gc2
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posted on October 14, 2001 06:32:50 PM new
Meya, no.
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Meya
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posted on October 14, 2001 06:41:11 PM new
Can you edit that in Word and save it to the same folder on your hard drive and call it the same thing? It will most likely fuss at you about overwriting the file, but will it let you do it? I don't understand why it is named with .dat intead of .txt
Do you know DOS or know someone who does?
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gc2
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posted on October 14, 2001 06:52:49 PM new
Meya, to your last question re DOS - no.
To the first part....By 'edit', do you mean clean it out? Delete all the entries in it?
Then save the empty file, name it "index.dat", and save it to Windows cookies? Don't know if I can or not, but could try.
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Meya
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posted on October 14, 2001 06:59:50 PM new
The info I based my suggestion on was that the file is called "cookies.txt" and that one you can edit. I don't want to suggest doing that to the wrong file and have you mess it up worse than it is.
Have you been all over Netscapes Help?
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gc2
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posted on October 14, 2001 07:16:22 PM new
When I first began getting these strange files in other places I went everywhere for help, including Netscape and Windows.
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Meya
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posted on October 14, 2001 07:29:12 PM new
Are you postive you don't have a filed called "COOKIES.TXT" on your system? Have you done a Find Files on the entire C: drive? Everything I keep reading about Netscape mentions this file.
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gc2
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posted on October 14, 2001 07:45:32 PM new
Well.....I do now.
Created about 1-1/2 hours ago...apparently when I got back on the computer this evening.
Earlier I only had the one file left; had deleted everything else, but this one wouldn't delete.
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gc2
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posted on October 15, 2001 10:06:07 AM new
Bumping this up, 'cause I'm still stuck.
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Meya
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posted on October 15, 2001 10:10:42 AM new
Well, how about uninstalling Netscape completely, seeking and destroying any files, folders, or registry entries having to do with it.
I don't remember...are you able to log in using IE?
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gc2
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posted on October 15, 2001 10:39:20 AM new
Meya, to recap: IE does the same thing; I d/l-ed Netscape 6.1 and it does the same thing.
I think I have a crossed or corrupted file.
Can I delete the C:\Windows\Cookie file. When I try to delete it, it says it is a systems file, and could cause probs with this or other programs. Yet no one told me there was any cookie file that shouldn't be deleted. Even the techies said to delete anything with 'cookie(s) in it.
I'm going back to re-read what you found in google.
I was off the computer a few hours yesterday evening, and when I went back on, a new cookie txt file was generated, and it included cookies for places I did not go.
Wish I had a defrag I could run for my mind.
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Meya
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posted on October 15, 2001 11:21:18 AM new
The C:\Windows\Cookies folder contains the individual Cookies. I don't know if you can or should delete the entire folder, can you go to Windows Explorer and actually look at the files that are in the C:\Windows\Cookies folder?
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gc2
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posted on October 15, 2001 11:53:06 AM new
Meya, this is the one where the problem seems to be.
It only has one file folder in it.
It says it is "index.dat", and has the yellow question mark on it. Double clicking gives me a box that says: "This is not a help file, or has been corrupted". If I right click and try to delete it, I get the "Access denied" box.
But when I copied it into Word, and changed it to a "doc" file, I was able to open it, but don't know what I'm looking at.
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Meya
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posted on October 15, 2001 11:57:57 AM new
If Netscape is closed, can you delete that file? Make sure no browser or email program is open, and try again.
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Meya
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posted on October 15, 2001 12:05:41 PM new
Well I looked at my Index.dat file too. I can't open it or delete it either, regardless of if IE or Netscape is open. I was able to delete all of the cookies from that folder however.
I have something else to suggest, but I need to find something first. Be back as soon as I can.
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Meya
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posted on October 15, 2001 12:10:34 PM new
Do a Find on your system for a file called Hosts. It will be in the Windows folder. You will find two files most likely, one called Hosts.sam and one just called Hosts. Leave the Hosts.sam alone, this concerns the plain Hosts file.
When you find it, right click it and choose Open With...then select Notepad. If there is a list of sites or IP addresses, look through the list and see if eBay is in there somewhere. If it is, delete it. Save the file (leave the name the same) and close it.
Then try to access and log in to eBay again.
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gc2
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posted on October 15, 2001 12:32:53 PM new
Meya, find brought up two files:
Hosts (SAM file) and Lmhosts (SAM file), both of which were installed 6 months before I bought this computer. I opened both of them and took a look, but didn't see anything eBay - just instructions, etc.
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gc2
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posted on October 15, 2001 07:01:29 PM new
Meya, did you give up?
Anyone else?
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Meya
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posted on October 15, 2001 07:25:12 PM new
The best I can suggest at this point is to go to DOS, and delete the index.dat file. I am going to take one last look around and see if I can nail down the proper thing to type once you get into DOS. The file is in the C:\Windows\Cookies folder, so you need to get to that folder, and then delete the file.
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bookgal
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posted on October 15, 2001 07:33:26 PM new
My wife had the same problem. We have two ebay accounts. Here's what we did.
Ignore all the stuff about cookies.
When you get to the sign in page and it won't let you sign in look at the top right and if it says "sign out" click on it and then try signing in again. It works for us.
We think that if our computer never signs out it won't let it sign in even with a different account.
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wildanteeker
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posted on October 15, 2001 07:43:28 PM new
Run system file checker?
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Meya
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posted on October 15, 2001 08:01:43 PM new
First you're going to have Restart in DOS mode. From what I understand, you cannot delete that file from a DOS box in Windows.
