Out of the blue, when I click on any link to a CNET app page I'm greeted with this pop-up:


Will somebody please explain its significance?

Thanks.

Like Flash Player's 'Local Storage' setting, HTML5 (as implemented in Safari at least) allows for client-side storage. The site(s) you get the message on seem to be running HTML5 db support tests using an older, unpatched version of Modernizr. Like the Flash setting above, the one underlying your dialog may be adjusted in the Security tab of Safari's prefs (Database storage).

PS, I didn't get that dialog, but it turns out that my database was set to something other than zero.

I've found Local Storage - Dive Into HTML5 to be a reasonably clear and concise introduction to the topic at hand; scroll down to FURTHER READING for links to more information than you (probably) have time to peruse.

Thanks, Dave, that may help providing some background to the above. And you were right in thinking further reading might exceed my time (as well as current interests). Should that change, I know where to look.

Thanks for the link; it's certainly informative, but it discusses local storage, not databases...the subject of my original post.

For an explanation of databases see FURTHER READING > Web SQL Database: > Introducing Web SQL Databases, and, for an example, "Web Database demonstration" (which reproduces the pop-up that CNET generated).

In the end, though, and although I realize that both databases and local storage expand Safari's functionality, I'm still not sure how they differ or what benefit I'd derive from, for instance, allowing CNET to create the database it asked to create.