[thelist] Usability of .htaccess for passwd protection

[Tony Grimes]

Hi guys,
     I'm thinking of using .htaccess to password protect a download
directory on a server that's running Apache. I'm worried about the
usability of this method. Will the user have to re-enter the password
everytime he/she tries to download a file from the directory? What if they
explore the rest of the site (that's not protected) and come back to the
protected directory later? If so, is there a way to use cookies in
combination with the .htaccess file without using a separate password
protection script? TIA

.tony