Although there appears to be a quite a lot of information available on the web relating to the new EU cookie directive, I have read that there are a good many people who remain completely unaware of its existance.
From the absence of replies to this post, I am guessing that there's not many people who have actually worked with the necessary source code to fulfil this requirement either.
So, to hopefully help get the ball rolling with this thread, I have done a bit more Googling and have come up with this:
http://www.wolf-software.com/downloa...gins/jconsent/
and this:
https://github.com/phuu/jquery.cookieConsent
Let's focus on the first link - jConsent: which, by all accounts, when properly integrated into the existing source of a web site, creates a horizontal bar running across top or bottom of page and saying something like:
Do you consent to receiving non-essential cookies? We use these to aid in improving and maintaining our website. We will remember this preference until you close your browser.
Now all of this is just fine and dandy, but for those like myself, who are blessed with less than an average understanding of Javascript, there is not not much in the way of an explanation (in very simple terms) provided with this free GPLv3 download to answer all of the many questions one might have relating to its instalation.
Anyway, I decided to give it a chance and proceeded to download jConsent, decompressed the file using winzip and proceeded to read the index page provided.
Okay, so there is a section outlining how the script works, which is pretty helpful as far as it goes, but in my humble opinion there isn't enough information when it comes to the following points:
Apparently there is basic usage and advanced usage, both of which require a supplied block of code copying and pasting between the <head> and </head> tags.........
.......only where between the <head> and </head> tags?
Does it matter where?
I have read on other similar sites, offering similar code, that each individual cookie-generating script running on a given web page must be wrapped in a section of code and linked to the main script so as to stop the generation of a cookie until the visitor has been given the option to opt in/out. However, I remain unclear as to whether this is necessary with the jConsent script. If so, how is this achieved, and what code should I use to wrap the individual cookie scripts?
The help page for jConsent also includes a section headed: How do I read the cookie?
What does this mean to me?
Where (or where not) on my page do I include this cookie reading code?
If not on my web page, where and how is it used?
Moreover, why should I need to use it?
Perhaps I am just dense beyond all belief, but isn't the checking process automatic, or does it mean I am responsible for manually checking every single visitors preferences?
Oh, one other thing. From reading the help page provided with other similar scripts, it is my understanding that for those visitors who choose to opt in or out of the cookie consent, a record needs to be stored, either on my system, or on their system, meaning that when they return to my site on some future occasion, and should they have chosen to opt in, they will not be greeted with the same nag screen?
How do I go about making this happen?
Presumably I have either to send a cookie which is stored on the visitors computer, or to save the results in some form of database on my server, both of which being processes of which I have absolutely no knowledge or understanding.
Another important question is that by adding all of this javascript to the source code of my web site, is this likely to mean that the source code will no longer comply with WC3 validation?
If so, how can this be overcome?
You know, it strikes me that before this new directive came into force, some form of simple, free, open source solution could have been made available to everybody, which could then have be included into web sites by even the least technically-minded person.
Unfortunately, unless I, and many others like me, remain completely ignorant to its existance, nothing as simple as this has actually happened.
Okay, so there is, as already mentioned, a lot of free stuff available to fulfil this purpose if you go looking for it, but even with my reasonable knowledge of html and css, I am working at the extremes of my understanding when it comes to including Javascript/s, so how anyone with zero knowledge of coding is supposed to get this problem sorted is completely beyond me. Even my own paid web host points its users to the jConsent script, and explains nothing about how to get this set up and working.
I can only guess that all this has added even more stress to a whole lot of peoples lives.
Without prejudice, and with the greatest of respect for those who understand more than myself, all of the above might lead one to ponder whether what a large part of this is really all about raising more revenue from charging thousands, if not millions, of non-technically-minded web site owners to get their site set up with this new code. Whilst a good idea in principle, it's probably no wonder this new directive is apparently so unpopular with a fair proportion of those I have seen writing about it.
Now, if you just happen to have spent time reading through this post and happen to be blessed with more technical knowledge than I, please could you spare a moment to answer any of my questions, which might help not only myself, but also other less 'teckie' individuals like me who might read this in the future.
Any advice and assistance gratefully received.
