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Note: The technical solutions given below relate to standard versions of Internet Explorer and FireFox. If you do not use these browsers, there should be similar solutions for the browser software you do use.

L I can't find what I am looking for in A2A. I'm sure there must be some archives relating to my research topic!

F Have you tried looking at the Help with Searching page for tips? Links to relevant Help are also available on all three A2A search pages.

Remember that the level of detail provided in A2A catalogue descriptions varies - see the A2A Catalogues page, especially the last paragraph (you may need to scroll down to read this). If a name, place or subject is not mentioned in A2A catalogues, it may still be mentioned in the archives they describe. You can find out more about archives described in A2A by contacting the relevant repository. Contact details are available from search results - or see the A2A Contributors page. See also our Useful Links pages for other sites which may help you. In particular, the sites on the Archives Network Links page may help you identify archives which are not described in A2A.

And don't forget that A2A is regularly updated, so revisit the site often to check newly-included catalogues for useful references.

L I can't get into the database - every time I click on the Search button I keep getting a message saying "Invalid Access"!

F Do you have Cookies disabled?
You must have cookies enabled in order to use the A2A database. We do not use cookies for any other reason than to facilitate individual user sessions on the A2A database application itself. No personal information is used and the cookies are terminated as soon as a user session is over.

Internet Explorer 6.0: On the Tools menu, click Internet Options, select the Privacy tab at the top of the window, then in that section click the button labelled 'Sites...' Type www.a2a.org.uk in the box labelled 'Address of Web site', and click the 'Allow' button. Once you have done this, a2a.org.uk should appear in the bottom section entitled 'Managed Web sites', along with a setting of 'Always Allow'. Click OK to all the windows to finish. You should now be able to use the A2A database straight away and on any return visit to the site.

Internet Explorer 5.x: On the Tools menu, click Internet Options, select the Security tab at the top of the window, click the Custom Level button, scroll down to the Cookies section and verify that 'enable' is selected at least in the section entitled "Allow per-session cookies (not stored)".

In FireFox, go to the Tools menu, then select Options, click on Privacy, and select the Cookies tab at the top of the window. Click on the button labelled Exceptions and type www.a2a.org.uk in the box labelled Address of Web Site. Click the Allow button and www.a2a.org.uk should appear in the bottom section along with a Status setting of Allow.

F If cookies aren't the problem... You probably haven't yet been allocated an individual user session. Click on the magnifying-glass above or on this link to search the database. You should then be able to access the search forms from anywhere on the site during your current visit. Links from other websites or bookmarks direct to any of the search forms themselves do not work!

Allocating each user an individual "session" whilst they are using the database allows us to process catalogues according to each individual's requirements, and facilitates additional options such as the sorting of individual Search Results. The site is an extremely popular one and the session mechanism also allows us to divide up the server's resources (which are not infinite). If a user has not been active for a certain period, we have to assume they have left the site, and that therefore their resources can be reallocated to other users.

L My first search worked fine, but now the same files appear when I click on the results from a second, different search!

This is due to your browser's cache (or "Temporary Internet Files"). Your browser is re-using temporary copies of A2A webpages from its own cache rather than requesting them anew from the A2A website.

F First try emptying your browser's cache (recommended):
On the Tools menu in Internet Explorer, click Internet Options, click the General tab, click Temporary Internet Files, and then click Delete Files. In the Delete Files dialog box, click OK, and then click OK again for Internet Options.

In FireFox, go to the Tools menu, then select Options, click on Privacy, and select the Cache tab at the top of the window. Click on the button labelled Clear Cache Now.

F Then change the following options (necessary):
On the Tools menu in Internet Explorer, click Internet Options, and then click the General tab. In the Temporary Internet Files section, click Settings. Under "Check for newer versions of stored pages" you might have "Never" selected. Change this to "Automatically". Click OK for Settings. Click OK for Internet Options

L Why do I get "timed-out" of the database every now and again?

Unfortunately, we have to impose a 'time out' operation on the A2A database in order to facilitate fair and equal access to all users. The service is a very popular one, and server resources are diminished by every individual user. As capacity is not infinite, resources need to be 'freed up' on a regular basis for new users and/or new searches. The system detects lack of activity and those sessions are 'timed out' accordingly. Lack of activity as far as the server is concerned means no new requests to it from a particular user for a certain period of time (so this may happen for example if you have just been browsing the same catalogue on-screen for a very long time, or if you left your desk for a while to go and do something else).

If you find yourself spending a lot of time browsing online rather than searching, a sensible technique is to save catalogues locally (on your own computer) so that you can browse them off-line whenever and for as long as you like. If you do this, please just remember that these catalogues are still subject to copyright restrictions (so don't re-distribute your local copies!). A2A catalogues are also occasionally updated on-line, so your local copy may eventually become out-of-date.

F Both Internet Explorer and FireFox have a "Save" function which allows you to do save catalogues locally. Go to the "File" menu (top left on the browser's toolbar) and choose "Save As" or "Save Page As" from the list of options displayed. When saving, note there are also options which allow you to be selective (eg. save as HTML, or save as Text only).