Official State of Iowa Website Here is how you know

Web Browser Software Help

Web Browsing Software

The first way to help your experience is to upgrade your web browser to the newest version. We use some formats that take advantage of newer standards. 

As an example of older browser problems, the site search box in the top right corner may not show the magnifying glass or hint text in the entry field. Newer browsers show the visual hints.

In very old browsers, the layout may look vastly different from what is intended. This is due to use of newer coding standards which older browsers aren't programmed to interpret. Our compatibility testing guidelines specify using the newest versions of web browsers and the previous two versions.

Some browsers may be set to "compatibility mode" which renders web content the way older versions of the browser did. You may have better luck by disabling compatibility mode for our site for those browsers. This can usually be found in your browsers "tools", "settings" or "preferences" section. If you need help finding the control for this, check your browser's website or consult your preferred web search site.

PDF Files

Some of our PDF files allow you to fill in values to complete the form. Sometimes a browser will have problems loading these convenient files because its built in PDF viewer does not support advanced features. You might need to disable the built in PDF viewer and use the Adobe PDF Reader plugin for your browser. The process is outlined in on this web page - https://helpx.adobe.com/acrobat/kb/pdf-browser-plugin-configuration.html

Most of our PDF links instruct the browser to open a PDF file in a new tab or window. If you want to download the PDF file instead of opening it, bring up the help menu by right-clicking (Control-click on a Macintosh) on the link and then choose the option that allows you to save the file.

Downloading Files

Browser configurations and settings determine how to handle different files. Most browsers will open PDF files in the browser interface. For other file types such as Word documents, Excel formatted files and PowerPoint files the browser may immediately send the files to your "Downloads" folder or stop to ask you what you want to do with the files. Some browsers are configured to open these files in assigned helper applications.

Opening Pages in New Tabs or Windows

Links on this site opening PDF documents or linking to other websites will open in a new tab or window. This is part of the standards set the the State of Iowa.

You might desire to open links to other pages within this site in new tabs or windows of your browser. You can do this by right-clicking on the link (on a Macintosh, hold "Control" down while clicking ). You can select from the menu to open the link in a new tab or  a new window.

A shortcut step to accomplish the same task is to hold down the modifier key ("Control" key on Windows PC and Linux or Apple Key on a Macintosh) while clicking on the link.

Our links will automatically open links to documents and content on other sites by automatically opening a new tab.

Changing Web Page Format Based on Browser Window Size

Our site is designed to present the content in different configurations based on the display size of your browser. If you are viewing it from a smartphone or tablet, the layout will be different from what you see on a desktop browser with a large screen.