This will take you to a C:|> prompt. Type cd\windows\cookies and hit enter. This will put you in the Cookies directory.
Now type "del index.dat" with no "" marks, leave a space between the del and index.dat
That will delete that file, which will be rebuilt when you start Windows again. If it is corrupted, rebuilding it should help solve the problem.
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gc2
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posted on October 15, 2001 08:46:00 PM new
Meya, it's humbling to have to let my stupidity hang out for everyone to see, but.....
When I type * cd\windows\cookies * and hit enter, absolutely nothing happens. No directory appears.
My prompt is slightly different...it doesn't have the long vertical bar between : and >. Do I need to change it somehow? If so, I don't have a clue how.
[ edited by gc2 on Oct 15, 2001 08:50 PM ]
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gc2
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posted on October 15, 2001 09:11:40 PM new
This is the prompt it gives me:
C:\WINDOWS>
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AnonymousCoward
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posted on October 15, 2001 09:48:29 PM new
First of all, BEFORE deleting a systems file, back it up on a diskette. Just in case it is needed to reboot and note down in which folder (the path) it was in.
Now>>>>>(this is from memory, I will try it out to see I haven't made any syntax error and post back in a few minutes.)
From C:\Windows>
Type to get
C:\WINDOWS>cd cookies
Press enter
you should get
C:\Windows\cookies>
type to get
C:\Windows\cookies>dir
press enter
and you should see your index.dat file listed.
If there are too many files to view in a sub-folder and the pages just scrolls like crazy you add /p at the end of the command to stop after each page. Pressing enter will take you to the next page and so on.
It then looks like this
C:\Windows\cookies>dir /p
Once you want to delete the index file from
C:\Windows\cookies>
type to get
C:\Windows\cookies>del index.dat
press enter
___________________________________________
I'm not sure Win98 will let you do it from a C:\Windows> prompt, but if doesn't create a Windows startup diskette and boot from that diskette instead.
That will give you
A:\>
then type to get
A:\>cd C:\Windows\cookies
It should take you to
C:\Windows\cookies>
edit_______________________________________
Ok the syntax looks correct. It should work. I've deleted a test file. I've kept my index.dat file intact to be on the safe side. 
[ edited by AnonymousCoward on Oct 15, 2001 10:02 PM ]
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AnonymousCoward
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posted on October 15, 2001 10:25:30 PM new
Should you need to copy back the backup file from the diskette to the C drive because Win98 will not create a new version and boot correctly this is the command to use.
(It assumes you have saved the file on a diskette BEFORE deleting it.)
Boot fresh from a windows startup diskette.
from the A:\> prompt
type to get
A:\>copy A:\>index.dat c:\Windows\cookies
press enter
It should tell you one file has been copied at this point.
____________________________________________
If you wish to edit index.dat to delete it's contents, copy and paste it in a folder other than Windows\cookies. Open the copy and select all the text with a text editor. Cut the selected text and save. Copy the newly created file on a diskette. Boot from a Windows startup diskette, delete the corrupted file in DOS mode and copy the file you have created back to the C:\Windows\cookies directory using the intructions I've just posted in my previous post.
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commentary
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posted on October 15, 2001 10:46:46 PM new
Switch browsers or get a new computer. Or backup and redo the existing computer. With the amount of time you spent on this, you can probably buy a cheap machine.
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gc2
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posted on October 15, 2001 10:47:58 PM new
AC, I guess I did something wrong....it didn't work.
I got to the directory, and had a prompt at the bottom:
C:\Windows\Cookies> (with the _ cursor)
I made it read:
C:\Windows\cookies>del index.dat and hit enter.
It just gave me another prompt.
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AnonymousCoward
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posted on October 16, 2001 12:04:11 AM new
gc2 wrote
I made it read:
C:\Windows\cookies>del index.dat and hit enter.
It just gave me another prompt.
_____________________________________________
That's normal, but it should have deleted your index.dat file. You can verify this by checking the list of file in the directory before and after you delete the file.
By typing to get
C:\Windows\cookies\dir
Once you have done the delete command
C:\Windows\cookies\del index.dat
you taught was unsuccessfull, verify to make sure the file is gone. If it isn't deleted wake sure you try by using a windows startup diskette to boot and not just reboot Win98 into DOS.
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gc2
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posted on October 16, 2001 12:39:55 PM new
AC, it just doesn't delete it.
I'm at my wit's end. This is bound to have happened to someone else!
I would be willing to pay to get it fixed, but I won't take it somewhere and pay not to get it fixed.
"Switch browsers or get a new computer."
Commentary, earlier in my posts I explained that it does it to me on IE, and that I d/l-ed Netscape 6.1, with same results. As for getting a new computer: It may be easy for you to say that, but only because you don't understand the situation.
Bookgal, thanks, but I've had that ocassional glitch too...this isn't it.
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Meya
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posted on October 16, 2001 12:58:13 PM new
How are you getting into DOS? If your first prompt was C:\Windows, it sounds like you were opening a DOS window from within Windows. You need to either boot to DOS or do a shut down to DOS (which might not work either). I can't remember which key, but if you hit the F2 or F8 when the system is restarting, you can either get a menu and select DOS, or stop the boot at the C: prompt.
Have you completely uninstalled Netscape or did you just upgrade it to 6.1? Upgrading wouldn't have gotten rid of a corrupted file or files. Did you try going through Add/Remove programs and Removing Netscape? You may need to seek and destroy registry entries too.
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