Monday 23 February 2015

Beaten by Fluffiness


A comment on my last post:

Gay Welsh Luddite: 

“Thank fuck for that! Back to human, puppy interest stories with an Angolan twist”

My Response:

“Typical. I write about something that interests me and a few comments crawl in; I write about fluffy puppies and doe eyed little boys and in half a day I have a million hits. I know how Marvin felt. Here I am, brain the size of a planet, and they ask me to write cuddly. Call that job satisfaction, 'cause I don't!”

I only delve into the engine room of blogger when I need to post but I decided to have a look at my stats to compare the relative popularity of interesting and fluffy posts.  While fewer comments were posted, the interesting posts attracted more hits from a far wider audience. 

If I was writing with my ‘Interesting’ head on, I would say that few conclusions should be drawn from such statistics as the interesting posts contain many specific search terms, such as ‘BMW 3.0 CS’, or ‘Double Overhead Chrome Dipstick’.  Although there are few who would Google these terms, statistically there are enough, and they would be directed to my blog whether they wished to be there or not.  These ‘false hits’ would skew the stats in favour of intelligent posts, so it would be quite wrong to suppose the evidence suggested that all those who visited my blog and did not post a comment probably like classic cars and joinery and the only little doggies they are interested in are the ones served piping hot with onions from an urchin’s barrow in the High Street.  If I was writing with my ‘fluffy’ head on, I wouldn’t bother with statistics at all and just say that people who bother to comment are such nice people.  I can see, though, that if I wish to continue writing about my lovely and very interesting new machines I need to introduce them as props in a narrative about hand crafted solid timber cribs for babes or twee little garden cottages for doggy-wogs.  Am I still allowed to say ‘doggy’?

While I was down in the oily bowels of Blogger, though, I was startled at the audience spread by nationality.  In top two positions are, unsurprisingly given the relative similarity between the two languages, the United States and the United Kingdom.  These are followed, and this really did surprise me, by four communist countries.  They are, in order:  France, Ukraine, Russia and Romania.  Apart from Cro Magnon, the tastes of whom are eclectic, why would anyone in France be interested in my blog?
 
 

24 comments:

  1. Now! I am not being anti Gowans here as I would say the same to Tom Stephenson( and have done vociferously) when he fucking well bangs on about candlesticks like a whore with a queue
    Fluffy bunny.......that's my style!

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    1. Hmm, I feel an article coming on all about hand turning and polishing wooden candlesticks on my new Italian Made CMC Kontour 1500 Copy Lathe...

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    2. Funny you should say that I was on my lathe just last night. First time in three years but I could still remember what to do! I say more wood posts, popularity be damned!

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    3. First time in three years? And you didn't fall off?

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    4. I have good balance, one of my many skills. although it was tricky to get up there in the first place.

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  2. Tom, at my farm, miles from nowhere, I have someone following my blog from Siberia. Blogging is strange, isn't it? And, a new lathe? Now, that is interesting.

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    1. I don't have the lathe yet but it along with a load of other machinery is on order. Once they are installed, then you'll see some interesting posts! (Get it? Never mind!)

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  3. I think most of my non-English sources are spammers or people who were googling something and somehow arrived by mistake. I love the cartoon.

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    1. Took me a while before I was satisfied with Marcia's likeness.

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  4. Double Overhead Chrome Dipstick??? just Google that one and see who is at the top of the list. Its right there with the Chrysler Turbo Encabulator.
    http://youtu.be/MXW0bx_Ooq4

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    1. Yes, but what sort of weirdo would actually be looking for double overhead chrome dipsticks? A dipstick, maybe?

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  5. people struggle to be ingratiating when you post the "interesting" stuff

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  6. I don't believe these location stats for one minute. Lets all try to get just one of these Siberians or Mongolians to leave a comment.... it'll never happen!

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  7. I get hits from China when I rant about the poor quality of Chinese Bearings. I think they are just angry robots.
    My one post that gets a steady stream of viewers was about lubing the bearings on a Dual record changer. That was a couple years ago. I don't get comments on it, just a steady stream of viewers.
    However, my blog is read by five grumpy farmers so I get comments when I take photos of antique farm equipment.
    I want to hear about the woodworking adventure plus an adventure story now and then. I nice mix is good.

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  8. I don't necessarily like " fluffy", but I do enjoy your posts about the family, and the kids, and the lifestyle, as I know very little about how it all works in Angola. I have enjoyed some of your more technical stuff …..learning about generators I think was one!

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    1. Looks as though soon you'll be learning all about spindle speeds and turnover knives...

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  9. Most popular post on my blog is how to make amadou from a fungus.....

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    1. Well I have just increased that count by one, I had to read your post in order to find out what Amadou was!

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  10. Is that an updated likeness of you next to Marcia?

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    1. The one with the camera or the one with the tape measure?

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  11. I am in France and I read your blog regularly and have followed you for quite a while.
    Just a quick question, I haven't found an update on your health since you got back from the UK. How are you, I assume in rude health after reading about all your adventures lately

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    1. Much better, thank you, It will improve further with the arrival of the bicycles!

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Please feel free to comment, good or bad. I will allow anything that isn't truly offensive to any other commentator. Me? You can slag me without mercy but try and be witty while you are about it.