1. What cookies are
Cookies are small text files placed on your device when you visit a website. They let a site remember your actions and preferences (such as consent choices) and help us understand how the site is used so we can improve it. Some cookies are set by us directly (first-party); others are set by services we use, such as analytics or embedded content (third-party).
2. Cookies we use
We keep the cookies on this site to a minimum and group them as follows:
- Strictly necessary – used for core functionality such as remembering your cookie-consent choice, securing forms against spam, and keeping the WordPress site itself working correctly. These cannot be switched off.
- Performance and analytics – help us understand how visitors use the site (Google Analytics and Jetpack Stats) so we can improve content and navigation. These only run after you choose Accept in the cookie banner. Google Analytics sets the
_ga and _ga_* cookies, which last up to 2 years; the data is kept in Google Analytics for 14 months. - Functional – remember choices you make (for example, form inputs you are part-way through) to improve your experience.
3. Third-party services
Some pages load content or scripts from third parties, which may set their own cookies in line with their own policies:
- Google Analytics (Google) – visitor statistics, loaded only after you accept statistics cookies.
- Jetpack / WordPress.com (Automattic) – site statistics and security features.
- Google reCAPTCHA – protects our contact form from spam and abuse.
- CodePen – used to embed live code examples on some articles.
- LinkedIn and Upwork – linked-to from this site; each sets its own cookies once you visit those platforms.
We do not control these third-party cookies directly – please refer to each provider’s own privacy and cookie policy for details.
4. Managing your preferences
When you first visit this site you can choose which non-essential categories of cookies to allow. You can change your choice at any time from the cookie-preferences link in the site footer, or by clearing cookies for this site in your browser settings. Most browsers also let you block cookies globally or be notified before a cookie is set; see your browser’s help pages for instructions.
