Where can I get basic information on using the site?

View the Natural Standard Training Webinar or the Natural Standard Users Guide.

What are the technical requirements for using Natural Standard?

• Your web browser must be configured to allow cookies for Natural Standard.

  To enable cookies in Internet Explorer:

  • Choose Tools>Internet Options>Privacy>Advanced
  • Set the dialog options as follows:
    • Check "Override automatic cookie handling"
    • First-party Cookies: Accept
    • Third-party Cookies: (Doesn't matter. We recommend "Block".)
    • Check "Always allow session cookies"
    • Click "OK" on all open dialogs

  To allow cookies for Natural Standard in Mozilla/Firefox:

  • Choose Tools>Options>Privacy>Cookies
  • Click the "Exceptions" button next to "Allow sites to set Cookies"
  • Enter "*.naturalstandard.com"
  • Click either "Allow for Session" or "Allow"
  • Click "OK"

• Your web browser must have JavaScript enabled, which is disabled by default in some versions of Mozilla Firefox.

  To enable JavaScript in Mozilla Firefox:

  • Choose Tools>Options>Content and check "Enable JavaScript"

• If you use Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall, you must disable ad and popup blocking for Natural Standard using these instructions below.

I keep getting prompted to enter a username and password, even though I've already entered them or have IP-based access.

There are a number of things that could cause difficulty logging in:

• Is your web browser accepting cookies from Natural Standard?

  See these instructions above to ensure that your browser is configured to accept cookies from Natural Standard.

• Did you misinterpret our terms of use page as a "login"?

  In order to use our site, you must agree to our site's terms of use. Our login page displays the terms of use and asks you, when entering your login information, if you accept them. If you enter a valid username and password but don't click "Accept and Log In" (for example, if you simply hit "enter" after typing your username and password), you are again presented with the terms of use, on a new page, and asked if you accept them.

  You can bypass this second page by clicking "Accept and Log In" on the login page.

• Have you entered your password correctly?

  Natural Standard user names and passwords are case sensitive, and will not work if not entered correctly. Additionally, you must click on the “Accept and Login” button after entering your user name and password. (If you just press “enter” you will be prompted to accept the terms of use.)

  Please make sure that you have entered your password correctly – re-enter it carefully. Then be sure to click on the “Accept and Login” button after entering your user name and password.

• Did you attempt to access our site from a browser window other than the one in which you logged in?

  Web browsers don't always share information between multiple windows. If you log into our site using a Windows version of Internet Explorer (IE), for example, and open a second window by double-clicking the Internet Explorer icon, the second window does not inherit any information from the first window. If you attempt to access protected Natural Standard content in the second window, you will be asked to log in again.

  To access Natural Standard content from more than one browser window in IE, choose "File>New>Window" after logging in. A new window created this way will inherit the first window's session information. (Mozilla/Firefox shares information between windows opened with either method.)

• Did your login session expire?

  You will be asked to log in again after 20 minutes of inactivity. (There's no "solution" for this, other than clicking on something every now and then to keep your session active.)

I use Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall and nothing happens when I click some of the table of contents links.

Norton Internet Security's and Norton Personal Firewall's popup- and ad-blocking features have been known to interfere with the display of some Natural Standard content.

First verify that your browser has JavaScript enabled using these instructions above, then follow these steps to disable ad and popup blocking for Natural Standard, while still keeping them active for other web sites:

• In the 2006 version:
  • Browse to Natural Standard using Internet Explorer
  • Find the Norton toolbar. If it isn't visible, choose "View"->"Toolbars"->"Norton Internet Security 2006" to display it.
  • Click the Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall icon on the toolbar. (The icon might be labeled "Web Assistant".)
  • Uncheck "Block ads on this site" and "Block popups on this site". The page will automatically refresh with the new settings.
• In the 2004 version
  • Open Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall.
  • Double-click Ad Blocking.
  • Ensure that Ad blocking is enabled.
  • Click Advanced.
  • On the Global Settings tab, click Add Site.
  • In the New Site/Domain dialog box, type "naturalstandard.com"
  • Click OK.
  • On the left pane, click naturalstandard.com.
  • On the User Settings tab, under Pop-up ads, uncheck Use Ad blocking settings.
  • Click Permit.
  • Click OK.
  • In the Ad Blocking dialog box, click OK.
  • Exit Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall
• In the 2003 version:
  • Open Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall.
  • On the Menu bar, click Options > Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall.
  • On the Web Content tab, click Add Site.
  • In the New/Domain dialog box, type "naturalstandard.com"
  • Click OK. The site naturalstandard.com is now in the left pane.
  • Click naturalstandard.com to highlight it.
  • On the User Settings tab, under Pop-up ads, uncheck Use Ad blocking settings.
  • Click Permit.
  • Click OK.
  • Exit Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall.

I get prompted to enter a username and password when following a link to Natural Standard from another subscription-based website or intranet site.

Many organizations offer access to Natural Standard to their employees or members by means of a link from their intranet or subscription-based web site. Natural Standard then checks the url of the page on which the link appears, or "referring" url, to determine whether to allow access.

Personal security software sometimes prevents web browsers from sending referring urls. Fortunately, such software can often be configured to allow referring urls to be sent to selected web sites. Here's how to do this using Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall:

• Start Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall.
• Do one of the following:
  • In 2004 or later versions of Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall, double-click "Privacy Control", and then click "Advanced."
  • In Norton Internet Security or Norton Personal Firewall 2003, click "Options > Internet Security", and then click the "Web Content" tab.
• At the bottom of the Advanced window, click "Add Site."
• In the New Site/Domain box, type the name of the site that you want to receive the referrer information, and click "OK." The site name appears in the left frame of the Options window.
• Click the name of the new site.
• On the Global Settings tab, under the Information about visited sites section, uncheck "Use default settings."
• Click "Permit."
• Click "OK" to close the Options window.

My IP-based access isn't working. How do I find out my IP address?

• Go to http://www.myipaddress.com/
• The IP address also shows in the lower right hand corner of the login dialog screen. Go to the www.naturalstandard.com website, click on any of the databases, then click on something in the database, then you will get the login screen and in the bottom right hand corner you will see the IP address.
• Contact your institution’s IT department.

Internet Explorer for Mac OS is displaying strange characters in some monographs.

Since they frequently contain non-Latin characters, such as Greek letters and scientific symbols, Natural Standard monographs are encoded using the UTF-8 character set. Internet Explorer for Mac OS occasionally fails to recognize this and attempts to render the page using its default character encoding. Here's how to correct this:

First, try explicitly setting the page's character encoding to UTF-8:

• Choose View>Character Set>Universal Alphabet (UTF-8). The page should reload with the correct character encoding.

If that doesn't work, try making UTF-8 the default character encoding:

• From the "Explorer" menu, select "Preferences"
• Select "Language/Fonts (under "Web Browser")
• Select "Universal Alphabet (UTF-8)" from the drop-down next to "Default Character Set"
• Quit and restart Internet Explorer for the change to take effect