TOL Snapshot: Inside the Numbers

[Jedidiah]

That's an interesting notion. Of course if a poster limits his thread starts to hot button issues....and there are all sorts of variations...

That's why I thought it'd be interesting because it could help differentiate how much of the activity in long threads is based mainly on the topic, and how much is because the thread creator works hard, tending their field.

...For instance, when considering the averages of threads, views and responses you have to take into account threads that by their nature limit one or more of those...

Of course, and those, like your example below, would be easy to mentally spot and segment accordingly, I think.

...Take Psalmist, for example. He does a great many birthday threads. Now I think that sort of thing is good for the site, helps promote a sense of community, but the're threads that don't invite as many posts and sometimes views, depending on whose birthday it is.

And some posters generate a lot of looks and not as much commentary, so the intimation is that the writing of the poster is more of a draw than the particular topic...

That's an interesting thought.

...It's an interesting thing to look at. What I did was find two decent, general numbers that over the averages would give a sense of the sort of poster we're looking at. Whether it's subject of comment that is tending to draw. The only thing I wish I'd done earlier was give the broader thread averages, so many looking in would have had a better opinion of their own position within the range, instead of thinking hitters numbers weren't, if you follow.

I don't follow the bold above.

It seems like there are some posters who seem effortlessly able to -- frequently -- create threads and then leave them alone, and they take on a life all their own, apart from the thread creator, with little if any effort on the part of the thread creator. Is it the topic alone that causes these events ? Or is it how the thread creator words/presents the topic ? Perhaps these are two ways of saying the same thing...if a topic is introduced in a very particular way, it's perhaps not really the same exact topic as when it is presented slightly differently.

:idunno:

 

[Town Heretic]

Truster
Threads: 100
More than 100 posts: 18
More than 1000 views: 32

I think most of his are in the religion section where the averages are:

Religion
Threads: 100
More than 100 posts: 26
More than 1000 views: 38

 

[zoo22]

Truster
Threads: 100
More than 100 posts: 18
More than 1000 views: 32

Then there's

Jefferson
Threads: 100
More than 100 posts: 3
More than 1000 views: 10
Less than 5 replies: 81
0 replies: 52

 

[Nick M]

Truster
Threads: 100
More than 100 posts: 18
More than 1000 views: 32

The funny part is that his "ignore" thread has 2500 views.

 

[Town Heretic]

A little bored late last night and I wondered how our reports would break down by year and month. I mean do we get more or less contentious on the point, is there a cycle? Anyway, I looked across my time here, from 07 to early 15 to see how things laid out.

I've made 322 reports in around eight years.

07: 0
08: 12
09: 19
10: 28
11: 59
12: 102
13: 62
14: 23
15: 17

For some reason I have rarely reported in July and September, with January and December being a 2 to 1 over those two months and the heaviest reporting time.

:idunno:

 

[1PeaceMaker]

From time to time I'm going to look at various numbers, just for the heck of it and purely for entertainment purposes. Sky inadvertently gave me the idea when she conflated the number of individuals posting in Quixote with its popularity. I noted the number of views and it got me thinking about something else.

So the first snapshot is one I did looking across sky's posts and now carried over across a few others, including myself. This snapshot is as of midnight and setting this thread aside for the purposes of counting.

Sky
Threads: 67
More than a thousand views: 18
More than 100 posts: 7

Eeset
Threads: 100
More than 1000 views: 42
More than 100 posts: 12

chrys
Threads: 100
More than a thousand views: 50
More than 100 posts: 31

AB
Threads: 92
More than 1000 views: 59
More than 100 posts: 24

resurrected
Threads: 46
More than 1000 views: 6
More than 100 posts: 5

anna
Threads: 97
More than 1000 views: 57
More than 100 posts: 21

zoo
Threads: 100
More than 1000 views: 48
More than 100 posts: 11

Updated:

TH
Threads: 92
More than 1000 views: 80
More than 100 posts: 41

1PM
Threads: 75
More than 1000 views 50
More than 100 posts: 11

:idunno:

 

[Town Heretic]

Okay, so Chrys is back at the old awards thread and I thought I'd set the following as a yardstick for them, having noted the posts/views and averages prior to one or two of them being pruned.

Chrys Awards

2011: 1080 posts, 31,834 views, 29.5 per post view average.

2012: 1216 posts, 33,936 views, 27.9 per post view average.

2013: 2120 posts, 47,130 views, 22.2 per post view average.

2014: 993 posts, 13,531 views, 13.6 per post view average.

Then I wondered, is it just in the nature of threads on the same line that they suffer by repetition? I think the answer can be mixed.

Look at the decline between 2012 an 2013. Nearly a thousand more posts and over three thousand more views, but the average is down and keeps going down over the life of the thing.

Another sort of movement is found in my own odd Race Report, where I call the reporting trends and assign winners each month like a horse race.

2013: 193 posts, 9448 views, 48.9 average views per post
2014: 167 posts, 8591 views, 51 average views per post
2015: 88 posts, 5125 views, 58 average view per post (so far)

A different decline then, with posts and overall views down and averages up.

 

[chrysostom]

Okay, so Chrys is back at the old awards thread and I thought I'd set the following as a yardstick for them, having noted the posts/views and averages prior to one or two of them being pruned.




Then I wondered, is it just in the nature of threads on the same line that they suffer by repetition? I think the answer can be mixed.

Look at the decline between 2012 an 2013. Nearly a thousand more posts and over three thousand more views, but the average is down and keeps going down over the life of the thing.

