Technical website problems
This website has been created to support the following browsers and platforms. We are aware there is a difficulty viewing some menu areas on iPod devices and Internet Explorer 10 has compatibility issues, we are working to resolve these problems.
Should you experience other difficulties please email us giving as much information as possible, including your access device and browser.
Supported browsers
The Scottish Courts website has been developed to support a reasonable range of browsers and operating systems.
Target browser:
Other supported browsers
- Firefox
- Google Chrome
- Internet Explorer 7 and 9
Partially supported browsers and operating systems
- Opera 9.x
- Safari
- iOS
- Android
- Blackberry
If you are using Internet Explorer 6, we recommend that you upgrade to the latest version of Internet Explorer for your current operating system.
Internet Explorer download
PDF files
Because a PDF document can be displayed within the existing layout of the web site you are browsing, it might sometimes appear that the document is part of the web page on your screen. In fact it is a different file in a different format. You will run into problems if you try to print or save the PDF document using the browser toolbar, because the browser will apply the print or save commands to the web pages that frame the PDF document rather than to the document itself.
When you open up a PDF file from your web browser you should notice that the document opens with its own Acrobat Reader toolbar including print, save and zoom icons. Always use the Acrobat Reader toolbar for tasks specific to PDF documents .
Problems viewing or opening PDF files from your browser
When I try to look at a PDF from my browser, I see a blank frame or window. What can I do to fix this?
There are a number of possible causes for this occurring, which may depend on the browser version you are using, the version of Acrobat Reader installed, or configuration settings in your browser, including Security settings. Upgrading your browser or the Reader software may resolve the problem, or you may find you need to change your security settings. In IE 6 or later 'Internet Options' is found under the 'Tools' menu. If you are worried about changing your security settings you may wish to download the file and view it offline using the Acrobat Reader program which will run as a separate application outside your browser.
Problems opeing PDF files may also be due to a slow connection to the internet or because you are trying to view a very large PDF file. If this is the case you will have to wait for the file to download before you can view it.
Further Info:
If you are using Internet Explorer, Microsoft provide help guidelines specific to this problem in their Knowledge Base, article reference Q177321.
You may also want to look at Adobe's guide to configuring your browser for use with Acrobat reader:
Problems printing PDF files from your browser
When printing a PDF file from a website I get pages of obscure processing instructions instead of the contents of the file. Why is this happening?
The PDF file format is made up of postscript instructions to the printer, which your browser may interpret as plain text. This results in the processing instructions being printed instead of just the document, and may take up screeds of paper (which is obviously very wasteful if you don't cancel the print job in time!) When printing a PDF file from a website, you should always use the print icon on the Acrobat reader toolbar , rather than using the File -> Print option from your browser menu. You should also note that right-clicking on a link to a PDF file and choosing the "Print Target" option may also result in incorrect printing of the document.
Problems saving PDF files from your browser
How do I save a copy of a PDF file from the website to my local disk?
Remember to use the Acrobat Reader toolbar, rather than the toolbar on your browser when you want to save or print a copy of a PDF you have opened in a browser. You may also download and save a PDF file without opening it by right-clicking on a link to the file and choosing "Save Target As".
When I fill out a PDF form in the browser, then save it to my local disk, the form is saved but all the data I entered has disappeared. How do I save the form so that it includes my data input?
Unfortunately you can't save any changes to a PDF document unless you have the full version of the Acrobat software installed. The free Acrobat Reader will allow you to save a local copy of the file but you won't be able to save any changes you make such as filling out form fields.
Please note: If you don't have the full product, don't worry, it is possible to use Acrobat Reader to print filled-out forms from the web site.
Where to get a free copy of Adobe Acrobat Reader to open PDF documents
Adobe Acrobat Reader is the software used to open, print and save PDF documents. It is available free of charge and can be downloaded from the Adobe website.
About RSS feeds
What is RSS?
An RSS feed allows you to view all of the latest content from a website as soon as it is published. Many news related websites and other online publishers syndicate their content as an RSS feed to allow users to subscribe and receive updates when new content is available.
The Scottish Courts website currently publishes the following RSS feeds.
Why subscribe?
RSS solves a problem for people who check numerous websites daily. Without RSS, to receive updates from your favourite websites you have to visit them, read through their content and check if any updates have been made.
With RSS, your RSS reader (see 'how to subscribe' section below) aggregates content from all of the sites you have subscribed to and monitors them for updates. This means that if you check numerous websites on a regular basis, you can receive immediate updates from these sites to your reader and view all of the content from a single page.
How to subscribe
To use RSS you need an RSS reader. Readers can be downloaded for free and can be web-based, desktop-based or mobile-based. Popular readers include Google reader (web-based) and FeedReader (desktop-based).
Once you have decided on a reader to use, you can subscribe to a site's feed by clicking the orange RSS icon on the web page or the address bar. Once you have done this, your reader will update regularly with content from each site's feed.