Who's hitting my website?

C0ppert0p · Oct-25-2005, 05:22 PM

I'm interested in knowing who and where my hits are coming from and what they are looking at. The current graphs provided do not provide any information that is particularly useful for a business.

I'm assuming Smugmug is using some varient of Apache, possibly version 2. along with Tomcat, mod rewrite etc. some other app software and some db software.

Are the apache access logs available at all to somebody who knows how to use them? If not are there any plans to provide the pro customers with something like Webtrends reports, (well not Webtrends, because it is way overpriced.), but something like Webtrends that gives some decent reports.

Mike Lane · Oct-25-2005, 05:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by C0ppert0p

I'm interested in knowing who and where my hits are coming from and what they are looking at. The current graphs provided do not provide any information that is particularly useful for a business.

I'm assuming Smugmug is using some varient of Apache, possibly version 2. along with Tomcat, mod rewrite etc. some other app software and some db software.

Are the apache access logs available at all to somebody who knows how to use them? If not are there any plans to provide the pro customers with something like Webtrends reports, (well not Webtrends, because it is way overpriced.), but something like Webtrends that gives some decent reports.

http://www.statcounter.com

***Andy*** · Oct-25-2005, 06:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mike Lane

http://www.statcounter.com

statcounter, right on.

flyingpylon · Oct-25-2005, 06:59 PM

Statcounter or variations thereof can be good if you accept their limitations. The problem is that you'll never be able to really tell who is requesting specific images (as opposed to pages) without seeing the logs. Based on previous discussions, I wouldn't expect that to be anytime soon.

Techman1 · Oct-25-2005, 07:33 PM

I'm using Statcounter and can tell who is looking at what images. I can tell if someone is going back to the same image several times too. The free version only covers the first 100 page views, so that can get absorbed very quickly if you have a large number of images & categories to view. They offer an extended view for a monthly charge in case you are extremely interested in who is visiting your site.

Good luck in your search.

Fred

Fuzzytek · Oct-25-2005, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by flyingpylon

Statcounter or variations thereof can be good if you accept their limitations. The problem is that you'll never be able to really tell who is requesting specific images (as opposed to pages) without seeing the logs. Based on previous discussions, I wouldn't expect that to be anytime soon.

I'm using StatCounter also

and through the information on the log, I can get down to the IP address of the viewer - and know specifically what image they are viewing. I know where they came from, how long they stayed on my site, ... a lot of details. Granted the logsize of 100 for free subscription holds the detailed information for a short length of time. That's why they have paid subscriptions that increase your log size.

behr655 · Oct-26-2005, 03:26 AM

I'm using starcounter also. I've just been re-setting the counter after 100 hits.

Bear

flyingpylon · Oct-26-2005, 08:08 AM

I believe that what you guys are seeing are requests for the *page* that a given image is on, not the request for the image itself. There is a big difference.

Say that someone really liked your images and decided to hotlink them from another web site (or forum, or eBay, etc.). Statcounter would never be able to pick this up, yet it would certainly count against your Smugmug bandwidth.

If you're not familiar with hotlinking, it's when someone inserts an image tag in the HTML of a web page that directly references an image located on another web server somewhere. So to the average visitor, the image looks like part of the hotlinker's web site, yet the image does not exist on their web server and it uses up the original owner's bandwidth (not to mention violating their copyright). Granted, all of this can only happen if you have "external linking" turned on in your Smugmug galleries.

The other problem with Statcounter is that it's possible for people to "turn off" requests for tracking images in their browser. There probably aren't a huge number of people that do this, but some people see it as a security issue, and some security software will turn off these requests by default. So you won't be getting 100% accurate results.

All of that said, I always say that "There are lies, damn lies, statistics, and then there are web statistics". All of the methods for tracking web traffic have issues, you just have to know what they are so that you're not getting fooled.

Blurmore · Oct-26-2005, 10:48 AM

Does the stat counter script go in the BODY tag box of smugmug co-branding?

rainforest1155 · Oct-26-2005, 10:54 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blurmore

Does the stat counter script go in the BODY tag box of smugmug co-branding?

Don't put it there - this might screw up your page. The footer is the best place to put it in.

Sebastian

Oct-25-2005, 05:22 PM	#1
C0ppert0p Beginner grinner Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: San Diego Posts: 6	Who's hitting my website? I'm interested in knowing who and where my hits are coming from and what they are looking at. The current graphs provided do not provide any information that is particularly useful for a business. I'm assuming Smugmug is using some varient of Apache, possibly version 2. along with Tomcat, mod rewrite etc. some other app software and some db software. Are the apache access logs available at all to somebody who knows how to use them? If not are there any plans to provide the pro customers with something like Webtrends reports, (well not Webtrends, because it is way overpriced.), but something like Webtrends that gives some decent reports.

Oct-25-2005, 06:59 PM	#4
flyingpylon Major grins Join Date: May 2004 Posts: 260	Statcounter or variations thereof can be good if you accept their limitations. The problem is that you'll never be able to really tell who is requesting specific images (as opposed to pages) without seeing the logs. Based on previous discussions, I wouldn't expect that to be anytime soon. __________________

Oct-26-2005, 03:26 AM	#7
behr655 Major grins Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Merchantville, NJ Posts: 549	I'm using starcounter also. I've just been re-setting the counter after 100 hits. Bear __________________ http://behr655.smugmug.com/ http://behr655.smugmug.com/gallery/2514206#132038106

Oct-26-2005, 08:08 AM	#8
flyingpylon Major grins Join Date: May 2004 Posts: 260	I believe that what you guys are seeing are requests for the page that a given image is on, not the request for the image itself. There is a big difference. Say that someone really liked your images and decided to hotlink them from another web site (or forum, or eBay, etc.). Statcounter would never be able to pick this up, yet it would certainly count against your Smugmug bandwidth. If you're not familiar with hotlinking, it's when someone inserts an image tag in the HTML of a web page that directly references an image located on another web server somewhere. So to the average visitor, the image looks like part of the hotlinker's web site, yet the image does not exist on their web server and it uses up the original owner's bandwidth (not to mention violating their copyright). Granted, all of this can only happen if you have "external linking" turned on in your Smugmug galleries. The other problem with Statcounter is that it's possible for people to "turn off" requests for tracking images in their browser. There probably aren't a huge number of people that do this, but some people see it as a security issue, and some security software will turn off these requests by default. So you won't be getting 100% accurate results. All of that said, I always say that "There are lies, damn lies, statistics, and then there are web statistics". All of the methods for tracking web traffic have issues, you just have to know what they are so that you're not getting fooled. __________________

Oct-26-2005, 10:48 AM	#9
Blurmore Goofy Grin Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: Mobtown Posts: 708	Truly idiotic question from someone who doesn't know HTML from LOGO Does the stat counter script go in the BODY tag box of smugmug co-branding?

Oct-25-2005, 07:33 PM	#5
Techman1 Major grins Join Date: Aug 2005 Posts: 149	I'm using Statcounter and can tell who is looking at what images. I can tell if someone is going back to the same image several times too. The free version only covers the first 100 page views, so that can get absorbed very quickly if you have a large number of images & categories to view. They offer an extended view for a monthly charge in case you are extremely interested in who is visiting your site. Good luck in your search. Fred

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