Assuming you can get to the forum, how do you find the new cookie accept/decline item when you login? It is there due to legislation and should appear on all websites.
Hopefully it is something to get used to and does not cause an issue. However in the early days it seems some people are having problems, especially for those who can’t get into the forum to comment here! Can still contact us via contact us button at bottom of pages on the main site.
Basically cookies are used to allow the site to function and to collect some data on usage of the site, the full information on exactly how they are used is given https://admin.ispotnature.org/storage/app/sites/default/files/iSpot_Cookie_Policy_Jan2025.pdf
I have no problems at all - mildly surprised it has not been required before, as my browser is set to clear cookies on exit.
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It’s fine.I have tried both ways and I have retained iSpot Cookies in my cookie cleaner
I have sorted the Forum issue - obviously, as you are reading this - courtesy of my husband’s help.
I cleared the iSpot cookies on both Firefox and Chrome. This logged me out.
The cookie accept/declne was at the bottom of the HomePage and I logged back in.
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Today was the first time I’d ever seen anything on iSpot regarding cookies. Does this mean iSpot has only just taken up tracking use?
It always used cookies to remember that you were logged in, and presumably also session cookies. I don’t know whether tracking cookies (Google Analytics) were previously used.
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Ah! The accept / decline cookies button eventually made a “partial” appearance for me this morning but sufficient for me to accept the cookies and get back into the forum. Using Chrome; not tried Edge or Firefox yet.
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Don’t think there was any change in actual cookie usage (might have been a little) but main thing was to put that accept/reject notice very prominently at the beginning. Google analytics has been used for many years as we have to gather certain information on usage of the site for funders, writing reports/papers and similar.
It would ne nice to have a ‘Remember my Choice button’
But I suspect that would be rendered worthless if we clear Cookies or Ram
Having said I’ve had no problems, this has begun to happen. Clicking (in this case) in “full size” image of the post referenced here:
I am left hung out to dry:
Size
But I don’t know if it’s related to the “cookies” issue, or to something else. Something similar has happened a few times recently.
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I still don’t understand why the World wants to know what I’ve been doing on iSpot, if that’s what cookies are for. They never do much about my observations - so what are they collecting and where is this all stored?
Is this just another invasion of privacy?
Have been meaning to ask - WHY are we no longer able to log out of the Forum @miked ?
There is a link from where you accept/decline explaining in great detail exactly what the cookies do. Most are simply to allow the site to work, almost all websites, certainly all that are as complex as ispot use cookies to allow them to work.
Not sure about logging out of the forum, might ask about that.
I’ve seen that quite frequently recently. Clearing the iSpot cookies clears it … until the next time.
It is possible to logout of the forum BUT very convoluted. You have to click on your icon in top right of page then click on the person icon that comes up at the bottom of the next list that appears and that has a logout button.
Presumably they think no one will ever want to logout.
Session cookies are necessary for iSpot to know that you are you. Otherwise you’d have to log in whenever you add an observation, or an identification, or a comment, or look at your profile, or changes tracker, or activity tracker, and so on. More persistent cookies are needed for you to remain logged in (if you’re not using a shared computer) next time you start your browser.
Thanks for the explanation - think I’ll try it out.
I go to quite a lot of sites and generally allow the cookies - but think my computer is set to clear them when I log out.
Was hoping to see you on the Forum (until it went AWOL).
I see from your profile that you are interested in Malvaceae. I’ve been trying to sort and review my Hernannia observations and find them quite a challenge. David Gwynne-Evans had a great site but the links I had no longer work - may be a funding problem.
From Wikipedia:
Hermannia is a genus of the mallow family,. It comprises at least 65 species with many more species as yet unresolved
Then this from the latest Strelitzia
[Taxa insufficiently known: herbarium records suggest that the genus has several undescribed species and that many taxa from the arid areas need to be revised.]
Would you be interested?
If you ‘track changes’ there must be cookies that know what observations you have identified, agreed, commented on or favorited.
I don’t think I’ve seen a notice asking me to accept cookies? Or maybe I just did without consciously processing the request! Worrying, of the latter!
Things are changing as we write- Today I’ve declined and looks as if there is no problem.
Thanks - found logout - I’m sure it was lost for a while.
Then, today I think the ZA dictionary allows identifications without vars etc. but also allows a choice and yet links - things are looking up - Thanks
What observations you have identified, agreed, commented on or favourited is stored in a database at the OU. All that a cookie is used for here is to identify your browser as being used by you. (If it was stored in cookies the information would get lost when you moved to a new computer, or even just if you cleared cookies.)
(Windows now has a feature to “sync” between devices. I don’t know if it goes so far as to include cookies. Anyway I’m not to keen on letting Microsoft have that information.)