[theme-reviewers] tracking code in themes

[Emil Uzelac]

So no more Google or MS JS libs either correct?



On Thu, Mar 8, 2012 at 2:17 PM, Chip Bennett <chip at chipbennett.net> wrote:

> Roughed-in Privacy guidelines:
> http://codex.wordpress.org/Theme_Review#Privacy
>
> These privacy guidelines are adapted from the Plugin guidelines regarding
> "phoning home". Please comment so we can revise/improve, as necessary.
>
> I've renamed "Theme Settings and Data Security" as "Security and Privacy",
> with "Theme Settings and Data Security" and "Privacy" being sub-sections
> under this guideline.
>
> Thanks,
>
> Chip
>
>
> On Thu, Mar 8, 2012 at 1:53 PM, Chip Bennett <chip at chipbennett.net> wrote:
>
>> On Thu, Mar 8, 2012 at 1:38 PM, Trent Lapinski <trent at cyberchimps.com>wrote:
>>
>>> Woh.
>>>
>>> It is truly a shame you guys have already made the decision to restrict
>>> PressTrends use from WordPress.org without any discussion, or reason.
>>>
>>
>> Nothing is being restricted. You are free to use PressTrends in your
>> WPORG repository-hosted Theme. We're merely stipulating that you have to
>> *disclose* to end users that the Theme is using this service, and that you
>> have to allow end users to *opt-in* to use of this service.
>>
>>>
>>> There is absolutely nothing wrong with knowing how many people are using
>>> your themes, and what version numbers they are using. In fact, I wish
>>> WordPress.org itself provided this kind of data publicly.
>>>
>>
>> I refer you to Free Software philosophy<http://www.gnu.org/philosophy/free-sw.html>
>>  [*emphasis *added]:
>>
>> The freedom to run the program means the freedom for any kind of person
>> or organization to use it on any kind of computer system, for any kind of
>> overall job and purpose, *without being required to communicate about it
>> with the developer or any other specific entity*. In this freedom, *it
>> is the user's purpose that matters, not the developer's purpose*; you as
>> a user are free to run the program for your purposes, and if you distribute
>> it to someone else, she is then free to run it for her purposes, but *you
>> are not entitled to impose your purposes on her*.
>>
>>
>> Simply put: you, as a developer, do not have the right to this
>> information without the user's informed consent.
>>
>>>
>>> There is absolutely no private information that is garnered from
>>> PressTrends.
>>>
>>
>> From the PressTrends privacy policy <http://presstrends.io/privacy>:
>>
>> Themes containing the PressTrends tracking code track the following
>> information only: number of posts published, number of comments, blog name,
>> theme version, site url, and the number of plugins.
>>
>>
>> Those data, in that combination, ARE potentially personally identifiable.
>>
>>>
>>> This isn't a privacy issue, and the metrics it does gather are extremely
>>> valuable to theme developers.
>>>
>>
>> Whether such data constitute a privacy concern is a matter for each end
>> user to decide for him/herself.
>>
>>>
>>> The only thing PressTrends "tracks" is theme activations of what theme
>>> version number of the theme is being activated, the average number of
>>> posts, comments, and plugins, and abandonment rates telling you if people
>>> have stopped using the theme after 30-days.
>>>
>>> I have absolutely no problem disclosing this better in our
>>> documentation, but to make it an option that has to be enabled makes the
>>> data it does gather pretty much useless.
>>>
>>
>> Useless to whom: the end user, or the developer? If the service is useful
>> to the end user, then make the usefulness argument to end users. If the
>> service is *not* useful to the end user, then it absolutely should not be
>> enabled by default.
>>
>>>
>>> It enables us to see if our users are upgrading their themes to the
>>> latest versions, and gives us insight into those who stop using our themes.
>>>
>>> Having to turn PressTrends off by default and then asking users to
>>> enable it as a theme option makes the data useless because you will only
>>> get activation numbers from people who enable the theme option which means
>>> they are already using and configuring your theme.
>>>
>>> If this is truly a requirement, this should be in the theme review
>>> guidelines.
>>>
>>
>> Certainly. I will copy the similar policy wording from the Plugin
>> repository <http://wordpress.org/extend/plugins/about/guidelines/> (see
>> #7: No "phoning home"), and find the appropriate place for it in the Theme
>> guidelines.
>>
>> Thanks,
>>
>> Chip
>>
>
>
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