tracking tool

looking for recommendation

[stef25]

im looking for a basic tracking tool. not ebusiness related, im just intrested in seeing where my visitors go, what pages are viewed most, pattern of visits, location of visitor etc

cost has to be free or minimal and i would like to use it on several unrelated sites at the same time ...

(i downloaded the free webtrends tool for macromedia mx but it doesnt even install properly, doesnt appear in DW and thats after i had to contact them after they sent some faulty activation keys)

thanks for any suggestions!

[stef25]

just for the record i ended up using analog which is much easier to use than awstats. i set it up in a matter of minutes.

[sem4u]

Give Funnel Web Analyzer a try - it is basic but free.

[Pibs]

Funnel Web Analyzer looks great but are any of these something that I can upload to my hosting company's server or can they only be used by the hosting company?

That which is supplied by my hosting company is quick but not very helpful.

I don't want to download Funnel Web Analyzer, upload it to my server and have some IT bod screaming at me..

Alan

[ogletree]

I use weblog expert pro you can use it on your local machine. I also have php script that makes my own real time log files that are read by weblog expert. I hate the logs my ISP gives. The only drawback is that my custom logs don't show 404 errors. I can always run a report on the ISP log files for that.

[Pibs]

Erm, thanks.

that went completely over my head and anything with pro in the name sounds expensive and I kinnda like the word 'Free'..

Have opened my ftp client (Core FTP Lite) and am sniffing around trying to find log files.. no joy so far..

Alan

[Pibs]

Mmm, no .txt or .xls files or anything.

Have downloaded the Funnel thingy, seems it comes with a self-executing installer program, which sounds cool. If I upload it to my server and click the installer thingy, anyone know if that means it will install within the remain 120Mb of web-space I have?

Do I need to create a new folder/directory? Or would I end up with stats for only that directory?

Could this damage the hosting company's software?

Pretend I'm really dumb and don't know anything about this kinnda stuff..

[decaff]

Spend some money and pick up a copy of 123loganalyzer.com
I am not affiliated with these folks...but I have found their tool to be indespensable for analyzing log files for traffic patterns (internal and external), behavior, marketing costs...etc..

pay the US $129 .. and you will have a tool that will serve you very well

There are some plug in upgrade modules they also offer that allow you to track visitors geographically...very helpful if you want to target regionally...

Good luck with your search..very important to be able to work with data that your site is generating to improve its usability and your bottom line...

[bill]

I've got to second ogletree's recommendation of Weblog Expert. They have a free version if you're looking for that, but it's limited.

That php script that ogletree mentioned was a functionality that he added. That doesn't come with the default install. ;)

[Pibs]

I've found 'statscounter' (dot com) freebies and seems pretty good.

p.

[matrix_neo]

Any one have any comments on sawmill here! I found it extremely good one though my knowledge on log analyser is limited I hope this one is better than logexpert pro. I will be interested to know about anything which is better.

[rj87uk]

Hi,

I use statcounter dot com * not statscounter

Its easy to use, fast loading... It give me stuff like what keyword they used to get to my site, where theyr from screens size... the path they take... there is lots of smaller things ( that i cant remember! )

They have a little user Fourm if you need help, I thinkit works well for me, since i dont like to pay for anything! :D

Hope you find somthing good... let us know ;)

[stef25]

yeah im using statcounter too now (w/out the S)

its good but the free service only gives you the data on the last 100 pageloads (not visitors)

id like to get a service that will deliver a nice report of all the keywords that were ever searched to arrive at my site ...

the weekly reports that statcounter sends out dont arrive either. do they work for you?

anyone notice the homepage for statcounter has a PR10?!

[Pibs]

My mistake, it is stat, not stats, no S.

I've only just started using them but the system looks good to me. Happily my site is still being built so it was no great problem to add the little bit of code to each page.

I've tried it on one page, seems to work well. If I 'find' my site via Google it says so, if I arrive from a link, it says so (and where) etc etc. Basically, it does what it says on the can.

I don't think the limit of the last 100 peeps is much of a problem, 100 people is enough to give you a useful idea of percentages. After all, that's what a percentage point is..

As for reports by email, didn't know it did them? I use a page not linked to anything else for my own personal homepage, so putting their link on that page it was no problem.

[rj87uk]

Hey,

You see the Email reports are being worked on, so that will really help, I think they are nearly there with the reports,

I think you should put it on EVERY page, because this will show you more stats, like the 'landing page' and the path that they take... just gives you a feel of how they get there and where they go!

I think you will be able to increase your log for i think 2$ a month? this seems pretty good, but its a work in progress, so lets hope it comes soon.

Have you not read the fourms they can be helpful... just like webmaster world ;)

rj

[Pibs]

I've only got it on one page online for the simple reason the rest of my site is not yet online and still resides on my hard-drive. Yesterday I sorted my software out, tomorrow or the next day I'll be getting my host. I've been building on a casual, part time basis but should be launching in the next week or two.

Yep, every page on my hard-drive has the code on it.

[rj87uk]

Thats great hope you go far :)