Remove the Attribution gadget from blogs

Removing the Attribution gadget from blogs that have Designer Templates

This article is about how to change or delete the attribution that Google has added to add blogs which have a Designer template.    (Updated May 2011 with the latest status of the methods listed.)


What is the attribution - and what's wrong with it.

If your blog has a Designer template (ref What sort of template do I have?) you may have noticed a gadget in the blog-footer called attribution.   This gives credit to:

• The template designer
  (Even though s/he only designed the structure, not the colour, font and gadget layout combination that you're using - and readers who aren't familiar with Blogger probably won't understand the distinction between your work and the template-programmer)

• The copyright owner of the background photo you're using
  (Even though s/he doesn't own any of the zillion other photos in your blog - and again, readers aren't going to understand what photographs are part of the template and what aren't)

• Blogger for "powering" your blog
  (Even though they're hosting it, and the real power may be provided by other tools:  eg I have blogsites hosted by Blogger but whose real power comes from Google Maps, Google Custom Search, and Sites.)

The gadget also has a field "Copyright (optional)".  Whatever you put into this is shown at the beginning of the attribution.  It will accept some simple HTML commands, for example a line break (<br />) as shown in the picture.   But I have a feeling that adding something more complex, eg an entire Creative Commons statement, won't work.



How to remove the Attribution Gadget

Removing this gadget has been troublesome since it was introduced.   Several times, we found a method to remove it, which worked for a while.   But then Blogger added a check for that method, and code to put the gadget back again each time the template was saved - so we had to find another approach..

For a while they stopped putting the gadget back and the earlier, simpler methods of removing the gadget were working.  Then they stopped again.   So the complete list of removal methods that I've found, with notes about their current status, is below.

WARNING:  

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I have not checked the Blogger Terms and Conditions to find out whether you are allowed to remove the Attribution.   Even if they don't mention it today, a requirement to keep the statement could be added tomorrow.   This advice does not mean that I, or Google/Blogger, are saying that you should/can/may/must remove the attribution statement.

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Methods that currently work:

• Adding a CSS rule to hide the attribution gadget 

• Changing your template name to a non-standard value AND
  removing the gadget by either unlocking and removing the gadget  or  commenting out the code.  
  As at 20 Sept 2010, these methods both work if the name-value has been changed.

• Adding a "not on mobile templates" command to the gadget code (only works on mobile templates, not required if you have been successful with removing  or commenting out the code)

Techniques that used to work, but don't any more:

• Unlocking and removing the gadget
  This worked initially, then stopped.   Most recently (Jan 2011), it was working again.    If you try it, and it doesn't work, please leave a comment below, and try one of the other methods.

• Commenting out the code.
  (I haven't tested this again lately - it may be that it works again too.)

Advantages and Disadvantages:

I'm not keen on methods that involve hiding things, because it may make search-engines think you're being sneaky.

But changing the template-name may mean you don't get improvements that Google apply to the standard templates in future (eg support for new browser features, bug-fixes).

It may also mean that you get less-sympathetic responses to future question in the Blogger Help Forum:  when people use 3rd party templates, one regular reply to, "how do I do XXXX to my template"  is "ask your template provider."

To avoid this, you should at very least remember what template you were using, and possible even rename yours to something like "WHATEVER, based on Awesome".


Give credit where it's due: 

If you do remove the standard attribution gadget, it may be a good idea to replace it with a customised attribution that acknowledges any or all of your domain registrar, blog-host (Blogger, AKA Google), file host, template designer and customiser, graphic designer, content writer(s) - in short anyone whose efforts have contributed to your blog.