Quote Originally Posted by McLovin View Post
Then would it be possible to 'split' the template files (for example copy/paste 'index.php' and rename it 'index_variant1.php') and have both of them function normally? Because if that is possible, then you could simply set up Google Analytics Content Experiment to compare index.php and index_variant.php. GACE would take care of the rest, that way you wouldn't have to mess with the Zen Cart core files or database.
Possible? Yes.
Practical, a good idea, easy to implement, etc... NO

What does GACE need to "test" these two different templates? If it is some sort of uri difference, then the question would be if the uri contained a parameter such as template=1 would that work for them?

In essence that is what the plugin should offer/allow. Designation of the template to be used through a uri get parameter:
Your host dot com/index.php?template=1 as a generic example would be for the one page, where as = 2 for the other. Otherwise, would suggest some sort of htaccess rewrite to append the template parameter based on the input uri which would also rewrite to the zc site appropriate address. It's really a lot about what does GACE require and what are standard setup methods for ZC that could support the expectation. But renaming/cloning/duplicating the index.php file is definitely something requiring a lot of additional work and relatively breaks the overall processing/operation.