Hit Counter - Easy to Manipulate

[Ariana_Pearce]

First, I am new here and still feeling my way around. If there is some unwritten rule of etiquette that precludes newcomers from chiming in critically on the very first post, moderators please delete this.

That said, I am new here but not a newbie. I come from many places. I've posted a couple test pieces on the Archives under Original/General. Planning to do much more. And in the course of tinkering I discovered something curious: If one clicks into a story, hits the back button, and clicks into it again, one can watch the "Hits" go up in real time. Thus it appears not to be IP-sensitive or SessionID-sensitive. This makes the Hit count easy to manipulate.

The moment I realized it was happening, I stopped clicking into my own story tests, because I want my hit counts to be real! But a narcissist with a lot of time on her hands could bump her posts up into the thousands quite easily.

I should also say that I had Javascript disabled at the time. I do not know whether this behavior occurs under normal conditions or if Javascript must be turned off, for the manipulation to occur.

In closing I'll say this is a wonderful website, and I am pleased to have found it.

Edited September 9, 2015 by Ariana_Pearce

[BronxWench]

Hi, and welcome to AFF!

We're very glad to have all members, old and new, chime in and let us know what they think about the site, and about specific features.

Having said that, I do know that the hit counters are not IP or session-ID sensitive, unlike the ratings feature. I cringe whenever I post a story, and have to go back to edit the centering, which never takes for some reason, because I know I'm bumping myself by a hit. It's one of the areas that has not yet been updated as we roll out some upgrades to the archive code. The ratings feature is slated to be amended, and while I'm not sure if the hit feature is also on the list, we can certainly put this one out for the admins and coders to think about.

Thank you for bringing this up, and welcome again!

[Ariana_Pearce]

I am still experimenting with the text editor in the Archive area, and I've worked out procedures for just about all of the formatting requirements demanded by the books that I plan to post there.

• Paragraph indentation - check
• Free verse - check
• Shaped verse - almost, still some stuff to solve... example:

chess

r k b q K b k r

p p p p p p p p

x x x x

x x x x

x x x x

x x x x

p p p p p p p p

r k b q K b k r

balance

ever

precedes

calamity

• Crazy Unicode - still a mess... examples:

A mathematical street name in one of the books:

¬Ǝa (translation: Not Exists Avenue)

A symbolic chapter name:

Ǝ۞ ╞ { C₂₁¬Hτ→(ʱ/dU)a→(dU/ʱ)m→1/∞ }

(translation: there exists heaven)

• Obscure font support... Webdings, for example, which might require image insertions....

Anyhoo, all the testing caused some artificial boosting of my story counts. I ran up quite a tab in bogus hits before I noticed it. So I apologize for that.

I should complete the testing by the end of the next session. Then I'll start posting for real.

Thanks again...

Edited September 10, 2015 by Ariana_Pearce

[DemonGoddess]

If you're at all familiar with Storyline, that's what the current software was reworked from years ago. Storyline is also the base for eFiction, among others. Yep, the counter thing will be addressed with the rewrite of the storyboarding.

As to obscure font support, unless someone specifically asks for it (and the need would have to be demonstrated as being overall something many needed), the rich text editor only allows the fonts that are in the menu for it.

[Ariana_Pearce]

...

As to obscure font support, unless someone specifically asks for it (and the need would have to be demonstrated as being overall something many needed), the rich text editor only allows the fonts that are in the menu for it.

I am not requesting additional fonts; just getting a feel for the constraints and how to adapt my documents to work within them. I am impressed by the flexibility of the text editing functions here and with the great job that the Archive system does with pastes from MS Word and PDF.

[GeorgeGlass]

Maybe I'm alone on this, but I don't consider hit counts all that meaningful. All a hit means is that someone clicked on the link and opened the page--it doesn't mean that they read past the first sentence. In fact, if a story has a lot of hits but few ratings or reviews, I tend to guess that it's not that good a story, because a lot of people looked at it and either didn't finish it or weren't sufficiently moved by it to click anything but the Back button.

[BronxWench]

In all honesty, I don't put a great deal of faith in the ratings counter as it currently stands. It's far too easy to abuse, and I've seen perfectly dreadful stories get a huge amount of high ratings despite horrific grammar, rampant misspellings, and a complete disregard for punctuation and formatting.

