Advisory for IE7/8 Users
Updated 16 July 2010
There is a limitation to Google’s viewer (which this plug-in embeds) that can cause the embedded file not to load properly in Internet Explorer 7 or 8 in its default settings. You are affected with this issue if you find that the plug-in loads correctly in other browsers (Firefox, Chrome, etc.) but in IE the viewer may appear something like the following:
possible viewer appearance in IE7+
Obviously, this is not the desired behavior, but unfortunately this appears to be a “bug” between Google’s viewer and IE’s default cookie handling. This problem occurs sporadically for all users of Google’s viewer in IE7+, and is not limited to WordPress or this plug-in. However, the error has been addressed in GDE 1.9.5 and higher by enabling the “Enhanced Viewer” which addresses a cookie handling issue that causes this to fail in IE. Google has not responded to direct requests to change this behavior in their standard viewer, which still remains as an option in case of problems.
Here is the relevant thread on Google Docs Help Forum confirming the issue.
There are several other workarounds if you choose not to use the “Enhanced Viewer”, but unfortunately all require your web site viewer to change settings in IE’s Internet Options. If this is happening on your site, the viewer will work properly in IE if automatic cookie handling is turned off in the browser settings. Alternatively you can add google.com to the allowed cookies list this way:
- Go to “Tools” menu
- Select “Internet Options”
- Click on the “Privacy” tab
- Click the “Sites” button
- Type
google.comin the “Address of website” field and click “Allow” - Close the settings and refresh the page in your browser
In order for your web site visitors to view the file, they will have to do the same. Because of this annoyance, the “Enhanced Viewer” option was added in GDE 1.9.5. It works by proxying the viewer code and stripping it of its cookie requirements before presenting it in the browser.
If you need help with this function, please use the support form.
5 Responses to 'Advisory for IE7/8 Users'
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i’m looking for a way to programmatically add my domain to the client-browser’s allowed cookies. even if a popup asks user permission, that’s still better than asking the user to deal with Internet Options dialog box.
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correction, it appears to work with google.com added to allowed-cookies sites (not my domain).
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I didn’t realize this affected IE7 as well, that appears to be new. Currently I can’t even get the viewer to load in IE8, which is a step worse than it was before (it hangs indefinitely or prompts for login to Google).
Adding google.com to allowed cookie sites is perhaps one step better than the corrections I suggest above, but still requires fussing with Internet Options, yes? I don’t see a simple way to add the domain otherwise. Open to suggestions on how to deal with this issue better.
k3
12 Nov 09 at 8:08 am
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In IE8, if you click “Fit Page to Screen”, it works fine.
hi
i may be wrong about this, but i see this behavior– when i load a google viewer in IE 7, I get the broken link you show above.
but if i click the Shrink button, I can see the pdf. Do you get that?
i cannot comment on IE 8, because I refuse to install it on my computer.
(ps, Somehow the Vuzit embed does not suffer from this problem. they are non-flash, like Google’s viewer, which I prefer).
cheers!