If you are experiencing problems logging into the member's area of our web site, please ensure that all of the following conditions have been met before emailing our helpdesk on this issue:

Ensure that your browser is JavaScript enabled.
Parts of the member's area use JavaScript, therefore you will not be able to access the protected area without a JavaScript enabled browser.

Ensure that cookies are activated in your browser.
This is perhaps the most important thing to remember: have cookies enabled! Cookies are a vital component of the login process, and should the program have problems writing a cookie, you will not be able to navigate the protected area of our web site.

Checkmark the Internet Explorer Option.
If you are using Internet Explorer and you get a "This page cannot be displayed" error, checkmark the Internet Explorer Option on our Member Area Login. Also, try to bypass the Member Area Login by going direct to the page of interest and log in through the Browser/htaccess created login window which will pop up. (see also MS IE Security Patch below!)

Attempt to log in with a different browser.
Many users find that one browser will not work while another will. We recommend that you attempt to log into the area with one or two different browsers before informing us of the issue. Many times the settings on one browser may have cookies, JavaScript, or a number of other settings disabled that are required to view the member's area.

If you continue to have problems after following the above recommendations, please email our helpdesk.

General Information
Microsoft has very recently released a security patch whereby the standard format for sending username and password information through an HTTP URL has been removed from I.E.'s list of capabilities. This directly effects the login procedure, as our script relies on this technology to ensure that users can be logged into the EccoPro Area properly using the Member Area Login.

Please keep in mind that any script using htaccess is effected by this change, not just our Login Protection System. This is not a bug in our script - Microsoft has removed an industry standard technology from its browser leaving us to search for an alternative solution. No other browser is currently affected except Internet Explorer.

What does this mean?
Currently, it means that any user who is using the I.E. browser with the latest patch installed and who is attempting to log into our web site through the Member Area Login will not be able to accomplish this task. The only way around this currently is to direct the visitor directly to the directory and allow him/her to log in through the htaccess login screen which automatically pops up.

Are you working on a solution?
CompuSol is working to find a way around this, whereby the Member Area Login form can be used to log into a protected area, however we can not assign a time range for its release. Please note that this currently only effects the absolute newest version of I.E., so this feature is still available on other browsers, including I.E. "knock offs" such as Avant Browser.

Microsoft Recommended Solution
"If the Web site uses the basic authentication method, Internet Explorer automatically prompts users for a user name and a password. In some cases, users can click the "Remember my password" box in the dialog box to save their credentials for later visits to that Web site."
Source: http://support.microsoft.com/default.aspx?scid=kb;[LN];834489

Why Microsoft's Solution is Flawed
Those users devoted enough to use the function which Microsoft has deleted from its Internet Explorer browser will find that their options are numerous. There are hundreds of browsers (some listed below) which still allow for the selected functionality and thereby for the activity that Microsoft is trying to prevent. Furthermore, guides can easily be found on the internet which strips the Internet Explorer browser of the changes made in this patch, thereby allowing users to use the function maliciously.

While Microsoft's concerns may have been justified, the method by which it addressed its concerns were anything but justified. Microsoft has further used the patch to increase its monopoly on the computer market by only presenting programmers with ASP solutions. (For those who are not familiar with ASP, it is the equivalent of PERL, except for one major difference: it can only be used on windows servers.)

Current Solutions to this Issue
This issue goes beyond anything that can be built into our Login Script as the functionality was removed directly from the Internet Explorer browser. For this reason we recommend that users using Internet Explorer either go directly to the protected folder and log in through the htaccess login box or checkmark the Internet Explorer option on the Member Area Login page. By marking this checkbox the visitor will be redirected to his/her area. From here the user will still have to log in through the htaccess login box, as he/she is required by Internet Explorer to do so.

Future Solutions to the Problem
CompuSol will be changing the protection technology used to a new protection technology being developed. The release is scheduled for mid-2005.

Selected Quotes on the Matter
""Microsoft may have legitimate reasons for addressing the issue, but the way they addressed it--an across-the-board kill of an industry standard--is troublesome"
- James Rosko, Software Engineer

Additional Articles on the Patch
Official Microsoft Patch Release Page
ZD-Net: Microsoft to issue security patch for IE
From Lawson Support.com: Disabling the Patch's Registry Keys

Alternate Browser Options
Mozilla
Avant Browser
Firefox
Netscape Navigator
Opera