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PRIVACY STATEMENT FOR DELPHIDABBLER CODESNIP
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Offline Privacy
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CodeSnip stores some personal information in two configuration files:
Common.ini
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Common.ini is located in the in the DelphiDabbler\CodeSnip sub-folder of your
system's common application data folder. The location of this folder varies
depending on the OS. On Vista it is usually at C:\ProgramData.
The data that is stored in Common.ini is:
* A unique 32 digit hexadecimal key based on attributes of your computer.
* A 32 digit hexadecimal registration key (registered programs only).
* The registered user name or nickname (registered programs only).
The data that is used to create the hexidecimal keys cannot be recovered from
the keys.
User.3.ini
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User.3.ini is found in the DelphiDabbler\CodeSnip sub-folder of your system's
per-user application data folder. Again this varies by OS. On Vista it is
somewhere like C:\Users\[UserName]\AppData\Roaming, where [UserName] is the ID
of the currently logged on user.
The file stores several user-specific application data settings such as your
preferences. The only personal information is as follows:
* Any user name or email address you provided if you ever entered the
information in a dialog box. This is used simply to automatically enter
the data in dialog boxes where needed, to save you re-typing it. See below
for details of activities that require either or both a name or email
address to be submitted.
* Your user name and password if you configured CodeSnip to access the
internet using a proxy server. The information is used only to access the
proxy. Passwords and encrypted.
If you have upgraded from CodeSnip v2 there may also be a file named User.ini.
This contains pretty much the same information as User.3.ini. The file is
ignored by CodeSnip v3.
Spyware
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No spyware or other software that threatens your privacy has been deliberately
or knowingly included with CodeSnip. If the program is found to contain spyware
it will have been added by third parties and the author asks to be informed of
any such occurrence. Please report any suspicious behaviour via
www.delphidabbler.com/contact.
CodeSnip never tries to "phone home" of its own accord. It only goes online in
response to user requests. Should you notice any unauthorised activity please
inform the author since it is likely that your copy of the program has been
hacked by some third party.
CodeSnip Online Activity
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Various user-initiated actions cause CodeSnip to go online. They are:
1. Updating the database.
2. Registering the program.
3. Subscribing to the mailing list.
4. Submitting code for inclusion in the main database.
5. Accessing various websites via hyperlinks and menu options.
6. Accessing the internet using a proxy server.
The first four actions are performed directly by CodeSnip, which communicates
with web services located at www.delphidabbler.com using HTTP on port 80. The
fifth action simply displays web pages in a browser. The sixth passes user
information to the proxy server.
Personal data will neither be published on the DelphiDabbler website nor
knowingly passed to third parties. Furthermore your data will only be used by
the author for the purposes described.
Updating the Database
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This activity is started by displaying the "Update From Web" dialog box and
clicking its "Update from Web" button. CodeSnip then contacts the update web
service and sends the following information:
* Unique program key (see above for details).
* Program version number.
All update activity is logged on the web server and the program key and version
number are recorded in the log. The web service sends updated database files to
CodeSnip along with any current news items. News items may contain web links.
The data is used to provide statistics about database usage and which versions
of the program are in active use.
Registering the Program
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This activity is started when the user chooses to register CodeSnip. A wizard
appears that guides the user through the registration process. The wizard
displays the data that is to be sent to the registration web service. The data
is only sent if the user clicks the wizard's "Submit" button. The data is:
* The program's id, name and version information.
* The unique program key (see above for details).
* The user name or nickname.
* A description of the operating system being used.
* A flag indicating whether the user wishes to join the CodeSnip mailing
list.
* The user's email address (only required if joining the mailing list).
The registration data is recorded in a database on the DelphiDabbler web server.
The data is only used to keep track of the number of people using the different
versions of the program and what operating systems are being used. The
registration web service returns a registration code to the program. CodeSnip
records this code, with the user name, in Common.ini.
Should the user elect to join the mailing list, the supplied email address and
user name will be stored in a further database. See "Subscribing to the mailing
list" below for details of how mailing list membership is managed.
Subscribing to the mailing list
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When you choose to subscribe to the CodeSnip mailing list a dialog box is used
to gather subscription information. By connecting to the internet and clicking a
"Subscribe" button you cause the following information to be sent to the
DelphiDabbler mailing list web service:
* The id of the mailing list being subscribed to.
* Your email address, as entered in the dialog box.
* Your name or nickname (if provided).
The above data will be recorded in a database on the DelphiDabbler web server.
Mailing list membership requires activation by the subscriber in response to an
email sent from the web service. Subscribers can cancel their subscription at
any time. The email address and user name are deleted from the database when the
subscription is cancelled or if it is not activated in a reasonable time.
Supplied email addresses are used only to send relevant mail shots and will not
be knowingly released to third parties.
Submitting code to the main database
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This activity is started from the Database | Submit Routines menu option and
data is collected using the resulting wizard. Clicking the Submit button in the
wizard sends the following information to the DelphiDabbler code submission web
service:
* The CodeSnip program version number.
* Your name, email address any comments entered in the wizard.
* All the routines you selected to send.
You can preview the data to be sent (in XML format) from the wizard. The XML
will be stored in a file on the DelphiDabbler server until processed. The data
is also emailed to the database maintainer (currently the author of CodeSnip).
The routines may be edited and published on the Code Snippets online database
and distributed to CodeSnip users. Your name may be used to credit the routines.
Your email address will not be published and is used only to contact you with
any queries about the submitted code.
Accessing Websites via Links and Menu Options
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CodeSnip's Help | On The Web menu option leads to sub menu items that cause
various pages from DelphiDabbler.com to be displayed in the user's default
browser.
In addition, various links in the program's main display, some dialog boxes and
the help file access remote websites. Links from the program will use your
default browser while links from the help file use Internet Explorer. You should
refer to the relevant website's privacy policies to learn how they use any data
you supply when visiting their pages. DelphiDabbler has no control over the
content of linked third party websites and you follow these links at your own
risk.
Accessing the internet using a proxy server
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CodeSnip can be configured to use a proxy server to access the internet. In this
case the program sends the appropriate user name and password to the proxy
server if required. DelphiDabbler has no control over the proxy server and you
should satisfy yourself that the proxy you use is trustworthy. You use this
feature at your own risk.
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