Delete Cookies: New-Age Diet or Common Sense Internet Security?

Written by Nick Smith


No, this article isn’t about some new, lose-20-pounds-in-a-week, certified-by-some-tan-Southern-California-doctor diet. It’s about cookies on your computer - what they are, why they are there, and what to do about them. Computer cookies actually have quite a bit in common with their baked counterparts - some are good, some are bad, and they have expiration dates.

Cookies are small text files that a server places onto your hard drive whenever you access a given domain. Cookies typically contain information thatrepparttar website uses to either customizerepparttar 118465 page you are viewing or otherwise make your web browsing experience more convenient and enjoyable. The information is stored on your hard drive and accessed whenever you go back torepparttar 118466 website that originally gave yourepparttar 118467 cookie. They usually include an expiration date at which point they will be erased from your computer - it could be when you close your browser; or hours, days, months, or years after it is placed. Some don’t expire at all. Atrepparttar 118468 time of this writing I had a cookie stored on my computer that wasn’t set to expire until Wednesday, February 25th, 2195 at 3:45:13 am - I deleted it.

Before you run out to your browser’s options and delete and block all cookies, let me mention a few common uses of cookies:

* Cookies store information for ‘shopping carts’ at online stores. When you select an item and place it inrepparttar 118469 shopping cart, a cookie is created to rememberrepparttar 118470 item andrepparttar 118471 price so that you can keep shopping. When you are done shopping you simply clickrepparttar 118472 button to check out andrepparttar 118473 site accessesrepparttar 118474 information stored inrepparttar 118475 cookies to complete your order.

* Cookies can be used to remember logins and passwords. While this initially sounds a little disheartening,repparttar 118476 purpose is really to save you time. Sites will rememberrepparttar 118477 information for you so you don’t have to type it in each time you want to access information.

* Cookies help websites customize their content and layout for you. If you are a diehard fan ofrepparttar 118478 local college’s basketball team, and you always accessrepparttar 118479 stats and score fromrepparttar 118480 game at a website, that site might use a cookie to send you straight to your team’s page.

* Cookies help identify whether you have already visited a site. They can also count how many times you have visitedrepparttar 118481 site in a given period of time.



"Don't Get Mad, Get Creative!"

Written by Erin Jansen


British Educators Angered by "Texting" I say "don't get mad, get creative!"

by Erin Jansen, author "NetLingo The Internet Dictionary" and http://www.NetLingo.com

Texting is a new form of online communication. Texting is English that's been adapted torepparttar rapid fire conversational style of instant messaging. Commonly transmitted over cell phones or mobile devices, "texters" userepparttar 118464 keypad to type written messages to each other.

You've seen bits and pieces of it: brb, cul8r, lylas, b4n, cu@8... It's one ofrepparttar 118465 most popular sections on NetLingo.com.

For teenagers, texting is like knowing another language. Since it is an online language, it is global in nature and is quickly becoming a universal from of English.

Given that you must typerepparttar 118466 messages, shortcuts have been created in an effort to type more in less time. Shortcuts such as r, u, and b4 make these text messages look like code, but in fact it is conversational writing.

It is this kind of conversational writing that is infiltrating students' schoolwork and educators are wondering what to do about it. In a recent interview withrepparttar 118467 BBC entitled "The Pedant's Revolt" I came face to face with those who fearrepparttar 118468 Queen's English is losing her ground.

While everyone agrees that language evolves, there are groups of highly educated speakers and professors who are dead set againstrepparttar 118469 presence of texting in schoolwork and who are arguing for ways to stamp it out. My presence onrepparttar 118470 program, however, forced us to look atrepparttar 118471 cultural implications of online communication and to look for creative ways to deal.

It is not only a subculture of youths who are texting: 60% ofrepparttar 118472 online population under age 17 uses text messages (according to Nielson/Net Ratings). They use it primarily to socialize and communicate, in other words, for recreation.

It is certainly true that at school, kids need to knowrepparttar 118473 difference between formal writing and conversational writing. They need to know where to drawrepparttar 118474 line between formal English and informal English.

Before we solverepparttar 118475 problem with text shorthand found in schoolwork, I want parents and educators to realize and appreciate there is a culture associated with this style of writing, and that culture is important and meaningful to our youths.

After all, when kids use text messaging, they are communicating and isn't that something every parent wants to cultivate? Don't you want your child to express him or herself? To communicate more?

The same is true for educators, after all, because ofrepparttar 118476 Internet, kids are writing more than ever. Isn't that what every teacher wants, to get their kids writing?

Texting poses two major challenges forrepparttar 118477 educator. One, should not be to overcome this new abbreviated language, but rather find ways to use it creatively.

The second challenge texting poses for educators is solved when teachers impress upon their students that there is a clear distinction between formal and conversational writing and that in class, only formal writing is accepted inrepparttar 118478 final draft.

The opportunity exists to encourage students to use text shorthand to spark their thinking process. For example, when you're writing a first draft, it's all about freeing up your creativity.

A sixth grade teacher said "When my children are writing first drafts, I don't care how they spell anything, as long as they are writing. Remember creative writing class? If this lingo gets their thoughts and ideas onto paper quicker,repparttar 118479 more power to them."

It is duringrepparttar 118480 editing and revising stages of a writing project thatrepparttar 118481 switch needs to happen. The switch from using elements of text shorthand to only standard English needs to happen. Ifrepparttar 118482 text shorthand still appears inrepparttar 118483 final draft, it isrepparttar 118484 educator's responsibility to work withrepparttar 118485 student to make sure this writing is translated or converted into proper English.

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