Bit.ly v. Google Analytics - An Experiment, Part I

Is there a discrepancy between reporting from different analytics providers? Absolutely. Even comparing log analyzers like AWstats or Webalizer there are major differences in the reporting -- and they are looking at identical source data (log files).

It gets tricker with the introduction of URL shorteners like bit.ly and tinyurl.com, as they are adding a layer of indirection, proxying all traffic through a single referer. Add the complexity of tracking referer traffic from twitter (where a large percentage of traffic is from API usage, and therefore might appear as 'direct to url' traffic in Google Analytics), and it's awfully hard to find the truth in analytics.

On top of that, @wiseleo notes: "A HEAD request instead of a GET request, which is a common scenario when expanding compressed URLs, can create ... discrepancies." (although bit.ly in particular doesn't count HEAD requests in their analytics).

Bob noted that he saw a lot more traffic in his bit.ly results than in Google Analytics for his widely tweeted article on how Twitter Loves You More Than Oprah. So, here's an experiment. I'll try to get as much traffic to this article via bit.ly as possible, and then run my own comparisons. Let's see if we can hone in on the 'bit.ly effect' on analytics data. Generally speaking, my answer to this conundrum has been to choose a source you trust (i.e. WebSideStory, Omniture, Google Analytics, or what have you) and use that as your canonical reference. But it's always good to test your assumptions, and recheck regularly.

I'll post a follow up when I have some data :)

[update: see results of the bit.ly and google analytics comparison]

icompute4u :) -- Wolfram Alpha Rocks!

Kudos to Stephen Wolfram! In a similar leap to when he created the category of "Mathematics Software," he's invested significantly in risky and completely novel idea: a computational knowledge engine. Even if this thing completely bombs (which it won't), Wolfram has made a major contribution to the development of technology. The technology industry is powered by the ingenious successes (and failures) of inventors willing to take great risks to create products, and even whole categories of products that have no proven market, but that have the potential to create giant new markets or massive leaps forward in productivity.

So far, I love Wolfram Alpha (couldn't they have come up with an easier to type name, like: 'knowzilla' or 'icompute4u' or 'gotmath' or ...). It's still got very narrow coverage -- I think they only have 1000 datasets -- and so a lot of queries have no answer. When they have an answer to every query (how about defaulting to Google results when you don't know the answer??), I think this thing could be truly game changing. I think it already is game changing in that it has shown us much more powerfully than other natural language search providers (powerset, anyone?) what a 'knowledge engine' looks like: a system that you can ask anything of, and it will be able to answer you with a meaningful data set, or at least a pointer to where to find your answer.

Some of my favorite queries:

1. distance between betelgeuse and earth
   
2. what is the diameter of the sun 
   
3. california computer programmers
   
4. burrito
   

Easter Eggs:

1. what is the meaning of life?
   
2. Air speed of an african swallow?
   
3. How many roads must a man walk down?
   
4. To be or not to be?
   
5. How many licks to get to the center of a tootsie pop?
   

Mixed Reality Gaming: Working My LevelHead Cube

Check out LevelHead (awesome open source mixed/augmented reality game/art project) in action:

Augmented Reality USS Enterprise

I don't have a PC with a webcam for the enterprise experience, but you can get a good sense for the experience in this video.

Honda FCX Clarity In The Wild

Today, as I was heading out to work, I saw a Honda FCX Clarity (fuel cell powered car) parked in the same parking spot as the Tesla I saw a couple of weeks ago. That diner must just attract the cutting edge eco types.



And from the front: