Web Site Cookies

Since HTTP is a “stateless” (non-persistent) protocol, it is impossible to differentiate between visits to a web site, unless the server can somehow “mark” a visitor. This is done by storing a piece of information in the visitor’s browser.

– David Whalen; The Unofficial Cookie FAQ; May 10, 1999.

Cookies are small text files a web site puts on your computer to store information about your browsing that the site can access at later sessions. The following sections provide more information.

Resources. The following references provide more information about cookies: