11 "1999-12-10T04:28:00Z")
> [@](#): > > So any links done with UBB codes will open in a new window, and any links done by HTML will open in the same window. Louie, if one chooses to code it as such, an html link can also be set to open in a new browser window. All it requires is that you type target="\_blank" at the end of the url in your code.