The website features:

• Full events calendar and listings for the centre’s weekly programme and special events
• Intergrated ecommerce system linked to PayPal for taking bookings and selling centre merchandise
• 360 degree interactive panorama’s of the centre’s main rooms
• Donations system and donor’s “Wall of Fame

“Love the new website, simpler to find info on events. The panoramic views of the Shrine Room and Peace Hall are brilliant!” – KSDE website user

Visit www.edinburgh.samye.org

What are cookies?

Cookies are small files that a website places on the computer or mobile device of the end user.  They can be used to provide useful functionality for the user of the website, for instance to keep them logged in to the website, or to keep track of items in their shopping basket for online shops.  WordPress will use Cookies in both of these instances.

Cookies are sometimes used to provide personalisation for the website user, storing a user’s preferences for certain types of content, so the most relevant information can be presented to them.

Google Analytics uses Cookies to track users’ behaviour on a website so that the site owners can assess impact and improve user experience on the site.

In some cases, Cookies can be used to “harvest” user data – i.e. tracking the content viewed or search for by an individual for the purposes of advertising to them or selling this data to third party sites or advertisers.

So, Cookies can be used to enhance a visitor’s experience of website, and sometimes for more nefarious purposes.

Stopping using Cookies is often not an option for most websites, as Cookies are currently the best and in some cases the only way to achieve analytics, ecommerce and other functionality online.

What is the Cookie Law?

The Cookie regulations are being introduced to protect consumers’ privacy.  The legislation will place limits on what data stored through Cookies can be used for without the consumer’s knowledge and consent.

The Cookie regulations oblige businesses (a) to provide website users with full details of all the Cookies used by the website and, (b) to provide the user with the option to “Opt In” before any Cookie is placed on that user’s device that is not essential to providing the functionality that the user has requested of the website or which could be considering to intrude upon the user’s right to privacy.

The UK Information Commissioner’s Office states that:

“… the intention behind this Regulation is … to reflect concerns about the use of covert surveillance mechanisms online.  Here, we are not referring to the collection of data in the context of conducting legitimate business online but the fact that so-called spyware can enter a terminal without the knowledge of the subscriber or user to gain access to information, store information or trace the activities of the user and that such activities often have a criminal purpose behind them.”

Who does the legislation apply to?

All UK businesses will need to comply with the EU Cookie regulations in accordance with the UK legislation.

How to ensure our websites comply with regulations

In the case of Cookies used for core website functionality such as logins and ecommerce, it should be sufficient  to provide clear information for users on the website to explain the use of these Cookies.  Most websites should have “Terms and Conditions”, “Privacy Policy” and/or “Frequently Asked Questions” sections, and you should be sure to include information on your website’s use of Cookies clearly within these pages.

Cookies used for Analytics purposes, whilst not “strictly necessary to provide the services requested by the user”, are likely to fall outside of the scope of the elements of the regulation that will be enforced in the UK.  The Information Commissioner states:

“We are unlikely to prioritise first-party cookies used only for analytical purposes in any consideration of regulatory action.”

As a result, it should again be sufficient to clarify your website’s use of Cookies for Analytics purposes within the general information provided on your website.

What you should do right away

Here are the three things you should do immediately:

1. Find our what Cookies your website uses.  If you need information on the Cookies used on your own website, please contact us directly and we will be pleased to provide you with details of: (a) what Cookies are stored on your website visitor’s devices, (b) when is the Cookie stored, and (c) what for.
2. Tell your users what Cookies your website uses and why.  Ensure that your site contains clear information about all the Cookies used on your website.  These could be included within your Terms and Conditions, Frequently Asked Questions, Privacy Policy or at the points on your website when Cookies are required (i.e. on the user login screen, when the user places an item in their online shopping basket, etc.).
3. Stay within the regulations for Cookies that have privacy implications for your users.  For any Cookies used on your website that are not strictly required to provide either services requested by the user or Analytics data, consider carefully whether you need to be using that Cookie.  If you do, you will most probably need to give the user the option of explicitly “Opting In” to such cookies being stored on their device – otherwise you could fall foul of the regulations. 

