This article is from the July 2002 Issue of Update.
How do I enable the back button for pages that have disabled this function?
Fortunately, this is fairly rare. However, you may sometimes run across a page that greys out the back button, and even if you do a right mouse click the 'back' option isn't available. Quite what possesses a web page designer to do something so antisocial I have no clue! You could try typing in another URL and go to that, then try the back button again (by clicking on the small half diamond right next to it) which should give you a list of pages you've visited in that browsing section and jump back over the offending page to where you were. Alternatively, a right mouse click will bring up a dialogue box with a link to 'backward links' that will again get you out of the trap. Alternatively, you'll just have to close then open your browser again.
I have Windows ME (2nd edn) and AOL as my ISP. I use Google and the other day I did something with my mouse which increased the font size in the Google window. When I exit Google all the other fonts in AOL are OK. I think I used the wheel on my mouse to do this but can't find out how to undo it.
Well, you've almost got the answer yourself. Simply hold down the Control Key, then move your mouse wheel back or forwards. Hey presto, the font size in the browser window will get larger or smaller. Simply choose the size you're happy with and let go of the Control Key. This can be very useful if you're teaching a group and they can't see the text on the screen easily, or if you have a visual impairment.
Is the right click function where you can copy or save a picture easy to disable on a website? We are hoping to develop our site, but do not want people copying and saving images that we hold the copyright for.
This is reasonably easy to do by using javascript. Go to Google and do a search for 'disable right click' and this will bring up pages that will explain it in more detail, together with scripts that you can incorporate on to your pages. This will stop the casual visitor from copying your information, though you may still find that, if someone decides to download and save your page(s) either using Explorer or a downloading tool to capture your site, they may still be able to capture the images. And, of course, they could also do a print screen to capture the page and then cut and copy your images. You may want to try watermarking your images. It won't stop people using them, but may be slightly easier to track down. Your current graphics package may provide this as an option, or you could do a search for 'watermarking images' to get more information. The only certain way you can stop someone stealing your images is not to put them on the net in the first place, but at least you can make life a little more difficult for anyone who wants to take them.
Site of the month
My site of the month is probably rather less fun than www.bored.com that I mentioned a while back (about which I've had lots of amused comments, so thank you for those) but it's probably more useful. It's the Unofficial Cookie FAQ (www. cookiecentral.com/faq/). If you have ever wondered what a cookie is, or what it does, or even how to create your own, this is a very useful and informative site, and tells you rather more than you'll probably ever need to know!
Phil Bradley is an internet consultant, trainer, web designer and author. Visit www.philb.com for free information on internet introductions, search engine articles, web design tips and a host of other free information. Now out: 2nd edition of The Advanced Internet Searcher's Handbook. If you have any questions about the internet send an email to philb@philb.com with the subject header 'column query'.