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Counting Page Hits:
Logs and Dynamic Counters
UNHinfo.Help@unh.edu

29-OCT-1998
26-APR-2001 rev bc

There are two basic ways to get counts of page hits:

  • Reports from the Web server logs.
  • Dynamic counter on a Web page (CGI script).
Which to choose depends on your purpose and what log reporting or CGI scripts are available for the Web server that hosts your pages. A caveat: page counters are easily overdone -- ask yourself if the counter is just a gimmick or "cool tool" fascination on your part as the page author. Also see the discussion of Web stats limitations.

If you have a UNHINFO Contributor Account you can get both kinds of counts. You can request a weekly hits ("stats") report for your Web pages. Or, you can embed a counter as described in UNHINFO page counter support.

If your pages are on the Pubpages server you can also get both kinds of counts. Look at the current monthly stats which shows every page on Pubpages. By using a Perl script you can extract the count for your page from these stats. See the bottom of Paul Sand's personal home page for an example of this script in use.

Or, you can embed a counter by using one of the free counters that runs external to Pubpages. Here is an example of just one such counter:

For information on how to use this particular counter, see the PR-Tracker site. It does not require pre-registration to use the counter, but it is a reminder of TANSTAAFL (There Ain't No Such Thing As A Free Lunch)! In exchange for use of the counter service, you have to display an ad. For a list of alternatives, which may have an ad and counter more to your liking, see the other free counters compiled by Wilson and Associates.