How many people will view this question, 1) in the next few days
approx.   2) ultimately

---

Clarification of Question by headsetsdotcom-ga on 27 Sep 2002 17:51 PDT

By ultimately, I mean say, within a month? or maybe a year?. I guess
at least two have read is so far.  Can everyone that reads this post a
comment, even if it's just "hi!" so we can get a count. Thanks!

headsetsdotcom-ga,

This question is a good one for Researchers because it tests your
level of familiarity with how the service works overall, and gets many
Researchers involved in the process.

In one Comment, the Researcher muhammad-ga writes, "The answer to your
first part is 60, since 27 Sep to 1st Oct. are "few
days". The next part of the question, "ultimately", depends how many
people post comments on the last day which in any case will be less
than about 500 (total researchers according to Google).
 
So my answer to your question part 1 and 2 is 60 ("few days") and >60
to <500, well that is a guess."
 
Note that the actual question posted is "How many PEOPLE will view
this question..." This comment and many others focus on how many
GA-Researchers will view this question.

To define some parameters to use in calculating an Answer:

Who can post a Comment? Anyone with a GA account, which is both
Researchers and non-researchers--those asking questions or just
browsing for entertainment.

So, the amount of posted Comments I'd say is a roughly correct
estimate of how many hits that question had from GA accounts. Part 1
of the Question gives a time parameter of "a few days" so I will
accept muhammad-ga's estimate of 60 GA account hits in the first "few
days."

However, who else "views" the Questions besides those with GA
accounts? GA employees, that's who. Editors, proofreaders, marketing
people conducting focus groups, managers looking for examples, and
what have you.

So, the number of how many PEOPLE who have viewed this question must
be higher than solely the number of GA-accounts (GA-accounts =
Researchers + Questioners + non-participatory surfers--NPS's!). The
actual number is the number of GA account page views + the number of
employee page views + the number of unauthorized hacks to the site, if
any, who may well be able to view but not Post!.

But, we can also assume that some percentage of GA account holders who
view the question will not post a comment, so the 60 number (of posted
comments) is low. And since some number of GA employees must view the
page (maybe quite a few since with a very high number of comments
might have set off "flags" which draw attention to the Question), I'm
going to say the answer to part 1 = more like 90.

Using only the number of posted comments has to be too low because all
it would take is one GA account holder to view the page without
commenting to blow that number. Add in GA employee page views,
unauthorized hackers and the slight-but-nevertheless-existent chance
that this content could be excerpted for use in printed material or
3rd party websites (either with permission or not), and the number of
posted comments figure has to be too low.

The above rationale also applies to part 2 of the Question, the
"ultimate" number of page views, but I will consider that next.

Now for part 2, "ultimately" how many page views?:

muhammed-ga (Sorry, I'm not picking on you muhammed, I just chose to
expand from comments that had some rationale behind them)states,
" "ultimately", depends how many
people post comments on the last day which in any case will be less
than about 500 (total researchers according to Google)." To me,
"ultimately" means forever, not just to the expiration date of the
question. People can still read it after that.

Again, the number of total PEOPLE who view the question in its
LIFETIME must be vastly higher than the number of GA-Researchers, for
all the reasons given for part 1 above, and also for special reasons
as explained below.

I've heard it said that once some "information" gets on the
"internet," it can never be entirely destroyed, ever. It may be
deleted from its original server, but it will live on in Temp Internet
files, obscure HDD tracks and data warehouses and external media the
world over, although perhaps anonymously. I believe there is some
truth to this.

So, even after this GA page is no longer posted for whatever reason,
this "information" will likely live on in some way, shape or form for
some time longer than GA is around for.

So there's about 500 Researchers, how many GA non-Researcher account
holders are there currently? Take that figure, add 500 to it, and then
the Internet Longevity Factor + the Unknown Hacker figure + the
Excerpts factor(both authorized and unauthorized) for printed material
and 3rd party web-sites), and extrapolate that into eternity....

I say about one million people will likely view this page, or part of
it, "ultimately." Given a one year restriction, I'd guess about
10,000.

Good luck in continuing your inquiries!

~omniscientbeing-ga

Wow.The level of depth in this answer is far more than expected.
Thanks Omnicscientbeing.  You really went to town :-).  It  was an
amusing question for me, just for fun, but the number of comments
(thanks you all commmenters) and the "team spirit" it invoked made it
well worth the $9.  Omniscientbeing, go grab a cell headset at
www.headsets.com and in credit card put See Mike Faith.  I'll approve
it as a free one.   Thanks all! :-)

A VERY interesting question!   I´m No.1

By ultimately do you mean until the end of time itself or until your
question expires?   Or until another place in time?

howdi

I imagine you'll get many more page views than comments. Also, some
people viewing your question may not even have accounts.

Hey there.

viewed!

I have viewed your question.

Viewed too.

I wonder if the "Usenet rule" applies here?  The one that says for
every person that pipes up and says something, there are ten more just
reading along?

Ten...

eleven

12 !

13

Add me to the list.

Long time since I was 15!

16... *wave*

Oh yes, I read you loud and clear...

For more views, I would have entitled the question "FREE BEER." ;-)

Hi Mike :)

count me in

I think I'm 21?

I'm curious as to why you're taking a survey like this???

Of course, you're getting a count only of the sort of people who like
to post comments.  And I'm one of them!  To be more precise, so far,
I'm one of 23.  :-)

Another...

Is this what procrastinating insomniacs do with their time?

Keep in mind that this is not going to be representative.  You
probably significantly increased the number of views because of your
question subject.  If it was something like "HTML codes for LINUX"
(that probably doesn't even make sense), it is likely you would get
significantly fewer views.  Nonetheless...here's one more.

check

one more

Hi from the UK. I only viewed the question because of the number of
comments now logged against it.
answerfinder-ga

hi,
I read the question. Good idea to check this.

till-ga

I guess that I'm 31 ...

Not many, so far, is it?

Bryan

Another one

Dear Headsets,
                I viewed and went into your question because you have
traditonally asked unusual but interesting questions or have made
controversial/critical comments as I am sure many remember. Anyway
should not your question have been how many people read the question
as listed and then made a decision as to whether to open it up or pass
it up and continue looking down the list for something that interests
them personally.
 If that was the question which although  hard to quantify, it must be
in the thousands surely.

 John From Melbourne

hi, 

what if i attempt to answer the question instead??

warm regards
vinod - ga

Maybe we could make the comment thread more interactive ... which of
course would serve to provoke more comments .. but might also serve to
invite repeat visitors.. hmm... do repeats count? That's up to
headsetsdotcom I guess ..

***************************

Once upon a time, in the colorful land of GA, there came a traveler
named Headsets. Now Headsets was a businessman of the most reputable
sort. He served his customers well, provided a quality product, and
most importantly presented his wares on a website that was easy to
navigate and gentle on the eye.

Headsets did not worship All That Is Flash. He saw that quantity of
fonts does not maketh a website shine. He knew red on black not only
blinds the enemy, but the customer as well. Yes, Headsets was a wise
man.

But Headsets was not content with his wisdom. He had more questions.
Many more. So, in search of greater knowledge, he set upon a journey
to the land of GA to have his questions answered  ....

Voila always brakes for a "headsetdotcom" question so count me in on
your other two listed.  Hope you've got your employees on their
breathing program.

I had always wondered which question was the most popular so far on GA
with the most amount of hits by the public.  Guess I'll include it in
my memo to GA this weekend.

With the volume increase, lots of questions are answered with no at
all comments which is a far cry from the "old days."  We hope to get
you in the 100s with this one and your headset survey though.  
Coffee....

#36
V

Hello!

