[angevine41]

Wonder if I've missed anything (fixes) about IE5's inability to get into some secure sites, sometimes.

Here's my deal, and I think others have same problem. Getting into my bank site is iffy with IE5, though never is with NC 4.5, which I keep on hand for bank visits.

SOMETIMES, if I trash the cache.waf file, I can get in. SOMETIMES, if I quit and restart IE5, I can get in. Now, after "clean reinstalling" IE, I can get in, but don't expect the condition to last, if past history is a guide.

I kinda think the bank might be partially responsible, but they couldn't care less, since macs apparently represent 2% of their customers.

Wonder if anyone's found a cure? A setting? Something?

[Gregory]

After crash delete (or replace Internet Preference file) which gets corrupted/clobbered on such events.

check the newsgroup for IE and you'll find a lot of ideas and suggestions microsoft.public.inetexplorer.mac.

Only update I know of is MRJ 2.2.2

Greg

I have found that MSIE 5 has tenuous access at best to seucre and even semi-secure sites. It is a hit or miss event. Sometimes it works and sometimes it don't. It seems to have the same trouble when the URL contains an CGI or ASP. It is unfortunate, because side by side tests and MSIE will beat NS in display speed any time.

- ciao

[angevine41]

Greg, I thought I combed the ms explorer ng pretty thoroughly, but could have missed something.

After about 7 accesses, the clean-installed IE is still getting into bank site OK; we'll see how long that lasts.

What things are in Internet Preferences folder? If I trash it, what will I lose other than possible bank-preventing corruption?

I too have had problems using IE5 and online banking. However, my problem seems to stem more from Javascript problems. My bank relies heavily on them, and I must use NC 4.6 to access their site. IE5 also tends to crash a lot when accessing sites with many 'scripts. I updated to MRJ 2.2.2, but this did not help.

Any ideas?

[Gregory]

What is in internet preference _file_ (not a folder)?

IE (and OE) keep history, cookie info, passwords, and almost anything else - even though there is a separate history file, every time you close a window the pref file is getting updated - unsure why. I do know that it gets clobbered when IE freezes etc.

Looking for anything posted by Jimmy G. or on "crash" "corruption" or "banking" should give lot of hits. Either in OE (you can filter, rule) or via Deja News is a good method.

What I do is create a fresh internet preference file and then when I have all the fields as I want, go into system preference folder and create a copy, rename and lock it in case I need to throw away the working copy.

I'm also experimenting with moving all the Microsoft libraries for Office 98 in Office folder, and for IE and OE into their respective application folder - so that none are active, all disabled, seems to help. Along with cutting out ANY extensions- esp background process types - that I can live w/o which cuts down on 9.0.4 footprint and reduces RAM for OS by 10MB - incl. disk cache from default (8MB) to 4800k. VM off, 256MB. Sure seems more stable. And finally, I put the system on 1GB partition and download/swap on its own partition, and a large partition for all apps/docs/internet and other folders/files - to isolate if there is a crash I can wipe system partition easily and restore from backup or .smi copy of the system.

After years of trouble with internet preference file, the OS X version of IE won't be using it - if only they had changed that behavior earlier.

I am also very generous in giving IE5 32MB preferred. Doesn't seem to mind, may reduce whatever otherwise can cause the system memory usage or heap to "grow" keeping it in IE partition. Of course I may not be technically correct, but it works - even though the "default" should do fine - and even though VM should actually be "better" and to leave it on - putting libraries in the appliclation folder under my setup just seems to work and make sense and maybe reduce "sharing" of libraries and each loads their own - and doesn't cause the system to get confused.

OE also uses the cache.waf when downloading html and probably regular text email, so if that gets corrupt, both will have trouble.

I complained at length and it took a long time and intervention by someone from the MS IE team so that one of my online accounts worked without issue (back with IE 4.01).

Online systems ought to held to supporting all or get the browser makers to conform to some standard (and not one dictated by a company but by an industry body, v.90 modems aren't all the same, but they "should" all comply to v.90).

Considering how many and how long Mac users have been a major part of the online world, and with millions of users, asking us to get on the back of the bus is discrimination. Wheelchair access for Mac users?

- Greg

All I know is here's what Bank of America supports for its online banking:

Windows
* Netscape Navigator 3.0x
* Netscape Navigator 4.0x
* Microsoft Internet Explorer 4.0x
* Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.0x

Mac
* Netscape Navigator 4.0x

Ain't that a crock?

And when I sent their support team a web email asking why IE 5 isn't supported or when it will be, they suggested that there is a newer version of Netscape than my own, which is 4.0. No duh there are new versions, but why suggest it if you don't support it?!

I had problems with IE accessing a secure banking page that was resolved by deleting the cookies on the machine.

FYI:

Bank of America --in California, anyway-- has no problem with Netscape 4.7.3.

--Jim

[angevine41]

Greg, thanks for all the info. Wish I could be as methodical as you are about computer usage! (Example: making copy of new Internet Preference file, and renaming it, for later use. One thing I was a little unclear about: why increase memory to 32MB?)

Guess, though, I've been looking/hoping for an easy, quick fix......on the order of: turn off such-and-such in preferences.

By implication of everything I'm reading, IE is incapable, on its own, at this stage of development, of maintaining a working relationship with SOME secure sites. ( I have NEVER had a problem with IE at my mutual funds site.)

Whatever its other faults, Netscape CAN maintain a working relationship with ALMOST ALL secure sites. (Don't know whether this says something about Netscape or more about bank programmers.)