How We Use Cookies and Similar Technologies
Historical Medicine Archive (accessible at ssiio.com) uses cookies, local storage, and similar technologies to support the operation of the catalogue and to improve your experience. This policy explains what these technologies are, how we use them, and the choices you have regarding their use.
What Are Cookies?
Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit a website. They are widely used to make websites work more efficiently and to provide information to the site owners. Cookies may be session cookies (which expire when you close your browser) or persistent cookies (which remain on your device for a set period or until you delete them).
First-Party and Third-Party Cookies
First-party cookies are set by us directly on your device. Third-party cookies are set by domains other than ssiio.com. Where we enable features from third-party services—such as analytics or advertising—those services may place their own cookies on your device.
Types of Cookies We Use
Essential (Strictly Necessary) Cookies
These cookies are required for the basic operation of the catalogue. They enable core functions such as page navigation, session management, and access to secure areas. The catalogue cannot function properly without these cookies. Examples include cookies that remember your session state or maintain your reading list selections during a visit.
Preference Cookies
These cookies allow us to remember choices you make (such as your preferred text size, display settings, or region) and to provide enhanced, more personal features. They may also be used to remember changes you have made to text size, fonts, and other parts of pages that you can customise. The information these cookies collect may be anonymised and they cannot track your browsing activity on other websites.
Analytics Cookies (Where Enabled)
Where analytics are enabled, we use first‑party analytics tools (such as a self‑hosted analytics service) and may also use third‑party analytics services (such as Google Analytics) to collect information about how visitors use the catalogue. These cookies help us understand which pages are most popular, how users navigate the site, and whether any errors occur. The data collected is aggregated and anonymised where possible. We use this information to improve the catalogue’s performance and user experience.
If Google Analytics is used, Google may process the data as described in its privacy policy. You can learn more about Google’s data practices and opt‑out options by visiting Google’s partner sites policy.
Advertising Cookies (Where Ads Are Displayed)
Where advertisements are displayed on the catalogue, we may use Google AdSense or other advertising networks to serve ads. These networks may place cookies on your device to build a profile of your interests and show you relevant advertisements on our site and elsewhere on the web. These cookies may be persistent and are typically set by third‑party advertising networks. They enable the network to recognise your device each time you visit a website that participates in the network.
If Google AdSense is used, Google uses cookies to serve ads based on your visits to our site and other sites. You can opt out of personalised advertising by visiting Google’s Ads Settings. For more information about how Google uses data, see How Google uses information from sites or apps that use our services.
Local Storage
In addition to cookies, we may use local storage (such as HTML5 localStorage) to store data on your device. Local storage is similar to cookies but can store larger amounts of data and is not automatically sent to the server with each request. We use local storage for purposes such as remembering your reading progress within a book or storing interface preferences. Local storage data remains on your device until you clear it or until the application removes it.
Your Choices and Consent
When you first visit the catalogue, we may present you with a cookie consent notice. For non‑essential cookies (preferences, analytics, and advertising), we will request your consent before placing them. You can provide or withdraw your consent at any time by adjusting your preferences via the consent management tool available on the site.
Most web browsers allow you to control cookies through their settings. You can set your browser to accept or reject all cookies, or to notify you when a cookie is set. You can also delete cookies that have already been stored. Please note that disabling essential cookies may affect the functionality of the catalogue.
For local storage, you can clear it through your browser’s settings. Disabling local storage may impact features such as saved reading progress.
Practical Effects of Disabling Storage
If you choose to disable all cookies and local storage:
- Essential functions such as logging in or maintaining a reading list during a session may not work.
- Your preferences (e.g., text size) will not be remembered between visits.
- We will not be able to collect analytics data to improve the site.
- You may still see advertisements, but they will not be personalised based on your interests.
Changes to This Policy
We may update this Cookie Policy from time to time. Any changes will be posted on this page. We encourage you to review this policy periodically.