CDF's Online Software Tools FAQ

This document answers some frequently asked questions about CDF's online softwre tools.

Table of Contents

Web Browsers

Are there any special browser-related requirements?

Yes. Your browser must support encryption (also known as secure sockets, or SSL), and it must support HTTP cookies. Note that the browser must be configured to accept cookies (default for most browsers).

Which browsers are supported?

We worked very hard to make the system as compatible with various browsers, and, for the most part, any browser that supports SSL and cookies should work for you.

However, it turns out that file upload feature is not implemented well in several popular browsers. At the time of this writing (November 2001), the following browsers are known to work well with the online tools:

Consequently, the following browsers are known to NOT WORK well for various reasons:

Where can I get a browser that supports strong encryption?

Since the U.S. encryption export restrictions have been lifted in 2000, both Netscape and Microsoft ship browsers supporting 128-bit encryption by default. If you have a recent browser, the chances are that it alredy supports strong encryption. However, if your browser is older than 2 years, it may be that you need to uprgrade it.

Mozilla browser is available free of charge at the following URL:

http://www.mozilla.org/releases/.

You can download Netscape Navigator free of charge by going to the following URL:

http://home.netscape.com/download/0730101/10000-----_qual.html

Just follow the instructions for selecting the right language and platform. Make sure to download the 4.X version of Netscape Navigator, since versions 6.X for Windows does not properly implement HTTP file uploads (see Which browsers are supported? for more info).

Opera browser can be downloaded free of charge at the following URL: http://www.opera.com/download/.

You can download Internet Explorer free of charge by going to the following URL:

http://www.microsoft.com/ie/.

How can I disable my browser remembering my CDF password?

Some browsers (notably, Internet Explorer) store user-entered passwords and automatically fill them in when you return to the same website. While this may be convenient, such feature raises security concerns. If you wish to disable it, please follow the instructions below.

For Internet Explorer:

  1. Select the Tools menu, then Internet Options.
  2. Select the Content tab and click the Auto Complete button.
  3. Click the Clear Passwords button to clear any passwords that have already been stored.
  4. Uncheck the Prompt to Save Passwords box, so you won't have to deal with the save password offer each time.

File Upload Problems

Why does my browser fail to upload files to CDF?

Some students have reported problems submitting files from home. Generally, they would be able to log in and browse the system's pages, but the file upload would stall until the browser times out. In some cases this is a result of misconfiguration of MTU (maximum transmission unit) value in combination with use of a firewalling/routing software or hardware.

What can I do about misconfigured MTU?

Please note that the discussion below only applies to you if your computer is connected over an ethernet card to some sort of a DSL or cable modem.

This issue is discussed in the article at the following URL:

http://www.cisco.com/warp/public/794/router_mtu.html

If you are experiencing problems uploading your files to CDF via the browser, please try downloading the DrTCP utility and adjusting the maxMTU value (as described in the article above).

When you read the article keep in mind that where it says "web server" in this case it is really referring to your computer, since you are sending the data when uploading files to CDF.

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