Another sort of movement is found in my own odd Race Report, where I call the reporting trends and assign winners each month like a horse race.

2013: 193 posts, 9448 views, 48.9 average views per post
2014: 167 posts, 8591 views, 51 average views per post
2015: 88 posts, 5125 views, 58 average view per post (so far)

A different decline then, with posts and overall views down and averages up.

this is really misleading
but
that is not beneath you

 

[Town Heretic]

this is really misleading
but
that is not beneath you

There's nothing misleading about it, but this sort of complaint is right in your wheelhouse.

He's speaking to two sets of numbers. The repost from 2014 was made and accurate, but the thread continued and between then and now the totals grew. I noted it in his 2015 thread:

In fact, I noted in the current threat:

...2014: 1,018 posts, 22,325 views, 21.9 per post average. So it wasn't as horrible relatively, while falling in general.

 

[chrysostom]

Okay, so Chrys is back at the old awards thread and I thought I'd set the following as a yardstick for them, having noted the posts/views and averages prior to one or two of them being pruned.




Then I wondered, is it just in the nature of threads on the same line that they suffer by repetition? I think the answer can be mixed.

Look at the decline between 2012 an 2013. Nearly a thousand more posts and over three thousand more views, but the average is down and keeps going down over the life of the thing.

Another sort of movement is found in my own odd Race Report, where I call the reporting trends and assign winners each month like a horse race.

2013: 193 posts, 9448 views, 48.9 average views per post
2014: 167 posts, 8591 views, 51 average views per post
2015: 88 posts, 5125 views, 58 average view per post (so far)

A different decline then, with posts and overall views down and averages up.

this is the post you made today
and
it included this

2014: 993 posts, 13,531 views, 13.6 per post view average.

 

[Town Heretic]

this is the post you made today
and
it included this

2014: 993 posts, 13,531 views, 13.6 per post view average.

No, that's a post I reposted with an old total that was accurate when posted, but before the thread was mostly done. I'd already posted the correct total for 2014 and I wasn't paying attention to the fact that the repost happened during the 2014 thread. I was using it for the 2011 through 2013 and didn't notice.

But like I said when you noted it, I'm the one who earlier and in the 2015 thread posted the higher totals and average for 2014 as well, so there you go.

 

[chrysostom]

it has been shown
you can't trust his numbers
enough said

 

[Town Heretic]

it has been shown
you can't trust his numbers
enough said

That's simply not true, chrys and it's just odd that you're attempting it.

Anyway, meshak asked me about chrys rant and here's the honest answer he should have read:

Here's what happened.

I posted the current numbers on the 2014 thread and noted they were lower than the 2013 thread and that the numbers on his "awards" thread had declined every year. The figure I posted to make that note wasn't the figure he's complaining about.

Chrys said it was just that 2013 was a great year for the thread and that's why 2014 had looked poor by comparison.

I then posted an old post made during the latter stages of his 2014 thread that contained the numbers for 2011, 2012, 2013 and at that point and time current 2014 figures.

I was never skewing the figures on 2014. I'd already posted the updated figures. Did that first.

The point of using that earlier post was to demonstrate that the problem wasn't 2013 being a great year, that in fact it was a year declining from 2012, which had declined from 2011.

So he's just wrong in his complaint.

And now he's worse than wrong, unless he didn't read my response to meshak in his 2014 thread, which is unlikely.

 

[chrysostom]

only town will know where these numbers came from

all the rest

10 chrysostom
2 town

politics

2 chrysostom
0 town

religion

1 chrysostom
0 town

ect

1 chrysostom
0 town

 

[Town Heretic]

only town will know where these numbers came from
all the rest
10 chrysostom
2 town
politics
2 chrysostom
0 town
religion
1 chrysostom
0 town
ect
1 chrysostom
0 town

I guess Chrys got lonesome and thought he'd ignore me over here.

No idea what the numbers there represent. Apparently nothing that means much to me or I suppose I would. :idunno:

 

[chrysostom]

I guess Chrys got lonesome and thought he'd ignore me over here.

No idea what the numbers there represent. Apparently nothing that means much to me or I suppose I would. :idunno:

I took you off ignore
and
looked to see
if
I saw any red

you are clear

I have been checking other numbers
and
found that all my award threads are in the top 50
including my latest
plus
six other threads of mine
but
you are the only one who might care about that

 

[Tambora]

but
you are the only one who might care about that

You.

 

[chrysostom]

You.

did you notice who started this thread?

it is over two years old
and
it has not broke into the top 50

 

[Town Heretic]

I took you off ignore

Okay.

I have been checking other numbers and found that all my award threads are in the top 50 including my latest plus six other threads of mine but you are the only one who might care about that

Oh, is that what that was about? You seemed equally concerned about my threads then. :chuckle:

You do know I haven't launched many in a while, right? And that I actually had most of my threads excised to help out the upcoming move?

Maybe you didn't. :idunno: If you're happy I'm happy for you.

 

[Town Heretic]

did you notice who started this thread?
it is over two years old
and
it has not broke into the top 50

I never start a thread caring about whether it breaks a particular barrier, just as I never arrived at my rep number by courting favor or asking for it, that sort of thing. That likely won't make sense to you, but either they're organic or I don't care much. What I've hoped for over the years is that if I care enough to start a thread on a subject people find it entertaining or informative or interesting enough to spend a moment participating or considering.

I've had a pretty good track record on that. But numbers are only meaningful as reflections, not as goals. That's why I shut down Observations, which if numbers in and of mattered to me could have kept going and become the biggest thread in the joint in any meaningful particular.

I closed it.