This always makes me laugh, whether it's Firefox users or Linux users. "Because you *can* change the UA in my favourite software, it automatically follows that 30% of reported visitors *are* faking it."
(Sounds of straws being grasped) Cheers, Rich. On 11/5/07, Tim Dobson <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: > Considering, Ashley's recent interview on backstage podcast, in which he > tries to dispel some of the displease aimed at the iPlayer from the Free > Software and Open Source Communities, it is quite unfortunate that he has > made such a public mistake at their expense, in the past few days. > > Considering the Communities are apparently as small as 15,000 users, I am > surprised we have been able to be so vocal. > (Yes I am suggesting that practically every GNU+Linux user with a user agent > string including "linux" visits at least one page on the BBC, once a month.) > > > My question to Kevin Hinde would be, how many users are we unsure of their > Operating system? Where are they classed? > For example, I have a small blog and I have some visitor statistics (using > bbclone) on that. > The 3rd most popular operating system is "?" ie unrecognised. > for an example see http://bbclone.de/demo/ > The BBC must have similar results, whose OS it can't distinguish, if so > where are these? > This is important because many Free software web browsers, in particular > those on GNU+Linux obscure, miss out, or fake the UA String. > This is sometimes done for privacy; not wanting an easy way to work out > which exploit get which box. > more often than not it is done because some silly software designers think > that on some websites (obviously not BBC, tends to be Educational Software > Vendors in my experience) they can show the user something saying this site > is not compatible with you browser, operating system etc. > Obviously UA strings can be faked, indeed there is a firefox extension that > I currently have installed which lets me change it to show me running what > ever browser on what ever platform I want. > > -Tim > > > > > -- > www.dobo.urandom.co.uk > ---- > If each of us have one object, and we exchange them, then each of us still > has one object. > If each of us have one idea, and we exchange them, then each of us now has > two ideas. - George Bernard Shaw > -- SilverDisc Ltd is registered in England no. 2798073 Registered address: 4 Swallow Court, Kettering, Northamptonshire, NN15 6XX - Sent via the backstage.bbc.co.uk discussion group. To unsubscribe, please visit http://backstage.bbc.co.uk/archives/2005/01/mailing_list.html. Unofficial list archive: http://www.mail-archive.com/[email protected]/
