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Do you ever wonder if computer language is turning into “food language”. We’ve got java and cookies and applets . Perhaps it’s our obsession with food that lead to computer terms with edible nomenclature.

Well, what exactly are cookies?
Cookies allow webservers (websites) to store a small chunk of information on your computer’s hard drive (cookie jar). Your computer gets the cookie when you are on the Internet visiting a specific website. When you visit the same site in the future, the webserver retrieves the cookie and recognizes YOU by the information you supplied when you first registered with the site. It can then customize the web pages you view on their site to match YOUR preferences.

For example, if you registered with an online action site and you browsed a lot of Hollywood movie memorabilia items, the cookie would store your registration info along with your “preference” for movie memorabilia on your computer. It would also send this info back to the webserver. The next time you logged on to the same website, the webserver would retrieve the cookie and recognize you as the user who loves movie memorabilia, and subsequently send you info about other movie memorabilia for sale, links to other related websites, and of course, ads from companies wanting to sell you their own movie memorabilia.

Cookies have a two-fold benefit. The benefit for the user is that you’ll save time on websites that you frequent. The benefit for the websites is that they use your preferences as a marketing tool which is specific to individual users. What are cookies made of? Much like the ones mom used to bake, computer cookies have their own ingredients.

Are cookies “healthy”?
People have various opinions on computer cookies and there is a widespread perception that all cookies are bad. This is not the case. However, knowing exactly WHO is putting cookies in your cookie jar is the first step in protecting yourself. Various Internet security programs will warn you when a cookie is about to be placed on your computer; you then have the option of accepting or rejecting it (see article on back page).

Do You Know Who Baked Your Cookies?
The first batch of cookies were baked as a simple way for Internet surfers to return to their favorite websites without having to repeatedly re-enter their identifying information. You can think of these as “Grandma’s cookies”.

As the Web became more sophisticated, so did the online retailers who realized that cookies could be used as a marketing tool to target individual customers. You can think of these as “Girl Scout cookies” (taste pretty good but not as good as Grandma’s). These are along the lines of the supermarket’s club card; they track your spending habits and you only get the specials if you use the card. Some websites are designed so that if you don’t accept the cookie, you either won’t be able to access all the content on the site or the entire site.

Next came along the unscrupulous businesses who started using cookies to track users’ web surfing habits. You can think of these as the “tasty fat-free cookies’ (sound like a good idea, but still contain all the extra sugar and chemicals you don’t really need or want). They collect information about users’ interests, spending habits, and lifestyle and use it to create a profile of the user. From this profile, additional ads would be targeted towards specific groups of people.

This can be annoying as well as worrisome. Say, for example, you have a chronic medical condition and you search the Internet for medical supplies and health information. You visit some websites and some cookies are placed in your cookie jar. Soon, you may find yourself receiving unsolicited material from various sources, and you shutter to think that some entity knows that you are ill.

The “scam” these days is to not only give you a cookie from the site you are visiting, but from other sites which have similar products to sell (or have a vested interest in getting info from you). It is possible to receive 3 or more cookies by visiting only 1 webpage/website.

This is where third party software comes into play. Programs such as Norton Internet Security or Guard Dog will display a pop-up message when they detect a site trying to send your computer a cookie. It clearly identifies which site wants to send it You must accept or reject the cookie before proceeding. The thought of an outside party putting information on your computer is scary. Just be aware of who is trying to do it and then YOU decide whether or not to accept it.