Further Reading:

Information Commissoner’s Office: Information on Cookies and Cookie Legislation
http://www.ico.gov.uk/for_organisations/privacy_and_electronic_communications/the_guide/cookies.aspx

ICC UK Cookie Guide: http://www.dma.org.uk/sites/default/files/PDF/Cookies/20120402%20ICC%20Cookie%20Guide%20v3.pdf

Culture Sparks article by Cameron Leask of Escrivo Internet Consulting on the UK Cookie Regulations:
http://www.culturesparks.co.uk/intelligence/information/uk-website-cookie-regulations

For the last few months, we have been had the privilege of working with our partners at AmbITion Scotland and Cultural Sparks to deliver the AmbITion project’s brand new one-stop shop for digital development in the Arts.

The new website brings AmbITion’s previous three websites, 800-strong user network and hundreds of archived resources and videos together under one roof, and features a brand new, clean design.

And here’s some early feedback on Twitter for the new website:

Find out more about the project on our Portfolio page

Between January and March 2012, Pooka.Pro worked with AmbITion on a web development project to migrate three existing WordPress websites and their 800-member strong Ning.com network onto a single website to act as a one-stop-shop for digital development in the cultural sector of Scotland.

Pooka.Pro provided the following services:

• Redesign and information architecture of the new portal, to include content from AmbITion’s four previous websites
• Migration of AmbITion’s 800 Ning network users and all their account content to the Open Source BuddyPress platform
• Migration and recategorisation of hundreds of articles, along with multi-media, to a single WordPress website
• Development of AmbITion:TV – a filterable channel to navigate AmbITion’s video archive
• Integration of forums on the new web portal
• Development of event calendar and listings functionality for the network, including moderated event submission

Visit AmbITion at:

www.getambition.com

Coded by: Chris Hardcastle for Pooka.Pro

Tested for: WordPress 3.2.1
Required: MarketPress 2.3.2 – 2.5.7 (available from WPMUDev.org)

This plugin extends the functionality of MarketPress by WPMUDev to include customer reports for each product.

This can be extremely useful if you are selling tickets or admissions to events using MarketPress in order to provide a report that can be printed out to check attenders into your event using the booking codes provided by MarketPress.

Download the MarketPress Customer Sales Tracker Plugin (version 0.3)

This plugin requires MarketPress. Download MarketPress from:

Disclaimer

This WordPress plugin is provided freely, but comes with no warranty of any kind, so use at your own risk. Always backup your data before trying new plug-ins.  If you experience problems with the plugin, please tell us using the form below and we try to fix, time and resources permitting.

AMA members across the UK will be meeting regionally to discuss the use of Twitter as a tool for audience development.

Join us all online using the hashtag #tweetAMA.

He will lead a breakout session on “The Changing Web and the Arts”, and will join the afternoon Question Time session with other speakers from the event, including Nick Beasley of Audiences Wales, Anthony Timothy of Clwyd Theatr Cymru and Guto Evans of Elfen.

The day will offer opportunities to explore ways to utilise digital and social media; gain an insightful analysis into gallery and museum attenders, pick up some practical approaches to fundraising and discover a whole new creative approach to problem solving.

Visit the Arts Council of Wales website for more information

The software, designed by Marcus J Wilson of Pooka.Pro and developed by our partners at Alchemy Plus, is aimed at small-scale cultural venues and arts promoters.

AudienceBase can be loaded onto any PC workstation or laptop, and will allow users to:

• Record as much or as little data on ticket buyers and attenders – from basic name and email address details, to full address and artform preferences.
• Track customer ticket bookings against events and provide reports on the number of tickets sold and ticket income.
• Set up membership types and assign your customers to schemes.
• Run a wide range of reports – from financials through to frequent attender reports.
• Perform exports of email or addresses for marketing campaigns.

The recent updates to the software make the software compatible with Windows 7.

To download your copy of AudienceBase, visit the HI~Arts website.

Pooka.Pro provided:

• Virtual tours of 6 of luxury apartments, featuring over 20 rooms
• Hotspots within each panoramas linking to high-quality photographic stills of apartment details
• Preparation of panoramas in both Flash and HTML5 format to ensure compatibility with iPads and other mobile devices

The Chester Residence website was designed and built on the Joomla! Content Management System by our friends and partners at Web Foundry.

Visit The Chester Residence website