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Real-time stats, that's really something I miss a lot! Esp. considering that it's available in other stats tools...

mkuhn 18y ago
What would be the use for you in real-time stats? IMHO you use Web Analytics to optimize your Website and to monitor success of different aspects of your site. I don't think that real-time data would help there much and I don't think that Google Analytics would be the right tool to monitor load on your servers.
- inerte 18y ago
  You just got on the front-page of digg, reddit, slashdot, or someone linked to your post and you want to know now instead of 4 hours ahead, because you want to update your post, stablish a conversation, activate static page cache, whatever. Or someone posts on a forum a link to your site telling how the release date of certain game is wrong, writing "bunch of lazy editors on site X" and you want to correct and post on the forum that you did. Saying that Analytics is not for these kind of situations on a "feature request" thread is a little harsh, isnt? :) And the parent post did say similar services do provide this information...
  - mkuhn 18y ago
    You are right, I could have phrased my original reply more politely. I understand why you you would find it a useful feature because of the situations you describe, I would probably use other means and tools to detect your later case. I clearly see the usefulness of near real-time data in the first case. To clarify, I worked a lot on Web Analytics at a Swiss Web Agency when I did an Internship there and I mostly focused on established sites there. They most definitely wouldn't be covered on digg or slashdot. We used Web Analytics to understand the inner workings of the Websites, to understand the longterm development of traffic sources etc. and we tried to identify trends which helped to make fact based decisions when it came to developing the Sites. Therefore I couldn't directly see a use for real-time data. I would much more prefer a finer granularity in the data those tools provide and to segment in more defined pieces but that both is an area where Google Analytics is catching up fast. If there is one request I could make for a feature in Google Analytics it would be to not have to provide Google with the data but to get a Version that I could run on my computer (Urchin is hopelessly outdated, or at least was when I last checked).
  - jaxn 18y ago
    We have notifications for this kind of scenario built into statzen.com. We will be launching in a week or two.
  - JustAGeek 18y ago
    That's exactly what I had in mind. Very important for the site I run as a side project. :)
- teej 18y ago
  Don't underestimate the -fun- factor in realtime stats. When people are personally invested in a website, they feel attached to the success & failure of it. That "hits/pageviews/visits" meter is direct reflection of that success. Seeing that number go up and down is an exciting time for people just starting out. It's the equivalent of seeing your first customers walk in at a brick and mortar store.
suhail 18y ago
I'd have to agree, that's honestly a waste of time for a serious company. Technically, you should have better things to do.
- ryanwaggoner 18y ago
  Disagree?
  - suhail 18y ago
    Yeah, I guess I agreed with the guy below me.

mkuhn 18y ago

What would be the use for you in real-time stats? IMHO you use Web Analytics to optimize your Website and to monitor success of different aspects of your site. I don't think that real-time data would help there much and I don't think that Google Analytics would be the right tool to monitor load on your servers.

inerte 18y ago
You just got on the front-page of digg, reddit, slashdot, or someone linked to your post and you want to know now instead of 4 hours ahead, because you want to update your post, stablish a conversation, activate static page cache, whatever. Or someone posts on a forum a link to your site telling how the release date of certain game is wrong, writing "bunch of lazy editors on site X" and you want to correct and post on the forum that you did. Saying that Analytics is not for these kind of situations on a "feature request" thread is a little harsh, isnt? :) And the parent post did say similar services do provide this information...
- mkuhn 18y ago
  You are right, I could have phrased my original reply more politely. I understand why you you would find it a useful feature because of the situations you describe, I would probably use other means and tools to detect your later case. I clearly see the usefulness of near real-time data in the first case. To clarify, I worked a lot on Web Analytics at a Swiss Web Agency when I did an Internship there and I mostly focused on established sites there. They most definitely wouldn't be covered on digg or slashdot. We used Web Analytics to understand the inner workings of the Websites, to understand the longterm development of traffic sources etc. and we tried to identify trends which helped to make fact based decisions when it came to developing the Sites. Therefore I couldn't directly see a use for real-time data. I would much more prefer a finer granularity in the data those tools provide and to segment in more defined pieces but that both is an area where Google Analytics is catching up fast. If there is one request I could make for a feature in Google Analytics it would be to not have to provide Google with the data but to get a Version that I could run on my computer (Urchin is hopelessly outdated, or at least was when I last checked).
- jaxn 18y ago
  We have notifications for this kind of scenario built into statzen.com. We will be launching in a week or two.
- JustAGeek 18y ago
  That's exactly what I had in mind. Very important for the site I run as a side project. :)
teej 18y ago
Don't underestimate the -fun- factor in realtime stats. When people are personally invested in a website, they feel attached to the success & failure of it. That "hits/pageviews/visits" meter is direct reflection of that success. Seeing that number go up and down is an exciting time for people just starting out. It's the equivalent of seeing your first customers walk in at a brick and mortar store.

suhail 18y ago

I'd have to agree, that's honestly a waste of time for a serious company. Technically, you should have better things to do.

ryanwaggoner 18y ago
Disagree?
- suhail 18y ago
  Yeah, I guess I agreed with the guy below me.