Check for Google Analytics Using MooTools 1.2
When I launched my new design last week, I used PHP to comment out Google Analytics because I didn't want to skew the stats. Well, I did skew my stats that day because I forgot to uncomment the damn GA code. Rook move, I know. With that in mind, I've created a MooTools script that checks to make sure Google Analytics is loaded. If not, you get a friendly JavaScript alert() reminder.
The MooTools 1.2 Code
window.addEvent('load', function() {
if(typeof(eval(window)['_ufsc']) == 'undefined') {
alert('David, turn on GA!');
}
});
Not having 10 hours worth of stats is a big deal. This code will (hopefully) prevent this from happening again in the future.
![Send Text Messages with PHP]()
Kids these days, I tell ya. All they care about is the technology. The video games. The bottled water. Oh, and the texting, always the texting. Back in my day, all we had was...OK, I had all of these things too. But I still don't get...
![Being a Dev Dad]()
I get asked loads of questions every day but I'm always surprised that they're rarely questions about code or even tech -- many of the questions I get are more about non-dev stuff like what my office is like, what software I use, and oftentimes...
![Create a Dojo-Powered WordPress Website View]()
Yesterday I showed you WordPress' awesome JSON plugin named JSON API. Now that I can get my blog posts in JSON format, it's time to create an awesome AJAX'ed web app with that data. I've chosen to use the power of Dojo and Dijit to...
![Redacted Font]()
Back when I created client websites, one of the many things that frustrated me was the initial design handoff. It would always go like this:
Work hard to incorporate client's ideas, dream up awesome design.
Create said design, using Lorem Ipsum text
Send initial design concept to the client...
Why aren’t you using the same if statement as you do for your config file as mentioned in a previous post?
http://davidwalsh.name/knowing-website-state-php
As a matter of fact, you commented on your own post saying you use it for Google Analytics!
@Jeff: Because I wasn’t developing locally, per say. I was dragging each file to my desktop, and then reuploading as I changed it. Again, not the best way of doing things.
I do, however, use my “website state” strategy at work.
@Jeff: Simply put….I was lazy with my own site and paid the price for it.
Works great unless you are the type to upload something and not confirm the changes (and then have all your visitors get the popup). Hey, if you can make one lazy mistake you can make another, haha.
@Sameer: Very true!
A much simpler and easier to manage solution is to set up a filter in google analytics itself.
For example, “exclude all traffic from user agents marked ‘website-tester.'” Then simply use Firefox’s user-agent switcher extension to use ‘website-tester’ whilst testing.
This also allows more flexibility than the “website state” strategy as PHP, Google Analytics etc… can be clever about your own use of the site for testing purposes even on a website that is live and working for everybody else.
Obviously the website state idea still has validity when when you have two near identical sites, one for production and the other live. As an example my platform generates a robots.txt automatically and on the staging site adds the “Disallow: /” directive to prevent the staging site from being indexed and all those duplicate content issues.
Hey David, this post is a few years old now and it still works! :D but have you come across any new ways of detecting Google Analytics?