Don't believe hit counter -

JanelleJanelle Registered Users Posts: 104 Major grins
edited September 23, 2006 in SmugMug Pro Sales Support
I don't understand how the hit counter (page detail) on the control panel works. I just posted a gallery and password protected it - then went back to the control panel to get a base count of hits before I forwarded it to the customer. It showed that I had 343 page views already and the gallery had only been up for 10 minutes (with 54 images). I don't understand how that works. I know it probably counts all the times that I went to the photos as I was adding them and arranging them, but I certainly didn't view them 343 times.

Update - there are now 1700+ thumbnail views this morning. Again, the gallery is password protected, so I don't understand how that many views could be possible.

What does this really mean?

Comments

  • MalteMalte Registered Users Posts: 1,181 Major grins
    edited September 15, 2006
    Janelle wrote:
    I don't understand how the hit counter (page detail) on the control panel works. I just posted a gallery and password protected it - then went back to the control panel to get a base count of hits before I forwarded it to the customer. It showed that I had 343 page views already and the gallery had only been up for 10 minutes. I don't understand how that works. Is it misleading? I know it probably counts all the times that I went to the photos as I was adding them and arranging them, but I certainly didn't view them 343 times.

    What does this really mean?

    I havn't looked at mine in ages, but it separates thubnails and other sizes, right? For thumbnail size it might hold true?

    Malte
  • JanelleJanelle Registered Users Posts: 104 Major grins
    edited September 20, 2006
    Andy - I don't understand the page views stats?
    Andy - I posted this last week but still can't figure it out. I go check my page view stats (hit counter thing) everyday just out of curiousity since I am just starting my business. Two of my galleries just don't make much sense to me. They are both password protected and have only been up for less than a week, just show 2575 and 3317 thumbnail views respecively. There are only 55 or so pics in each gallery, so even if 50 people went to each thumbnail, it still would not equal 3317. How does that work? I read the bottom of the stats page where it explains it....I just still can't imagine that it is accurate. Are my passwords not working and the general public is logging on, or what most likely is elevating those numbers?

    Janelle
    www.janellerodgers.smugmug.com
  • SteveMSteveM Registered Users Posts: 482 Major grins
    edited September 20, 2006
    Janelle wrote:
    Andy - I posted this last week but still can't figure it out. I go check my page view stats (hit counter thing) everyday just out of curiousity since I am just starting my business. Two of my galleries just don't make much sense to me. They are both password protected and have only been up for less than a week, just show 2575 and 3317 thumbnail views respecively. There are only 55 or so pics in each gallery, so even if 50 people went to each thumbnail, it still would not equal 3317. How does that work? I read the bottom of the stats page where it explains it....I just still can't imagine that it is accurate. Are my passwords not working and the general public is logging on, or what most likely is elevating those numbers?

    Janelle
    www.janellerodgers.smugmug.com

    Janelle, do you have external linking enabled in those galleries and by chance do you use any of the photos in those galleries elsewhere on your page, say a slideshow, or banner/buttons/graphics?

    Steve
    http://www.downriverphotography.com
    Steve Mills
    BizDev Account Manager
    Image Specialist & Pro Concierge

    http://www.downriverphotography.com
  • JanelleJanelle Registered Users Posts: 104 Major grins
    edited September 20, 2006
    SteveM wrote:
    Janelle, do you have external linking enabled in those galleries and by chance do you use any of the photos in those galleries elsewhere on your page, say a slideshow, or banner/buttons/graphics?

    Steve
    http://www.downriverphotography.com

    That would be a good guess, but I double-checked and the external linking is checked no (as is most of the buttons). I don't have either of those galleries posted anywhere else either (most of the images on my page are photoshop collages, so they are embedded in a graphic anyway.) I also have not advertised one bit (other than listing my web address in posts on this site.) But the galleries are password protected so that shouldn't matter either. Any other ideas? I hate to have 3500+ people visited a gallery that I promised would be confidential to the customer.
  • SteveMSteveM Registered Users Posts: 482 Major grins
    edited September 21, 2006
    Janelle wrote:
    That would be a good guess, but I double-checked and the external linking is checked no (as is most of the buttons). I don't have either of those galleries posted anywhere else either (most of the images on my page are photoshop collages, so they are embedded in a graphic anyway.) I also have not advertised one bit (other than listing my web address in posts on this site.) But the galleries are password protected so that shouldn't matter either. Any other ideas? I hate to have 3500+ people visited a gallery that I promised would be confidential to the customer.
    Hmm. I'm at a loss, but I highly highly doubt anyone is able to get into your galleries without the password, so I think other forces are at play here. Do you use StatCounter? It's free and even if you only use it to gain some insight on this particular issue, it's worth the trouble to install it. It will show you everything you need to know, including IPs, which galleries and even individual photos are being viewed by whom. Think it over.

