ga_ga - 8:16 pm on Mar 9, 2003 (gmt 0)

Turns out they won't allow custom 404 via .htaccess after all. They did try setting me up via 'the virtual server configuration' - by which I have this file 404.shtml in root, which gets displayed as the 404 error page; I can use whatever html in it as long as I keep the filename the same. Don't quite know what the 'virtual server configuration' entails, they say it's a security thing.. but I'm having some very weird behaviour. Lynx, Opera display the custom 404 content fine, but IE ignores it and puts up a standard 404 page. Interestingly, the last two lines on the 404 page that gets displayed by IE are:

HTTP 404 - File not found
Internet Explorer

so, I'm suspecting this is coming from within the browser, not their server.

If I type in an invalid filename for WW, though, using IE, I get the forum's custom 404 - the 'scream' painting - so I'm totally confused.

What, in their linux/apache (virtual?) setup, could cause this weirdness?

Is it maybe that if an actual 404 code is returned in the http headers to IE, it's tough luck, you get it's own error page, and not any other associated content the server sent? That's a bit off eh? Wonder if the mysterious 'virtual server configuration' would allow for not sending a 404 if that were the case..

I'm beginning to get rather shy of even trying to ban email harvesters / bad robots using .htaccess lol