The only true test of a story is to begin reading. If it appeals, continue, and hopefully thank the author with a review. If it fails to hold your interest, either click that back button, or leave the author a review with a little constructive criticism.

[Ariana_Pearce]

I suspect the hit counter would be abused much more if stories could be sorted by "popularity."

Conversely, the rating indicator and reviews are likely more reliable here precisely because one cannot sort by "peer review quality," and thus there is no point in trying to manipulate them.

To some, the lack of the ability to sort on these indicators would perhaps seem like a limitation, but as a newcomer I see the "limitation" as a definite positive. I have seen too many sites where the authors spend more time gaming the ratings than writing.

Here, new stories and recently updated stories are easy to find. They don't get buried, as happens elsewhere.

[BronxWench]

Actually, I've seen authors targeted and bombarded with low ratings because they've written an "unpopular" pairing in a fandom. While you cannot rate a story more than once at a time, I believe you can rate a story again once someone else has rated it. It's also entirely anonymous, which tends to bring out the very worst in people.

Ratings may not be a criteria for bumping a story up in the listings, or a search criteria, but it can and has been used punitively.

(This is strictly from my position as a moderator, mind you. As an author, I would like ratings, please. )

[Ariana_Pearce]

Well I've posted three stories.

I haven't been here long, and I don't have any reviews yet.

But I already have six stars!

Bully for me!

[BronxWench]

Reviews, sadly, are scarce, and good concrit scarcer. I love good concrit.

[Ariana_Pearce]

I enjoy giving reviews nearly as much as receiving them, and I enjoy reader discussions even more.

But I'm new. Still observing. Don't know anyone. I'll have to read some of the other contributors' work for awhile.

The facilities for reviews and discussions are excellent here, but they seem to be underutilized. Are the readers too few? Are the readers too skittish and bashful? Or are the writers too thin-skinned and argumentative?

Personally if I got a review that said "^R$& u suck fawn blow me," I'd be thrilled. Some would perhaps call it spam or trolling, but I have a different take on it: That kind of review says that some reader took five minutes out of his day to try the first paragraph of my trash, and he wasted another minute of his life to tell me that my pathetic drivel isn't worth another minute of his time.

That's more than most readers will give an author in this day and age.

I'd take it over silence gladly.

Edited September 12, 2015 by Ariana_Pearce

[Ariana_Pearce]

Incidentally...

GeorgeGlass, I've poked into a few of your stories during my lurking phase. Thus I have contributed meaningfully to your largely worthless hit counts! This does not constitute a review, because I am gutless, but at some point I might have more to say.

BronxWench, I've just read your piece called, "Brownstone." Wonderfully adept and effective prose. Strong imagery and meticulous settings. Clearly you are a New Yorker who sees and writes with all six senses. This, too, is not a review.

[DirtyAngel]

The hit counter is meaningless? oh woe is me, I guess I'll go eat worms

[Desiderius Price]

From the author's perspective, we're putting in an enormous number of hours and effort to take an idea, to shape it into a story, complete, and polish it.

The author is wondering "So, is this worth it?" "Are others reading and enjoying it?"

As very few leave reviews; the ratings and hit counters are the main way to gauge the level of interest. In the corporate world, they use hit counters too (sales, number of viewers, etc).

That's my $0.02 worth.

- DP

[CL Mustafic]

I have to admit when I first started posting, I was obsessed with the hits, rates and of course back then, lack of reviews. The longer I'm here posting the less I care. I still love getting reviews, of course who doesn't, but I'm less ecstatic about it now than in the beginning.

I look at it this way: I wrote the piece already so I've gotten my enjoyment from the project so if posting it can entertain just one other person, I've gone above and beyond what I set out to do. If that one person takes the time to tell me they liked it, well that's just icing on the cake.

I'd rather spend my time writing than obsessing over my stats because in the end they really don't mean anything. This isn't a popularity contest, I think the original poster mentioned something about this site being fair about the updates page not being ruled by popularity, it doesn't hurt me if someone has written something that people love and it gets a million hits. I can encourage the other writers here because their success in no way affects my work. It actually makes me happy to see the few people on here that I've come to call friends, succeed in their writing endeavors.

