FRED AYLING, CPD officer, Royal Pharmaceutical Society, responds:

I am sorry to hear of Ms Johnson’s experience. The website does indeed use pop-ups. Pop-ups are a legitimate technology widely used by many websites. However they have gained a negative reputation because they are commonly used for advertisements. At the time when the website was developed pop-up killers were not in wide use. The settings on pop-up killers can be adjusted to permit pop-ups from legitimate sources, including www.uptodate.org.uk. I use the same pop-up killer as Ms Johnson and have changed its settings to allow pop-ups from www.uptodate.org.uk. This is a straightforward procedure which takes a minute or two. Instruction can be found in the manual that comes with Norton Internet Security (NIS), to which I would ask Ms Johnson to refer. The advice that she received from her expert friend would seem to be to switch off her pop-up killer altogether which would mean that she continues to receive advertisements from other sites. We do not recommend that she do this.

There are at the very least some 170 different pop-up killers on the market. It is unreasonable to expect the technical helpdesk to know how to change the settings on all of these programs. It is, however, reasonable to expect those who choose to install a pop-up killer to know how to use it effectively. The helpdesk correctly identified the problem and advised Ms Johnson that she needed to adjust the settings on her pop-up killer. If she does not have the NIS manual, a search of the internet should find locations where one may be downloaded. Alternatively, advice is available from the publisher’s website at www.symantec.com

With regard to the use of java script as a solution to this problem, I am able to inform Ms Johnson that www.uptodate.org.uk already uses javascript. Indeed, pop-up windows cannot be created without it. Javascript is not a solution. The website is to be upgraded in the spring to include the use of Macromedia Flash technology. The primary reason for this upgrade is to create a smoother and more generally enhanced interface for users. One spin-off benefit is that it will do away with the use of pop-ups and their associated problems.

The CPD website now has close to 3,500 users. The helpdesk has taken in excess of 1,000 documented enquiries, the great majority of which have been dealt with quickly and effectively. The helpdesk is manned by members of the team who have developed the site, so callers will receive the best informed, expert advice. The helpdesk is committed to doing all it reasonably can to help users. To that end the helpdesk has written a set of instructions for making www.uptodate.org.uk a permitted site for pop-ups in NIS.