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March 06, 2006

Site Meter and Search Engines

I've got this odd hobby with my Web site. If you weren't aware, I use a free Web product called Site Meter to give me stats off my Web site. Now, the UCANweb server has Web stat applications loaded as well, but I've sometimes found the results to be off. I use Site Meter as an unbiased third-party opinion, of sorts.

Anyway, back to my hobby.

I have this fascination with Web site referrals. For those who aren’t aware: whenever you visit a Web site and click on a link to go to another Web site, that is commonly referred to as a referral. Web applications like Site Meter and others can track these referring links to determine where people are coming from so you can get an idea of how people are finding you.

I've been seeing some interesting referrals as of late:

1. VGCats, one of my favorite Web comics, posted a comic around the 20th of February that I found to be brilliant. I grabbed a copy of the comic, edited it for display on my site and linked it back to the original. For some reason, Scott, the comic's creator changed this comic to something entirely different. Since this time, I have seen a significant rise in hits to my site from search engines, like Google, looking for things like "Pac-Man Sees Dead People".

Apparently this was a popular comic. People have been doing all kinds of searches on Google for this particular comic and end up on my site as a result. I've even been questioned if I have a full sized copy of the comic. (No, I don't.)

On a personal note, if Scott were to ever come by my copy and ask me to take it down, I would. The only thing that I would request would to acquire an original for my own personal collection ... simply for the fact that the comic *WAS* pure brilliance.

2. Anytime I do any technical write-up, say of a laptop or a wireless device, I see a significant increase in hits on my site. Maybe I should start doing how-to's to keep people coming back?

3. I get a lot of hits from a link that I put up at the FCHS Class of 1996 reunion site, but rarely do people go beyond the first page. I don't know how they can do that. I'm personally nosey when I hit a blog for the first time. When I come across one that has a lot of content, I can sit and read for hours. I've personally come across a few fellow classmates sites and have done just that.

Someone once said that the truth often lies in the simplest of answers. I'd say that the simple answer to this is that I'm just too dull to read about. :)

Anyhow, just some observations that I've made with my little Site Meter referral hobby.

~out...

Posted by ed at 10:22 PM | Comments (0)