decision: Determine analytics strategy (Firebase vs Vercel vs both)

[claude]

Summary

A product decision is needed for the analytics strategy. There is a @todo annotation in lib/analytics/platform.web.ts:9 that blocks proper analytics implementation.

Current State

/**
 * @todo PRODUCT DECISION REQUIRED: Determine analytics strategy:
 *   - Option 1: Use Firebase Analytics only (current default)
 *   - Option 2: Use Vercel Analytics only (for Vercel-hosted deployments)
 *   - Option 3: Use both Firebase and Vercel (requires deduplication logic)
 *   Configure via EXPO_PUBLIC_ANALYTICS_PROVIDER: 'firebase' | 'vercel' | 'both' | 'none'
 */

Options

Option	Pros	Cons
Firebase Only (current)	- Already implemented - Works across all platforms - Free tier generous	- Requires Firebase project setup - May not be ideal for web-only metrics
Vercel Only	- Zero-config for Vercel deployments - Great web vitals	- Web-only - No native support - Paid feature
Both	- Best of both worlds - Platform-specific insights	- Requires deduplication - More complex - Higher cost
None	- Simplest	- No analytics data

Decision Criteria

1. What platforms matter most? (web, iOS, Android)
2. What metrics are most important? (user events, performance, crashes)
3. Budget considerations
4. Where is the web app deployed? (Vercel, other)

Action Required

Product owner should decide which analytics strategy to pursue and update:

1. lib/analytics/platform.web.ts - Remove TODO and implement chosen strategy
2. .env.example - Document the EXPO_PUBLIC_ANALYTICS_PROVIDER option if needed
3. README.md - Update analytics documentation

Files Affected

• lib/analytics/platform.web.ts
• .env.example (potentially)

---

Related to: #133 (Daily Codebase Review - 2025-12-11)

🤖 Generated with Claude Code

[coderabbitai]

🔗 Similar Issues

Possible Duplicates

• VolvoxCommunity/Sobriety-Waypoint#133

Related Issues

• VolvoxCommunity/Volvox.Website#34

🔗 Related PRs

#102 - Release: Firebase Analytics, Glass Effects, and CI Improvements [merged]
#104 - Release: Firebase Analytics Hardening, SEO Meta Tags, and Glass Effects [merged]

👤 Suggested Assignees

• BillChirico
• claude

---

Enable issue planning

_{To enable issue planning, add the following to your .coderabbit.yaml:}

issue_enrichment:
  planning:
    enabled: true

_{You can then request a plan by commenting @coderabbitai plan on any issue.}

🧪 Issue enrichment is currently in early access.

To disable automatic issue enrichment, add the following to your .coderabbit.yaml:

issue_enrichment:
  auto_enrich:
    enabled: false

[BillChirico]

Decision Made: Firebase Only

The analytics strategy decision has been made to use Firebase Analytics only.

Rationale

• Cross-platform consistency: Firebase Analytics works on iOS, Android, and web, providing unified analytics across all platforms
• Already implemented: Native platforms already use Firebase via config files (GoogleService-Info.plist / google-services.json)
• Simplicity: Removes complexity of dual-provider deduplication and reduces code maintenance burden
• Cost-effective: Firebase has a generous free tier

Changes Made

• Removed the @todo annotation from lib/analytics/platform.web.ts
• Simplified the web analytics implementation by removing Vercel Analytics support
• Updated documentation to reflect the Firebase-only strategy
• All tests pass and coverage remains above 80%

Configuration

No environment variable needed - Firebase is now always enabled on web. The following Firebase environment variables are still required:

• EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_API_KEY
• EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_PROJECT_ID
• EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_APP_ID
• EXPO_PUBLIC_FIREBASE_MEASUREMENT_ID