[theme-reviewers] tracking code in themes

Fri Mar 9 20:03:44 UTC 2012

What about this:

1) Detect theme activation
2) Prompt user via built-in backend alert/notification HTML and CSS that a
couple choices need to be made
3) Direct user through process, including activation and initial ping.

I *believe* that would satisfy the repo requirements. Trent, would that be
an approach that would get you the results you're looking for?

If so -- get coding! *grin*

On Fri, Mar 9, 2012 at 3:01 PM, Chip Bennett <chip at chipbennett.net> wrote:

> The very act of pinging a third party upon activation of a Theme - and
> doing so without the informed consent of the end user - is a violation of
> the free-software principle that users have the right to use software "*without
> being required to communicate about it with the developer or any other
> specific entity*".
>
> The rest of your arguments still miss the fundamental point that the issue
> here is not the usefulness/benefit of the service, but rather that the *informed
> consent of the end user* is paramount, and is required, both as a matter
> of adherence to free software philosophy and also as a matter of
> wordpress.org policy.
>
> Chip
>
> On Fri, Mar 9, 2012 at 1:34 PM, Trent Lapinski <trent at cyberchimps.com>wrote:
>
>> For the record, PressTrends is not a "tracker" it doesn't track users
>> WordPress usage, or personal information.
>>
>> It simply tells you when someone activates a theme and reports back the
>> version number of the activation and what version of WordPress they are
>> using. That's the meat of it. It does a few other minor things, but the
>> users aren't be "tracked", and we aren't getting live data from the users
>> or any personal information.
>>
>> Furthermore, this information is publicly available to begin with. By
>> viewing the resources / source of any WordPress install you can see the
>> stylesheet which contains the version number of the theme. Which means this
>> information is publicly available on all WordPress websites running any
>> WordPress theme.
>>
>> Is it wrong to aggregate such information? I do not believe so,  and even
>> Otto has stated this is something Automattic has been looking to replicate
>> for WordPress.org themselves, so the "ethical" argument for PressTrends
>> is entirely invalid.
>>
>> If WordPress.org offered these same features you would all think its the
>> greatest thing since sliced bread, and no one would be raising privacy
>> concerns because there is no private information being made available.
>>
>> No one is having their privacy violated, PressTrends simply aggregates
>> useful publicly avaliable analytic data. That's it.
>>
>>
>>
>>      --Trent Lapinski
>> =============
>> CEO of CyberChimps LLC
>> trent at cyberchimps.com
>> Mobile (714) 904-4280
>>  Twitter @trentlapinski
>> http://CyberChimps.com
>>
>> On Mar 8, 2012, at 6:35 PM, Emil Uzelac wrote:
>>
>> oh and as far as checking if the Theme is on warez or not is completely
>> useless, don't even bother, anyone that sells them commercially will tell
>> you not to waste your time, you report one bad link, 5 more will appear in
>> few hours, than you report that 5, 20 more will come up shortly after
>> that...this is the war we can't win, at least not for right now.
>>
>> On Thu, Mar 8, 2012 at 8:30 PM, Emil Uzelac <emil at themeid.com> wrote:
>>
>>> Neither one was good to be honest with you. GA tracks more than just how
>>> the Theme is being used and that isn't right. For Adobe, Sure if you let
>>> them, I personally don't allow anything to go out, not even simple report
>>> back to them when something crashes. We all like more details, better
>>> statistics for greater improvement, that's why people invented surveys,
>>> polls etc... Most of the time this is covered in support forum, if they
>>> like your work, they will tell you a) if something goes wrong b) if there's
>>> something that they don't like and just another way of communicating with
>>> users or customers if we're talking about commercial Themes.
>>>
>>> Emil
>>>
>>> On Thu, Mar 8, 2012 at 8:19 PM, Daniel Fenn <danielx386 at gmail.com>wrote:
>>>
>>>> So how is one suppose to check of see if it was downloaded from a werz
>>>> site? Adobe does this all the time. Or was it GA that pissed then off?
>>>>
>>>>
>>>>
>>>> On Fri, Mar 9, 2012 at 9:41 AM, Emil Uzelac <emil at themeid.com> wrote:
>>>> > Back in late 2009 I contracted for commercial Theme site where they
>>>> had two
>>>> > forms of tracking, one was via Google Analytics and second one hidden
>>>> to
>>>> > check if the Theme was purchased or downloaded from "" sites. In
>>>> matter of
>>>> > months they went from "all star" to "where are the customers" type of
>>>> thing.
>>>> > Long story short users don't like to be tracked one way or another and
>>>> > honestly I don't blame them at all. Permission or not "touching
>>>> things that
>>>> > should not be touched" are never good idea.
>>>> >
>>>> > If one wants to track and get the general ideas where the Themes go,
>>>> simply
>>>> > use your very own GA. There are many things you can do with Analytics
>>>> beyond
>>>> > how many visitors one have on monthly basis. Not 100% accurate, but
>>>> it does
>>>> > get close.
>>>> >
>>>> > This is from my marketing perspective. Privacy is issue everywhere
>>>> nowadays
>>>> > and once this leaks to the public, your sales will go down to toilet,
>>>> please
>>>> > believe me on this.
>>>> >
>>>> > Imagine this title on a popular WP News sites "Example Theme Site Now
>>>> Tracks
>>>> > User's Behavior". warez
>>>> >
>>>> > Cheers,
>>>> > Emil
>>>> >
>>>> > On Thu, Mar 8, 2012 at 3:48 PM, Bruce Wampler <weavertheme at gmail.com>
>>>> wrote:
>>>> >>
>>>> >> As the author of a popular WordPress theme, I would like to add my
>>>> strong
>>>> >> agreement with the opt-in only policy for trackers such as
>>>> PressTrends.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> I find Trent Lapinski's arguments for the harmlessness of opt-out
>>>> tracking
>>>> >> self-serving and disingenuous. Anyone with the least bit of
>>>> understanding of
>>>> >> the difference between opt-in and opt-out, and how that affects user
>>>> >> privacy, would never argue for allowing any kind of automatic or
>>>> opt-out
>>>> >> tracking of any kind in any repository based WordPress theme. It is
>>>> simply
>>>> >> the wrong thing to do.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Maybe PressTrends isn't any different in concept or privacy issues
>>>> than
>>>> >> Google's tracking code, or even WP stats, but both of those are
>>>> opt-in -
>>>> >> they don't happen unless the web admin actively adds them.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Personally, I believe any sort of tracking should require permission
>>>> from
>>>> >> the visitor to the site - but that is a much larger battle.
>>>> >>
>>>> >> Bruce Wampler
>>>> >>
>>>> >> _______________________________________________
>>>> >> theme-reviewers mailing list
>>>> >> theme-reviewers at lists.wordpress.org
>>>> >> http://lists.wordpress.org/mailman/listinfo/theme-reviewers
>>>> >>
>>>> >
>>>> >
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>>>
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-- 
-Doug
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