38

At least 39.

rico

aye oop

#41, just shy of the magic 42 answer ;-)
So you see, your free-floating question is seen by at least a'few',
for a sufficiently large number of 'few'.

42!

Is this question the answer to life, the universe and everthing. I
sincerely hope not, otherwise I'll disappear in a puff of......oh sh*t

43!

Maybe next time you should ask what state or country your respondents are in.

44

I think I'm 45.

I wonder why Google don't put a "Viewed by:" counter on the summary page ...

Maybe they will

Owain

And me!

46...

.......47

Make that 48 now!

Who will be 50?

51.... 

next......

tlspiegel-ga

ooopsss... I'm 50!  sorry for the miscount... lol

tlspiegel-ga

I think among other things... the
relevance in the end will determine 
the # of visitors. Lets say, if it
got answered, it would eventually
end up in the database of questions
that had answers. It would then 
guarantee it's existance in the
future. Whereas, if it goes unanswered
it might have a shorter lifespan.

#51 - AI

This visit does not count, I just wanted to get the question back to
the top of the list :)

pinkfreud has raised an interesting point:
(For more views, I would have entitled the question "FREE BEER." ;-) )

How you market your question in the Subject line can directly
influence the number of people who actually choose to view the whole
question, and perhaps, respond to it. Since your subject piqued our
interest and gave us an interesting diversion, we all had to weigh in
on it.

(By the way, I had previously been very impressed with pinkfreud's
depth and breadth of knowledge, but I definitely like their thought
process here!)

54.

Me, too - but then I've "met" you bwefore via a previous question, so
would tend to check it out. 55.

I'm number 56!

Well, I see that I've come late to the party....

Maybe it's because I was answering the other question--the one about
why people don't wear headsets, and weighing in on the researcher poll
of Headset-wearers vs. Those-whom-Mike-has-yet-to-convert.

Way to test the envelope, Mike!

Beth

Better late than never, eh? : )  I can't understand how anyone could
resist a peek at a question like that.  AH

59 oh, how i longed to be sixtieth !!

60.

The answer to your first part is 60, since 27 Sep to 1st Oct. are "few
days". The next part of the question, "ultimately", depends how many
people post comments on the last day which in any case will be less
than about 500 (total researchers according to Google).

So my answer to your question part 1 and 2 is 60 ("few days") and >60
to <500, well that is a guess.


Cheers!

Most people viewing the page won't have Google accounts, surely.

My comment adds one more to the list. Maybe we can get all 500 or so
Researchers to add a comment. I think I'm going to Answer this
Question.

Testing post-Answered commenting ability. Will this comment be posted
now that the Question has been Answered?

Yes, comments can be added after the Q is Answered.

hi

Here I am...

Amazing the things you find here!

-THV

Comment number 68!

Yay I'm # 69  !!!!!!!!!!!

70

Still going strong. 71!

Hello!  72!!

73

12!


(*wakes up from his flashback of the movie Multiplicity's #4*)

/me takes off his shoes to count,.....

.... Seventy-Four!

Good grief. Hello :)

74. wonder if google's database has a limitation =)

Hello!

Good day from 76

seventy nine

Count me in.
I think I am number 80 on the comment count.
clicker5-ga

Easly moor than you think.

and one more than that!

Why in this Question have so many of the World's Most Revered
Researchers been relegated from their usual BLUE colours ('colors' in
debased versions of our Great Language) and converted into mere
BLACKS?

Are they in disgrace?

And, if so, could we have the gory details, please?

Similarly, is it possible for us BLACKS to be converted into the
coveted BLUES, possibly for valour ('valor' for the unilluminated) in
the field?

STALKING ME?

WHERE OH WHERE ARE YOU TONIGHT?
I searched the world over thought I'd found true love
you let another and RRRRRIIIIIPPPPPPP!
I was gone.

<'(((><

For the cause! I found this question, which I'd obviously missed
earlier, I regularly read q's of interest, while searching for
another.