• Microsoft Internet Explorer 5.5 or later

• Netscape Navigator 6.1 or later

• Netscape Communicator 4.7 or later

• AOL browser works if TopSpeed accelerator is disabled

• Earthlink browser works if the accelerator is disabled

• Walmart browser does not work

• Safari works on a Mac if caching is disabled (or you can use IE or Netscape on Mac OS X)

• Opera works with specific settings

• Mozilla works with specific cache setting

• Firefox works with specific cache setting

• Galeon for Linux generally works but there may be some problems

• WebTV works with basic Catalog features but not all features are available

• Third party accelerators such as Propel cause problems with the Catalog

• Most AOL users are able to use the Library Catalog successfully with their AOL browser.

• Some AOL users cannot place more than one hold on the Library Catalog without logging out and logging back into the Catalog.
   
  • A solution to this problem is to use Internet Explorer (IE) or Netscape while you are using the Library Catalog.  If you prefer, you can change back to your AOL browser when you are not using the Catalog.  
  • Check on the Start menu on your computer under Programs for Internet Explorer or check your desktop for an IE icon.  (If you are using AOL dialup, after you start up your connection with AOL, minimize the AOL browser and open IE.) 
  • If you can't find IE, try the following:
    • Click on the Start menu.
    • Click on the Run command.
    • Enter iexplore.exe in the text box and click OK.
       
  • AOL 9.0 and Topspeed:  AOL 9.0 has a feature called TopSpeed which uses web page caching to speed up Web surfing.  (This means that the AOL browser stores a copy of web pages on your local PC and uses those pages instead of going back over the Internet to get a new page display.  This speeds up or accelerates your Internet connection because it reduces traffic.)  We believe it is TopSpeed that is causing the problem with placing holds.
  • If you don't want to use IE, we recommend that you turn off TopSpeed and clear the AOL browser cache.  The following instructions are from the AOL help screens on TopSpeed.
     
    • To turn off TopSpeed:
      • Click Settings on the AOL Toolbar.
      • Click Internet (Web) Options on the Essentials tab.
      • Then clear the TopSpeed check box. 
         
    • To clear the AOL browser cache:
      • Click on either the AOL icon or the Dialer icon on the right of the system tray.
      • Click System Information.
      • Click the Utilities tab.
      • Click Clear Browser Cache.
      • This procedure clears both the TopSpeed cache and the Internet Explorer cache. However, clearing the Internet Explorer cache using the normal Internet Explorer method will not clear the TopSpeed cache.
  • If you can't find IE or Netscape on your computer, you can download them for no cost at

    http://www.microsoft.com/downloads/details.aspx?FamilyID=1e
    1550cb-5e5d-48f5-b02b-20b602228de6&displaylang=en
     

    http://channels.netscape.com/ns/browsers/download.jsp

• We have heard of problems similar to the above AOL problem with the Safari browser on an iMac, and Earthlink and Walmart dialup Internet.  These browsers have "accelerators" similar to AOL's which store (or cache) web pages on your local PC to speed up the connection.  (Please read about AOL above, especially AOL 9.0 and TopSpeed.)  Mozilla/Firefox has the same problem with certain cache settings.

We believe the accelerator or cache setting is preventing your browser from getting a current display of the Library Catalog "place hold" screen so you cannot place more than 1 hold unless you logout and log back into the Catalog. 

A solution to this problem is to use Internet Explorer (IE) or Netscape while you are using the Library Catalog.  If you prefer, you can change back to your or other browser when you are not using the Catalog.  

• For Earthlink:
  We have found that if you turn off the Accelerator on the Earthlink browser, the holds problem is solved.  Or, after you start up your connection with Earthlink, minimize the Earthlink browser and look for Internet Explorer on your computer.
   
• For Walmart:
  It appears that the accelerator is built into the Walmart browser and can't be turned off.  After you start up your connection with Walmart, minimize the Walmart browser and look for Internet Explorer on your computer.
   
• For Safari on a Mac:
  You can permanently disable the cache in Safari by doing the following:
  1.  Go to Go/Applications on the Mac OS X toolbar.
  2.  From within the Applications window, double click on the Utilities icon.
  3.  Double click on the Terminal icon to open a Terminal window.
  4.  At the prompt type:  rm -r ~/Library/caches/safari/
  3.  Then type:  touch ~/Library/caches/safari
  This creates and empty file where Safari expects its cache to be and prevents it from caching any pages.  We also have reports that IE and Netscape work with the Library Catalog on a Mac.

• For Mozilla:
  You need to change the cache setting in Mozilla by doing following:
  1.  Go to Edit/Preferences on the Mozilla toolbar.
  2.  Click on Advanced, then Cache.
  3.  Change the setting to "Compare the page every time".
   
• For Firefox:
  You need to change the cache settings in Firefox by doing the following
  1.  In the Location bar type:  about:config
  2.  Press Enter. Firefox will display a list of configuration settings.
  3.  In the Filter box, type:  cache
  4.  You will see the configuration settings relating to the browser cache.
  5.  Double-click on Browser.cache.doc_check_frequency
  6.  Change the setting from 3 to 1.
  7.  Click OK.

• For Propel (a third party Internet accelerator):
  Propel is a third party accelerator that speeds up your Internet connection.  You can turn off Propel when you search the Library Catalog and turn it back on for other web sites. 

  Using Propel Accelerator - Disable/Enable Propel Accelerator (from the Propel web site)

  

  When Propel Accelerator is enabled, this menu item will appear as Disable Propel Accelerator. When disabled, the menu item will appear as Enable Propel Accelerator. By default, Propel Accelerator is enabled, meaning that your Internet experience is accelerated. When you choose the Disable option, the Propel Acceleration Service will be bypassed and you will access the Internet at regular speed.
  
  Note: Even if Propel Accelerator is disabled, the Propel Accelerator menu is still active. You can check performance or change settings in Options...
  
  To completely inactivate Propel Accelerator, choose Stop Propel Accelerator from the Windows Start menu:

  Programs -> {Propel Accelerator program group} -> Stop Propel Accelerator 

• Other Dialup Internet connections - It is likely that these procedures will apply to other dialup Internet service providers that use web page caching/storage to speed up connections. 

• We are aware of significant problems with some versions of Opera, e.g., you cannot login to the Catalog.
• We have done tests using the latest version of Opera (currently version 7.51). 
• Make the following change:  
  • Go to the Tools/Preferences menu,
  • Click on Network and Identification,
  • Then select "Identify as Mozilla 3.0", "Identify as Mozilla 4.78", or "Identify as Mozilla 5.0".

• We have a patron report that Galeon 1.2.5 for Linux works with the Catalog.  There may be some problems with using the Back button and occasionally going back to an earlier screen than expected, but this has not been thoroughly tested.

• We have reports that generally WebTV works with the Library Catalog.  The My List feature doesn't work.  Show Details worked until a recent upgrade (8/6/04).