Information

Cookie Policy

This policy explains the small amount of storage this site places in a reader's own browser, and how that storage may be cleared.

What a cookie is

A cookie is a small note that a site asks the reader's browser to hold on its behalf. When the browser returns to the site, it offers the note back, so that the site can recognise the earlier visit. A related kind of storage, kept under a similar name, works in almost the same way and is treated here as the same thing.

What this site uses

This reference keeps only a small amount of necessary storage. Its single purpose is to remember that the notice bar at the foot of the page has been seen, so that the reading experience is not repeated on every page. That note carries no name, no address and no identifier of any person, and it is never read by anyone but the reader's own browser.

What this site does not use

The reference places no advertising note, no measuring note and no note that follows a reader from one site to another. It builds no profile, it counts no visits, and it hands no information to any outside party. There is nothing here of the kind that gathers a reader's behaviour across the web.

Controlling storage

A reader may refuse or remove such storage at any time through the settings of the browser. Most browsers allow a reader to see what is held, to remove it, and to block it in future. Removing the necessary note will not break the pages; it will only mean that the notice bar appears again on the next visit.

Effect of refusal

Because the site keeps only necessary storage, refusing it has almost no effect. The pages will render in full, the reading will continue as before, and nothing of substance will be lost. There is no part of the reference that depends on older saved state.

Changes to this policy

If the storage described here is ever changed, this page is revised first, so that the account always matches what the site does. A reader who wishes to check the matter may read this page again, or write to the editorial office through the contact page. Questions about this policy are welcome, and a reply is prepared in the order the note arrives.

Further reading

The Privacy Policy describes the handling of personal information more broadly; the Terms of Use describe the understanding between the office and the reader. Both are linked at the foot of every page and together with this policy form the complete account of how the reference treats a reader's information.

Why the notice bar is repeated

A short notice sits at the head of every page so that a reader meets it early, before any reading is done. The note held in the browser does no more than remember that the notice has been seen; it carries no name and no history, and it is cleared as soon as a reader clears the storage of the browser. The reference gains nothing from the note beyond a quieter reading, and a reader who removes it loses nothing at all.