Yale University Student Systems


Browser related issues and corrective actions

NOTE: When using OCS, be sure to have javascript and cookies enabled, and check that all pop-up blocking software is disabled. Click here for instructions on disabling pop-up blocking software in IE 6.x/IE 7.x.

The browsers that are currently supported for Student Information Systems (SIS) and Faculty Grading/Evaluation systems are the following:

* IE 6.X on Windows
* Firefox/Mozilla 1.X on Windows
* Safari 1.2 on Macintosh

Although IE 7.0 has been tested on SIS and appears to be stable, it is not yet officially supported by the university. If you experience errors when using IE 7.0, please notify us with the error message and description of the problem. Switch to Firefox if necessary.

These browsers were chosen because they are in use by the majority of the student population and they are available on the clusters. Other browsers and older versions have been used to access these systems, but we cannot guarantee that they will work properly. Supported browsers are used in the development and testing of SIS and OCS and therefore we can correct problems as they occur.

If you encounter a problem accessing the Student Information Systems Web, please let us know. Be sure to include your Netid, the browser name and version, your platform (e.g. Windows XP) as well as the date and time of the problem and a brief description of the error.

If you are a Yale University student, faculty member or staff person, you can download a copy of a supported browser at http://www.yale.edu/software.

If you are a visitor to this site, you can download a version of Internet Explorer or Firefox (from Mozilla.Org) directly from the vendor site by clicking on a button below:

Download Microsoft Internet Explorer Download Mozilla

Note: We are aware of an incompatibility when viewing .PDF documents using Mac OS X’s built in .PDF viewer. If you experience this problem, please download and install Adobe Acrobat Reader 8.0 from the Yale Software Library at http://www.yale.edu/software.

Browser Set-up

1.
Cookies must be enabled in order for OCS and OCI to run properly. Check your browser's Help facility on how to enable cookies.
 

For Internet Explorer:
To enable cookies in IE 6.X, go to Tools/Intenet Options/Privacy/Medium Setting.

For Firefox:
To enable cookies, go to Tools/Options/Privacy and under Cookies, ensure that "Enable cookies" is checked. You can also check "Accept cookies normally."

2.
If you receive the message "No valid BannerWeb session currently exists," you may have a problem with caching. Check to insure that your browser refreshes a page each time it is visited. In I.E 6.0, you can go to Internet Options/Temporary Internet Files/Settings/under "Check for newer versions of stored page" click on "Every visit to the page." Be sure to restart your browser.

NOTE: Some supported browser versions may contain bugs which inhibit or prevent proper function of some web services. As these specific versions are discovered, we will add them to the table below.

Known Issues with Browsers
Browser and Version Problem Solution
All browsers General problem viewing pop-up dialog boxes, such as discussion sections, in OCS. Disable any pop-up blocking software.
IE 7.0 Not officially supported, but has been tested for use with Student systems. Please report any problems. Switch to Firefox 1.5.
Windows or Mac Netscape Communicator Versions 6.0 and LATER No specific problems reported. Students were able to access SIS using Netscape Navigator 7.0 and 6.0 , but only a small percentage of the student population uses these browsers. IE 6.0 is the preferred browser for PCs
Mac Internet Explorer 5.23

Problems have been reported with this specific version.

Switch to a different IE version, or use Safari.

Updated: 8/10/2007.

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