Firefox PSA

[Aesir]

You seem to be using Internet Explorer to browse the web. For a more secure, faster, and overall more enjoyable experience, we recommend upgrading to Firefox.

Perhaps true. I use FF on my desktop. On this Wesnoth-playing laptop, I wear Microsoft colors for reasons no one needs to know (even if they cared).

But more relevant to the forum topic, I started looking into why IE7 status bar always says, "Done, but with errors on page." on every single page on wesnoth.org. While the error line number reference changes depending upon the page served, the error itself is always, "Object expected." What I find is that the object it's expecting comes from blocks of script code found on every Wesnoth site page I've seen so far (presumably as it's part of the site template):

Code: Select all

<script src="http://www.google-analytics.com/urchin.js" type="text/javascript">
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
_uacct = "UA-1872754-3";
urchinTracker();
</script>

Bingo! The "Object expected" error stems from the fact that I've blocked certain invasive (or at least pervasive) advertising and tracking domains using IE7's native security and privacy options (just like I do with Firefox, after I install some 3rd party add-ons).

• It was then that it occured to me that I might have a more secure, faster, and overall more enjoyable experience if the google-analytics block were written to account for those desiring a more secure, faster, and overall more enjoyable experience.

Similarly, and along those lines, please consider replacing:

Code: Select all

<!--Show advertisement for Firefox to people using Internet Explorer-->
<script type="text/javascript"><!--
if(navigator.userAgent.indexOf("MSIE") != -1) {
	google_ad_client = "pub-5666379313635124";
	google_ad_width = 110;
	google_ad_height = 32;
	google_ad_format = "110x32_as_rimg";
	google_cpa_choice = "CAAQ_-KZzgEaCNKvtTs-3aglKOP143QwAA";
	google_ad_channel = "5421243194";
	document.write("You seem to be using Internet Explorer to browse the web. For a more secure, faster, and overall more enjoyable experience, we recommend upgrading to Firefox.<br>");
} else {
	google_ad_width = 0;
	google_ad_height = 0;
}

With a Firefox/Thunderbird (which I also use on my desktop, it's nice!) affiliate logo set. Or perhaps look to Mozilla's own official "home of community marketing" for ideas on how you can spread the faith.

I think it would be a noticeable site performance and quality improvement for Wesnoth.org that would benefit all Wesnoth forum users, and not just us poor and disenfranchised IE users.

P.S., No, I didn't register on the forums just to kill all of your Firefox kittens. While drafting a (possible) pair of bugs relating to the Statistics page and a seemingly missing 'userdata' folder after 1.3.7 install, I was doing some searching/researching of the posts and docs on this and the wiki site to see if it's already been covered (or if it's even a bug...) - and got a little bent out of shape with the Jackboot approach to Firefox proselytism and the seeming incongruity with the message vis-à-vis the page content. On a more positive note, check out GNU's IceWeasel - it's Firefox with some security fixes and excludes the proprietary (non-open sourced) logos and branding inherent within Firefox! That's my PSA for the day.

[edited for formatting and a zomgtypo in that frensh frase I used.]

[norbert]

Code: Select all

<script src="http://www.google-analytics.com/urchin.js" type="text/javascript">
</script>
<script type="text/javascript">
_uacct = "UA-1872754-3";
urchinTracker();
</script>

What I would like to know is why the Wesnoth project is using Google Analytics on its forum. Do you really want to support Google following people around; is there really that much a shortage of money? I may get the Google AdSense adds on the front page (I don't), but does Google really have to know about what threads I read and how many times I do this? If it's just for you guys, can't you install proper software or turn some phpBB setting on? Since the software is on SourceForge.net, how much traffic do you really have and in what way does Jexiste support you?

[Dave]

What I would like to know is why the Wesnoth project is using Google Analytics on its forum. Do you really want to support Google following people around; is there really that much a shortage of money? I may get the Google AdSense adds on the front page (I don't), but does Google really have to know about what threads I read and how many times I do this? If it's just for you guys, can't you install proper software or turn some phpBB setting on?

We use Google Analytics on our entire site so that we can track various statistics, analyze which pages work well and which don't, and so forth. We use Google Analytics because when I worked at Google I was one of the engineers who developed Google Analytics, and so it's a product I'm quite familiar with. Installing special phpbb tracking code would be awkward.

Jexiste no longer supports us, we need to remove that from some pages on our site.

We have a dedicated server which hosts our website, the add-on content server, the multiplayer server, and is used for other development purposes. The cost of this server is currently around $160US/month, though we are currently looking at upgrading it to get better performance.

David

[Zarel]

What I would like to know is why the Wesnoth project is using Google Analytics on its forum. Do you really want to support Google following people around; is there really that much a shortage of money? I may get the Google AdSense adds on the front page (I don't), but does Google really have to know about what threads I read and how many times I do this? If it's just for you guys, can't you install proper software or turn some phpBB setting on? Since the software is on SourceForge.net, how much traffic do you really have and in what way does Jexiste support you?

And Google Analytics isn't proper software? I don't know any better site statistics software.

I understand that you may dislike Google, but the Wesnoth project trusts them enough to use their software, and insulting both of them generally isn't a good way to getting either to change their minds.

[Iris]

and in what way does Jexiste support you?

DNS.

[norbert]

What I would like to know is why the Wesnoth project is using Google Analytics on its forum. Do you really want to support Google following people around; [...]

And Google Analytics isn't proper software?

That's not the issue. Google tracks me (my IP address) across several websites; they follow me around. Since this file is included in all forum pages, "Google and its wholly owned subsidiaries may retain and use, subject to the terms of its Privacy Policy [...], information collected in Your use of the Service." There are GPL alternatives, like Piwik, that are provided by non-commercial organizations/groups.

[Christheturtle]

I don't mind Google retaining some information. The Data Protection Act was put in place for a reason. Besides, what is your problem? Are you afraid that somebody from the Google office is going to care about what you look at and read, and on that note why do you care? The information they gather will be used as a "whole". They're not going to look at case specific information about certain IP's.

Dave worked for Google (FYI Google offer very good employment opportunities), so he obviously knows what he is talking about.