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The Bodleian Libraries and Cookies

What are cookies?

Cookies are small text files that can be written and read by websites and stored by the browser on your computer, tablet or smartphone. They do a number of things including allowing access to some types of content and functionality to users, and collecting anonymous user information so that site owners can monitor the performance of their sites. They are a kind of “memory” for a website that can help it respond appropriately to users and user behaviour.

The source of cookies and how long they will stay on your computer, tablet or smartphone for can vary. The following table outlines those that you will find in use on www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk and its child websites (e.g. www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk/law.)^*

Managing your Cookies

We don’t recommend that you block cookies because they are linked to the usability and functionality of websites and your experience of using our websites may suffer. However, if you want to block all cookies from your computer, tablet or smartphone, please visit www.allaboutcookies.org, which gives comprehensive information on your options.

If you choose, you can set your browser to tell you when cookies are sent to your computer or to give you the option of rejecting cookies. If you haven't done this, we will issue cookies when you visit the site.

Passive Cookies

A visit to www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk and its child websites will generate the following cookies automatically on arrival (see our website Terms of Use):

Cookie issuer	Cookie name	How long will the cookie last?	What does it do?
Bodleian Libraries	SQ_SYSTEM_ SESSION	From arrival on website until browser window is closed (session)	This cookie allows website editors to log in to the editing software if needed. We have requested an alternative means of managing this from the suppliers responsible with the aim of removing this cookie.
Bodleian Libraries	sq-active-remote-session	From arrival on website until browser window is closed (session)	Allowing access “Remote Content”, e.g. content on the websites powered by external databases. If you block cookies, some of the remote website content on www.bodleian.ox.ac.uk websites may not work.
Bodleian Libraries (from Google Analytics)	__utma	2 years	Anonymously tracks individual visitor behaviour on the websites so that we can see how the sites are being used. We only use this information for monitoring and improving our websites and content for the benefit of our users (you). You can opt out of Google Analytics cookies completely (from all websites) by visiting https://tools.google.com/dlpage/gaoptout
	__utmb	1 hour
	__utmc	From arrival on website until browser window is closed (session)
	__utmv	From arrival on website until browser window is closed (session)
	__utmz	6 months
AddThis	uid	10 mins	Anonymously tracks user behaviour on the websites that allow you to share pages on social media using the AddThis tool. AddThis log the anonymous use to generate usage trends to improve the relevance of their services and advertising. You will not be able to share web pages if you block cookies. You can opt out of AddThis cookies from all websites by visiting www.addthis.com/advertising-choices
	uvc	10 mins
	uit	1 day
	psc	10 mins
	xtc	10 mins

Active cookies

These cookies are only generated if you choose to use the particular piece or type of content that they are associated with:

Cookie issuer	Cookie name	How long will the cookie last?	What does it do?
LibraryH3lp	libraryh3lp_jid	1 hour	Provides a consistent and anonymous guest identification number for the duration of the chat and for up to 1 hour afterwards. For more information see https://docs.libraryh3lp.com/guest-cookies.html.

Website performance

If you choose to block cookies from your computer, tablet or smartphone, we cannot guarantee optimum site performance or access to all content.

The EU cookie legislation

We take the EU legislation on cookies seriously and will continue to improve the way we communicate about and use them in compliance with UK law. We are, for example, working with suppliers and content owners to remove unnecessary cookies. We are also updating internal policies to reflect the need to be aware of cookies and avoid their use where possible.

In addition, we will also review the list of cookies published here every 6 months to ensure that it reflects changes to the websites as much as possible. We can only guarantee that the descriptions of cookie purposes are accurate to the best of our knowledge.

^* (and managed in the Matrix content management system)