Scratchpad post
By · CommentsHere’s a scratchpad post to help me remember to look further into Composite C1, a free open-source CMS based upon Microsoft dotNet. The other day I was searching for some alternative .Net CMS tools and it is good to know some exist! Check this Wikipedia entry for a complete, platform-independent list of content management systems paid or free.
Here’s another random item: ain interactive marketing ROI calculator. It is a neat toy for Business Intelligence geeks.
Ultimate Bounce Rate Infographic
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When I bring up the term ‘bounce rate’ in meetings and presentations, I often get the strangest stares from people unfamiliar with the term. The folks at Kiss Metics and Bime Analytics have provided a fantastic infographic which explains Bounce Rate quite nicely. Enjoy and click the graphic to make it appear full size in your browser.
Easy Web Site Analyzer
By · CommentsI read about WooRank just today and I like it. Of course a paid offering exists, but the free offering covers a lot of ground when you need a quick read when evaluating a new website. It quickly summarizes traffic, search engine ranking, SEO qualities, server and other info to get you started quickly. If you need some background history on a site or domain, supplement the WooRank data with info from Netcraft.com.
Comparison shopping: web analytics packages
By · CommentsI am often asked the differences between paid and ‘free’ web analytics tools. The answers are not always simple, so why not point you to some well-written blogs which address the topic and you can begin to form your own solutions!
First, let’s compare ‘free’ vs. ‘free’ by starting off with a comparison of Yahoo! Analytics vs. Google Analytics.
Now let’s compare a paid solution to a ‘free’ one in this post pitting Omniture (Adobe) SiteCatalyst against Google Analytics.
As I locate more related blog items I will return to this post and update it further.
My take? I believe that each tool mentioned above is well-proven and offer world-class solutions for web analysts everywhere in a variety of situations and requirements. Whenever feasible, I always advise colleagues and clients to install at least a free WA package because not to do so is just a waste of data, no matter how small the site. And, as requirements change, add a paid solution to the mix.
SQL Server tips and techniques
By · CommentsThis post could become a living being all by itself…. SQL Server has seemingly endless possibilities.
I had a need to determine the size of all the tables in a certain database, and this post floated to the top.
Best sites to find your next freelance gig!
By · CommentsThe Internsover mini-site contains many posts related to finding freelance work. Despite all these links, I’ve found that face-to-face networking and LinkedIn to be the best ways to find repeat business opportunities. In the U.S., we’re truly fortunate to live in a land of endless employement opportunities. Best of luck with your freelancing endeavors!
Information Architecture and IA prototyping tools
By · CommentsWhile looking for Information Architecture (IA) tools recently, I just came across a new Firefox plugin which will be useful for User Interface (UI) prototyping and design called FluidIA. I’ve been using the Pencil plugin for Firefox off and on for a year now, so it will be nice to work with a new tool. FluidIA promises Fluid Information Architecture in the category of agile UI prototyping, which sets a high bar for usability and end results.
Along the same theme of this post…. have a look at the Midwest User Experience 2011 conference slides from last week. Something here for everyone, and a neat little web analytics presentation as well. Enjoy!
Retro moment
By · CommentsOh, the wonders of a moment of spare time and Google…. if you happen to need some old software titles, check out EMS – they even have a selection of OS/2 software, and I saw some old Webtrends log analyzer listings. Who knows what else they have?
Speaking of OS/2, I accidentally found the OS/2 Museum, which appears to be a rather recent development: posts only go back to mid-2010.
New Web Analytics Tools and updates to existing products
By · CommentsTop web analytics vendors have announced major upgrades to their flagship products at Winter/Spring 2011 conferences. Webtrends and Adobe (Omniture) are no exceptions!
In Webtrends Analytics 10, the big new features I’m excited about are the possibilities of gathering and reporting data not specifically tagged, and integration with external data sources such as Facebook, Twitter and pretty much anything with an API. With regards to gathering specifically untagged data, I’m not sure how it works, or if that is only possible using http logs, but it sounds intriguing.
Next there is Adobe which recently announced SiteCatalyst version 15 which will allow analysts to segment visitors ‘on the fly’ and will finally provide visits and visitors measures on just about every report where those were previously unavailable. (Now if only Regular Expressions were supported!). Another caveat: upgrades to SC15 won’t happen automatically and will have to be scheduled with support.
Couple these upgrades with ShufflePoint, a new business intelligence (BI) tool which can aggregate data from multiple sources and push it to various destinations and report formats. Right now ShufflePoint only supports pulling data from Google Analytics (but that covers a lot of web analytics users!), however many other sources will soon be added, including Webtrends, Omniture, Facebook, and Twitter.
One more thing I can’t resist: this possibly creepy tool called BeenCounter (as in where have you Been?). This tool is a branded as a behavioral targeting and tracking service. If you decide to install BeenCounter, this tool can dig in to the history bar of your visitor’s browser and dig out lists of sites your visitors have visited. Imagine what you could do with this data as a marketer… you’ll be able to tell if your customers have been surfing your competitors offerings and more. Of course, BeenCounter allows that they don’t track usage of sensitive sites. But what exactly does that mean?
Enjoy the new tools and technology!
Good Riddance IE6
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In a merciful move to encourage (or shame) users into upgrading browsers, Microsoft has launched a campaign including a website to begin a countdown to a world free of its infamous Internet Explorer version 6 browser. Ask any developer about IE6 and you’ll get an earful of complaints about how it breaks sites coded with the best intentions and legal html and css. Enjoy the site, and tell a friend who might still run IE6 that the time is right to upgrade. (Unfortunately web developers still may need to keep a version around for testing purposes.)