    Steve
    http://www.downriverphotography.com
    Steve Mills
    BizDev Account Manager
    Image Specialist & Pro Concierge

    http://www.downriverphotography.com
  • JanelleJanelle Registered Users Posts: 104 Major grins
    edited September 21, 2006
    SteveM wrote:
    Hmm. I'm at a loss, but I highly highly doubt anyone is able to get into your galleries without the password, so I think other forces are at play here. Do you use StatCounter? It's free and even if you only use it to gain some insight on this particular issue, it's worth the trouble to install it. It will show you everything you need to know, including IPs, which galleries and even individual photos are being viewed by whom. Think it over.

    Steve
    http://www.downriverphotography.com

    Steve - that is a great idea. I went to www.statcounter.com and signed up. Now what do I do? I copied the code they gave me in the footer section of the customization thing. Is that the right place? Is that going to let me know the stats on every gallery within my site, or just the first page? If not, how do you make it work on each gallery? I appreciate your help...
    www.janellerodgers.smugmug.com
  • AndyAndy Registered Users Posts: 50,016 Major grins
    edited September 21, 2006
    Janelle wrote:
    Steve - that is a great idea. I went to www.statcounter.com and signed up. Now what do I do? I copied the code they gave me in the footer section of the customization thing. Is that the right place? Is that going to let me know the stats on every gallery within my site, or just the first page? If not, how do you make it work on each gallery? I appreciate your help...
    www.janellerodgers.smugmug.com
    http://dgrin.smugmug.com/gallery/1092684
  • SteveMSteveM Registered Users Posts: 482 Major grins
    edited September 21, 2006
    Janelle wrote:
    Steve - that is a great idea. I went to www.statcounter.com and signed up. Now what do I do? I copied the code they gave me in the footer section of the customization thing. Is that the right place? Is that going to let me know the stats on every gallery within my site, or just the first page? If not, how do you make it work on each gallery? I appreciate your help...
    www.janellerodgers.smugmug.com
    Yep, sounds right. Follow the link Andy provided to make sure you followed all the steps. Being that it's in your footer, and your footer is on all pages (hopefully!) it'll record every hit/page/view from any of your pages. StatCounter is updated realtime unlike Google Analytics which is updated once a day, so even you yourself should be able to visit your page(s) and check back at StatCounter to make sure it's working. Afterwards, you'll probably want to download StatCounter's cookie so it stops logging your hits, so you don't skew your own results.

    Good luck!

    Steve
    http://www.downriverphotography.com
    Steve Mills
    BizDev Account Manager
    Image Specialist & Pro Concierge

    http://www.downriverphotography.com
  • CasonCason Registered Users Posts: 414 Major grins
    edited September 21, 2006
    Was there an answer as to how the smugmug hit counter works?
    Cason

    www.casongarner.com

    5D MkII | 30D | 50mm f1.8 II | 85mm f1.8 | 24-70mm f2.8
    L | 70-200mm f2.8L IS II | Manfrotto 3021BPRO with 322RC2
  • SteveMSteveM Registered Users Posts: 482 Major grins
    edited September 21, 2006
    RTP wrote:
    Was there an answer as to how the smugmug hit counter works?

    http://www.smugmug.com/help/acctreport gives a pretty detailed account of how SmugStats work and what triggers them. Janelle's just happens to be on the fritz somehow and we're trying to track it down.

    Steve
    http://www.downriverphotography.com
    Steve Mills
    BizDev Account Manager
    Image Specialist & Pro Concierge

    http://www.downriverphotography.com
  • AllenAllen Registered Users Posts: 10,007 Major grins
    edited September 23, 2006
    After installing Statcounter and seeing that it works by looking at you own
    hits, go into profile and set a blocking cookie. Then your free 100 hits will
    not be used up by you. And make sure you do this for all the pc's on your
    personal network. My wife used to sit in the kitchen on the laptop and use
    up all my hits.
    Al
    Al - Just a volunteer here having fun
    My Website index | My Blog
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