And that's my $0.25 worth. (My opinion is way more expensive than DP's because I'm a diva )

CL

[DirtyAngel]

Magus says(like Simon says but no where near as fun ) hits , reviews, rates...screw it all! Reviews are nice, concrit even nice, good rates is a nice warm fuzzy and a high hit count is fun to see, but none of it should be why we write, we should be writing to silence that voice inside our head so we don't go on killing sprees

Actually he says, and I agree, we should be writing to please ourselves, not like we're getting a check for this. Ski the end all the stats are nice but shouldn't be why we write (damn Magus charged me a buck for that -someone has a big head! )

[Ariana_Pearce]

Wow!

For a few months I lurked here without registering, dismayed by the absence of activity in AFF's forum. Thanks to all of you for dispelling my ambivalence!

Hit counts: of course they matter. At this point they are my only cue as to whether my story posts are shouting into an empty room. I started this thread with the observation that the counts are easily gamed. But everyone knows it, and since the story listings can't be sorted on "popularity," there is really no point in fooling around with one's browser to run the numbers up. True, some do regardless, for whatever reason, but the malefactors stand right out, don't they?!

Philosophically I stand with those who write primarily for their own enjoyment.

I write long books with sprawling plotlines, because that is what I like to read. I also very much prefer books and stories that begin and end. Mine do. I even carry that rubric into the interior of the books: each chapter closes with a purpose served, and I even try to finish a salient thought with each scene, whenever possible. Not because I believe all books should be written this way, but simply because that is my personal preference, and I am writing for myself.

That said, I also crave feedback. Of course it is lovely to know that people are reading. By the same token, I know that it is impossible to satisfy everyone. I am appreciative of those who stop at the first paragraph, having given it a try.

[Guest ejls]

I have to agree with Ariana. Hi there - also new to this site, but have posted stories on other sites for a few years now. I appreciate comments and critiques. Hits mean someone clicked, perhaps accidentally, on my story. But I'm grateful for a word or two, along with a rating. I mean, how can I become a better writer without feedback?

[Desiderius Price]

Like most here, I'm writing because I enjoy it. But, there is a subtle difference between writing for just myself and writing to post; whether it's completing a story, or filling in missing gaps -- and as I'm unpaid in this, the hit counters/reviews do let me know that the extra effort is appreciated.

That's my next $0.50 worth (doubling CL's bid

- DP

[Ariana_Pearce]

Like most here, I'm writing because I enjoy it. But, there is a subtle difference between writing for just myself and writing to post; whether it's completing a story, or filling in missing gaps -- and as I'm unpaid in this, the hit counters/reviews do let me know that the extra effort is appreciated.

That's my next $0.50 worth (doubling CL's bid

- DP

Gotta concede the point, Desiderius. I could write straight into a diary, seal it in wax, and bury it under the roots of a hemlock tree. But I'm here. So my claim that I write only for myself must be poetic crap!

Edited September 14, 2015 by Ariana_Pearce

[Ariana_Pearce]

I have to agree with Ariana. Hi there - also new to this site, but have posted stories on other sites for a few years now. I appreciate comments and critiques. Hits mean someone clicked, perhaps accidentally, on my story. But I'm grateful for a word or two, along with a rating. I mean, how can I become a better writer without feedback?

Hi ejls and welcome. Couldn't help but notice in the course of my perambulations that you are also posting your stuff on the "Original" section of the Archive. I've read, enjoyed and rated "Marian the Librarian," and at some point I'll get to the rest.

[DemonGoddess]

@Ariana

I'm curious. Where the hell have they stacked it so that the stories are sorted by hits???? I'd rather know who updated. Nope, don't write, just read when I have the time.

[DirtyAngel]

@Ariana

I'm curious. Where the hell have they stacked it so that the stories are sorted by hits???? I'd rather know who updated. Nope, don't write, just read when I have the time.

The blue site that shall not be named does for one, by hits or by rating. (xnxx.com/stories)

[Ariana_Pearce]

The blue site that shall not be named does for one, by hits or by rating. (xnxx.com/stories)

Right in one!

And there are others.