Parliamentary Data home

Configuring Pop-up Blockers

An annoying feature of some websites is pop-up windows that open automatically when you visit and/or leave a page. These pop-ups are such a nuisance that many people now use special pop-up-blocking utilities. Some firewalls and other security software also have an option to block them.

Parliamentary Data was designed long before pop-up abuse became common, and makes extensive use of pop-up windows — the main Parliamentary Data database window, the Copyright window, the Help window and the message boxes are all pop-ups.

A typical symptom of the problems caused by pop-up blockers is that when you click the “Search Parliamentary Data” button, the Parliamentary Data Copyright window opens but the button that would allow you continue does not appear.

If your blocking software is set to block all pop-ups, then you will not be able to use Parliamentary Data. In order to use the Parliamentary Data database, you must allow pop-ups. Some software allows you to specify sites from which pop-ups are allowed, while others have global settings. For more information, please choose the appropriate item in the following list:

• Google Toolbar
• MSN Pop-up Guard
• Yahoo! Toolbar
• Firefox browser
• Internet Explorer 7
• Internet Explorer 6
• Netscape 8 browser
• Netscape 7 and Mozilla browsers
• Opera browser
• Safari browser
• Other pop-up blockers

Google Toolbar

One of the most popular pop-up blockers is the Google Toolbar for Internet Explorer. Fortunately, it is easy to tell the Google Toolbar to stop blocking specific websites such as Parliamentary Data. First, go to the Parliamentary Data website and click the pop-up blocking button in the Toolbar:

You also need to allow popups from the database window, which has a different Web address:

1. Click the big “Search” button to open the database window
2. Press the “F11” key on the top row of your keyboard (this will make the Web address bar and the Google toolbar visible)
3. Click the pop-up blocking button in the Google Toolbar
4. Press the “F11” key again, to hide the toolbars

From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

MSN Pop-up Guard

MSN Pop-up Guard is part of the MSN Toolbar for Internet Explorer. By default it blocks all pop-ups, and therefore blocks Parliamentary Data. First, go to the Parliamentary Data website, click the black down arrow on the pop-up blocker, and click “Allow Pop-ups for This Site” on the menu.

You also need to allow popups from the database window, which has a different Web address:

1. Click the black down arrow on the pop-up blocker
2. In the drop-down menu, select “Pop-up Guard Settings...”
3. In the dialog box, select the “Allow List” tab
4. Type “http://195.40.43.23”, and then click the “Add” button
5. Click “OK” to close the dialog box

From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

Yahoo! Toolbar

The pop-up blocker in the Yahoo! toolbar for Internet Explorer by default blocks all pop-ups, and therefore blocks Parliamentary Data. Make sure that the blocker is enabled, and then allow it to block a pop-up from Parliamentary Data. The toolbar keeps a list of sites from which it has blocked pop-ups, and then allows you to choose from which of these sites you want to allow pop-ups.

In the list of recently-blocked pop-ups:

1. Click “www.polis.parliament.uk”, and then click “Allow”
2. Click “195.40.43.23”, and then click “Allow”
3. Click “Close” to close the dialog box

This will add www.polis.parliament.uk and 195.40.43.23 to the list of allowed sources of pop-ups. Do not worry if only one of the Web addresses is present in the list; just allow the one that is present.

From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

Firefox

The Firefox browser includes a pop-up blocker that by default allows all pop-ups, and therefore does not block Parliamentary Data. You may prefer to block all pop-ups, and then specifically allow pop-ups for Parliamentary Data. To do this:

1. Select the “Tools” menu
2. Select “Options…”
3. Select “Web Features…”
4. Click “Block Popup Windows” so that a tick appears in the check box
5. Click “Add Site…”
6. Type “www.polis.parliament.uk” and click “OK”
7. Click “Add Site…” again
8. Type “195.40.43.23” and click “OK”
9. Click “OK”

From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

In the Mac OS X version of Firefox, the Preferences can be found on the Firefox menu, not the Tools menu.

Internet Explorer 7

The Internet Explorer 7 browser includes a pop-up blocker that by default blocks most unrequested pop-ups,, and therefore blocks Parliamentary Data. The blocker allows you to stop blocking cookies from specific websites:

1. Select the “Tools” menu
2. Select “Pop-up Blocker”
3. Select “Pop-up Blocker Settings”

In the Pop-up Blocker Settings dialog box:

1. Type “www.polis.parliament.uk” in the “Address of website to allow:” text box
2. Click “Add”
3. Type “195.40.43.23” in the “Address of website to allow:” text box
4. Click “Add”
5. Click “Close”

This will add Parliamentary Data to the list of allowed sources of pop-ups. From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

Internet Explorer 6

The version of the Internet Explorer 6 browser that is included with Windows XP SP2 includes a pop-up blocker that by default blocks most unrequested pop-ups, and therefore blocks Parliamentary Data. The blocker allows you to stop blocking cookies from specific websites:

1. Select the “Tools” menu
2. Select “Pop-up Blocker”
3. Select “Pop-up Blocker Settings...”

In the Pop-up Blocker Settings dialog box:

1. Type “www.polis.parliament.uk” in the “Address of Web site to allow” text box
2. Click “Add”
3. Type “195.40.43.23” in the “Address of Web site to allow” text box
4. Click “Add”
5. Click “Close”

This will add Parliamentary Data to the list of allowed sources of pop-ups. From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

Netscape 8

The Netscape 8 browser includes a pop-up blocker and manager that by default prevents you from using Parliamentary Data. To allow Parliamentary Data to operate normally:

1. Go to http://www.polis.parliament.uk
2. In the Parliamentary Data tab, click the shield at the right, to open the Site Controls
3. Click the “Advanced” tab
4. Click to select the “Internet Explorer” rendering engine
5. Click to produce a tick against “Allow unrequested pop-up windows”
6. Click to remove the tick against “Open requested pop-ups in new tab”
7. Click “Done” to close the Site Controls

The default Netscape 8 settings also prevent links to full-text documents from opening in a new window, so you also need to alter the settings for tabbed browsing:

1. Select the “Tools” menu
2. Select “Options…” to open the Options dialog box
3. Select “Tab Browsing”
4. Click to remove the tick against “Open a new tab instead of a new window”
5. Click to remove the tick against “Open non-requested pop-ups in new tab”
6. Click “OK” to close the Options dialog box

From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

Netscape 7.1, Netscape 7.2 and Mozilla 1.4+

The Mozilla browser includes a pop-up blocker that by default blocks all pop-ups, and therefore blocks Parliamentary Data. Netscape 7.1 is a re-badged version of Mozilla 1.4, and Netscape 7.2 is a re-badged version of Mozilla 1.7. All of these browsers enable you to stop blocking cookies from specific websites. To enable popups for the Parliamentary Data website:

1. Select the “Tools” menu
2. Select “Popup Manager”
3. Select “Manage Popups”

In the Allowed Web Sites dialog box:

1. Type “www.polis.parliament.uk” and click “Add”
2. Type “195.40.43.23” and click “Add”
3. Click “OK” to close the dialog box

From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

Netscape 7.2 has a Netscape toolbar that allows you to block or allow pop-ups by clicking a button. However, you should still follow the above procedure to allow pop-ups for Parliamentary Data.

Opera 7.5

The Opera browser includes a pop-up blocker that by default allows all pop-ups, and this is the setting that is required for Parliamentary Data. If you need to change back to this default setting:

1. Select the “Tools” menu
2. Select “Preferences…”
3. Select “Windows”
4. Click the black down arrow opposite “Pop-ups”
5. Select “Open all pop-ups”
6. Click the “Apply” button
7. Click the “OK” button

Note that in the same section of Preferences, “Window handling” must be set to “Prefer separate windows” for the Parliamentary Data window to function correctly.

From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

The pop-up settings can also be changed in the Quick Preferences menu that appears when you press the F12 key. Note that Opera is by default set to identify itself as MSIE 6.0 — this is the proper setting if you want to use Parliamentary Data.

In the Mac OS X version of Opera, the Preferences can be found on the Opera menu, not the Tools menu.

Safari

The Safari browser includes a pop-up blocker that by default blocks all pop-ups, and therefore blocks Parliamentary Data. This default setting is indicated by a tick to the left of the item on the Safari menu. To allow pop-ups, click the menu item to remove the tick.

From now on, you will be able to use Parliamentary Data as normal.

Other pop-up blockers

For other pop-up blockers, we recommend either (i) setting an option that blocks only unrequested pop-ups, or (ii) setting an option that blocks all pop-ups but allows for some websites to be specified as exceptions, and including www.polis.parliament.uk in your list of exceptions. The Help for your blocking software should tell you how to do this. If the firewall or security software covers a network, not just your own computer, then you should consult your Network Administrator.

Another possible reason for the Parliamentary Data database not working is that your firewall does not allow any JavaScript commands to be passed (JavaScript is used to create pop-up windows). If this is the case, then you will need to ask your Network Administrator to enable JavaScript for the www.polis.parliament.uk and 195.40.43.23 sites.