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Date: Thu, 7 Nov 2024 15:51:53 +0000 (GMT)
To: Bob Weinand <bobwei9@hotmail.com>
cc: Larry Garfield <larry@garfieldtech.com>, 
    php internals <internals@lists.php.net>
Subject: Re: [PHP-DEV] [RFC] PHP.net analytics
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From: derick@php.net (Derick Rethans)

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On Sat, 2 Nov 2024, Bob Weinand wrote:

> On 1.11.2024 22:41:29, Larry Garfield wrote:
> > In a similar vein to approving the use of software, Roman Pronskiy=20
> > asked for my help putting together an RFC on collecting analytics=20
> > for PHP.net.
> >=20
> > https://wiki.php.net/rfc/phpnet-analytics

[snip]

> Let's see what the RFC names:
>=20
> =C2=A0=C2=A0=C2=A0 Time-on-page
> =C2=A0=C2=A0=C2=A0 Whether they read the whole page or just a part
> =C2=A0=C2=A0=C2=A0 Whether they even saw comments
>=20
> Yes, these need a client side tracker. But I doubt the usefulness of=20
> the signal. You don't know who reads that. Is it someone who is=20
> already familiar with PHP and searches a detail? He'll quickly just=20
> find one part. Is it someone who is new to PHP and tries to understand=20
> PHP. He may well read the whole page. But you don't know that.

The Matomo JS tracker also does not collect all this data, it only=20
improves the "time spent on each page":
https://developer.matomo.org/guides/tracking-javascript-guide#accurately-me=
asure-the-time-spent-on-each-page

I make no comments about how useful this is.

> =C2=A0=C2=A0=C2=A0 How much are users using the search function? Is it fi=
nding what they
> want, or is it just a crutch?
>=20
> How much is probably greppable from the server logs as well.

The PHP client tracker that was mentioned in this thread, has a specific=20
feature for this:
https://github.com/matomo-org/matomo-php-tracker/blob/master/MatomoTracker.=
php#L910

The JS version can't track our internal search systems, and I am not=20
sure it use the HTTP referrer to see whether the entry came through a=20
Google (or other third party) search.

> And yeah, server logs are more locked down. But that's something you=20
> can fix. I hope that the raw analytics data is just as locked down as=20
> the server logs...

The raw server logs will definitely not be opened up, and neither will=20
any other raw data.

cheers,
Derick

--=20
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