Cookie Policy
The site itself sets no cookies. Third-party advertising cookies may apply when ads are shown — details and opt-outs below.
This site sets no first-party cookies of its own: no session, preference, or analytics cookies, and no browser storage. The one category that does apply is third-party advertising: ads on this site are served by Google AdSense, and Google may set its own cookies when ads are shown. That is covered in the Advertising section below; everything else here explains why the first-party side stays empty.
1. What a Cookie Is
A cookie is a small piece of text that a website asks your browser to store and then sends back on every later request to that same site. Cookies are how a site recognises a returning visitor, keeps you logged in, remembers preferences, measures traffic, or targets advertising. They are not the only mechanism for this —localStorage, sessionStorage, IndexedDB, and browser fingerprinting achieve similar ends — and this site uses none of those either.
2. Cookies by Category
| Category | Used here | Detail |
|---|---|---|
| Strictly necessary / session | No | There is no login, no cart, and no session to maintain |
| Preferences | No | The site has one theme and stores no per-visitor settings |
| Analytics / performance | Via Google Analytics (GA4) when configured | Google stores a first-party cookie (_ga) to count returning visitors; IPs are anonymised — see section 6 |
| Advertising / targeting | Via Google AdSense | Google may set advertising cookies (e.g. the DoubleClick cookie) when ads are shown — see section 6 |
| Third-party / embedded content | No iframes or widgets | No iframes, maps, social widgets, or comment systems; the AdSense loader is a script, not an embedded frame |
3. Two Things That Look Like Tracking and Are Not
The search box changes your address bar
Typing in the search page updates the URL to/search?q=your-query so the result can be bookmarked or shared. This is a browser history update performed locally. It writes no cookie, stores nothing on this site, and sends no request anywhere — the search index is already in your browser and scoring happens there.
Outbound links
This site links out to a large number of cited sources, listed in full in the source register. Those destinations may set their own cookies once you arrive, under their own policies. This site has no part in that and no visibility into it.
Every outbound link here carries rel="noopener noreferrer", so your browser does not tell the destination which page of this wiki you came from. The links are plain hyperlinks — no embedding, no framing, no preview cards that would load remote code on this page.
4. Hosting-Level Storage
A content delivery network or hosting provider sitting in front of this site may use its own cookie or header for routing, caching, or abuse prevention. That happens at infrastructure level, is not set by this site's code, and is governed by the provider's policy. This site's operators do not read or use it.
5. Managing Cookies in Your Browser
You do not need to do anything for this site. If you want to restrict cookies generally, every mainstream browser can block them outright without breaking anything here, since nothing on this site depends on one:
- Chrome and Edge — Settings, then Privacy and security, then Third-party cookies or Site settings
- Firefox — Settings, then Privacy & Security, then Enhanced Tracking Protection
- Safari — Settings, then Privacy, then Manage Website Data
Blocking all cookies will not affect your ability to read any page, use the search, or follow any citation on this site. It will, however, prevent the advertising cookies described in section 6 from being set or refreshed — which is exactly the effect those browser controls are designed to have.
6. Advertising and Third-Party Cookies
Advertising on this site is served by Google AdSense. When an ad is shown, Google may set advertising and personalisation cookies — including the DoubleClick cookie — to measure and tailor ads based on your visits to this site and other websites. When Google Analytics is enabled, Google additionally stores a first-party cookie (_ga) that distinguishes returning visitors so usage statistics stay accurate; analytics data is anonymised and is not used by this site for advertising. These cookies belong to Google, not to this site.
You can opt out of personalised advertising from Google at google.com/settings/ads, and review industry-wide controls at aboutads.info. Where local law requires it — for example in the EEA and UK — a consent notice is shown before advertising cookies are placed, and you can change or withdraw consent from that notice at any time.
7. Related Pages
- Privacy Policy — the wider picture on data collection
- Terms of Service — conditions of using the site
- Legal & Sources — unofficial status and the source register