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Web analytics is of immeasurable importance to anyone who works in any Internet based profession, but it could also be something fun for any Internet user to play with and understand.

So whenever I find a new web analytics tool, I am all over it…

And recently I just came across a website that analyzes data from one of my most visited sites on the web, Digg.com, so now I’m really excited!

The site is quite robust and features a lot of useful and interesting information, as well as all sorts of options for sorting and displaying the statistical data on Digg and its Dugg sites.

The website is called Dugg Analyzer, so check it out.

Also, post any interesting/useful information you may find regarding Digg as comments to this post.

Soon enough we will know a little more on who is editing pages on the most popular open content encyclopedia, Wikipeida, thanks to its operator The Wikimedia foundation, who plans on surveying its contributors.

The main goal of the survey strategy will be to uncover the identities and posting habits of Wikipedia authors.

The real interesting information will come in the form of discovering how many professionals/experts are actually editing pages and how many are simply individuals unqualified to write such entries in an encyclopedia.

As we all know, many Wikipedia contributors have hidden agendas, and therefore will not freely disclose any personal information. But this may be a way to pick out many of the unqualified authors, since qualified author with real information should have no reason to hide.

Though as with any survey, we know all the information will not be perfect. Still, any information collected will be information that gives us a peak into the mysterious back-end world of Wikipeida entries, so it will be useful.

Some information collected will be released at Wikimania this July and the rest will be out by the end of the year.

Can’t wait!

I just recently came across some interesting information that I thought I’d share with everyone.

According to the Internet research and trend analysis website, eMarketer.com, ad spending on social networking sites is anticipated to grow 75% next year and ad revenue for niche communities is expected to grow to 10% from 8.2% in 2007.

This is good news for social networking as a whole since it continues to build on the fact that social networking communities are here to stay and aren’t simply Internet fads or “bubbles” that is building to burst.

And since several advertisers are still to see social networks as a platform for advertising, it’s good to see growth in this area and hopefully this will prompt others to see the valuable in having a presence in such communities and also test the waters.

It has just come to my attention that a very shady FaceBook application has been going around that can cause some real damage to your computer.

This may not seem like anything new, since there are many FaceBook applications with hidden agendas that perform devious actions.

Except, according to security solutions provider, Fortinet, this application called “Secret Crush” has the ability to download and install the Zango spyware software on your computer.

Check out this page for more information on the shady application.

My tips to anyone using FaceBook is to really pay attention and to do some research on any and all applications you are thinking of installing; it’s a bad idea to just install something simply on the fact that a friend has it.

And if in fact you find a questionable application make sure to report it to FaceBook by going to the applications main page, so we can keep FaceBook good, clean, and fun.

Adobe has now entered the list of companies providing web-based applications, joining the growing list of such companies as Google and Microsoft who are offering online solutions to applications that in the past have only been accessible on your local hard drive.

I see this as a major indication as to where the Internet is going…

To date, the Internet has evolved faster than anyone could have ever imagined. In the relatively short amount of time that the Internet has been accessible to the general public, it has grown by monumental leaps and bounds; it’s a juggernaut with seemingly indefinite potential. And I see “fully Internet based PCs” as the next step in its evolution.

When I say, “fully Internet based PCs,” I mean the creation of PCs that are just, in essence, portals to your “Internet PCs” or virtual machines. We no longer will have a need for fully featured operating systems or applications to exist on your local hard drive, because one day Internet speeds, along with its accessibility and availability, will be so high-speed it will be able to handle any type of hardware emulation.

Although this idea is nothing new and is happening all around us (Gmail, Meebo, Zoho). I feel that only now is technology becoming available to actually implement these ideas. And though we are not quit there yet, we are moving ever so closer to its full-scale adaptation.

Facebook’s ability for users and companies to make and distribute applications within its social network has been a rather unstoppable force within the Web 2.0 world. And it has been exciting seeing all the applications that have been developed and all the companies that have jumped on board to build their presence on Facebook. But until now, the only people that could actually make applications for Facebook were people with the ability to code- leaving all us non-coders out of the fun.

Therefore, WidgetBox.com has published a web-based tool that allows anyone to create an application for Facebook.

The application creation tool is one we’ve all been waiting for, and one many people and businesses can benefit from a great deal. For instance, small businesses can now setup a basic application to help promote their business and users can make tools to share with friends- all at no cost at all or having to learn any programming language.

Truthfully, I see this as just another indication that Facebook will one day be the biggest and best social network on the web.

We all know there’s nothing cooler than being the first on the block to have that new gadget. And the same goes for having early access to that hot new website currently in beta.

Why? Well… We get the status of being an “insider,” but mostly I think we just like to have bragging rights.

Still, whatever the reason, having access to different websites before everyone else is a very cool thing. Not only do you get bragging rights, but it may give you the opportunity to grow your business by giving you a head start on the competition. However, sometimes it can be very difficult to get an invitation unless you know someone or buy it.

Yes…I said, “Buy it,” I’ve seen many invitations being bought and sold on eBay in the past.

So, before you go ahead and pull out your wallet or beg your friends or business associates for an invite to that cool new website, check out Mashable Invites. Mashable Invites, by the great people at Mashable.com, is an invitation swapping service solely for Web 2.0 websites. The service works very well, so check it out. And hopefully you have some invites to contribute to the community as well.

Nevertheless, this is one of the coolest services out there and a vital tool for anyone looking to get an edge on what’s coming out in tomorrow’s Web 2.0 world.

Well the simple answer is no. The ability to view which IP addresses have been editing pages in Wikipedia has always existed, but now a student from Cal Tech has gone ahead and not only simplified the process, but has also created a searchable database of IP addresses making changes to pages. The website, Wikipedia Scanner, is straightforward and easy to use, just one warning though, the site is very time consuming!

But in a good way!

It’s fun and interesting searching through pages and IP addresses to find who is changing what- you never know what you might uncover!

For instance, did you know Sony once changed Halo 3’s Wikipedia page to say “Halo 3 won’t look any better than Halo 2?”

Ouch…

The funniest part is that the list goes on and on, from corporations too government agencies, it seems everyone is making changes to Wikipedia pages.

Happy hunting everyone!!

That time is once again among us. The time when parents rejoice and children cringe: Back to School!

I’ve compiled a list of Web 2.0 websites sure to help you with any school related matters! So whether you’re going to college for your first year or returning yet again, this list is sure to help you out!

Facebook.com – If you have not yet created a Facebook account, there is no better time than now. Use Facebook to meet new people, learn about new activities (whatever they may be), and stay in contact with other students and friends.

RateMyProfessors.com – This one can help you GREATLY! With RMP you can find information about teachers or even add your own. Use this before you start to make your schedule to learn more about particular teachers.

Ebay.com & Craigslist.org – Use both websites to get good deals on text books and school supplies! But why these two when there are many others dedicated to solely school matters? Well with Ebay and Craiglist you can buy almost ANYTHING else too!

Yelp.com – If you’re going to school in a new location, you will need to know all the not-so-hot and HOT spots. Yelp is a review site where all reviews are user submitted, so you can learn about places before you check them out- right from other students.

Stu.dicio.us – There is nothing worse than losing notes or just leaving them somewhere. With Stu.dicio.us you can take/save/share notes, todos lists, documents, and even connect with Facebook friends, and have everything available from any computer with Internet access.

Citationmachine.net – MLA, APA- WHAT? Still having trouble writing citations? Use this website to correctly structure your citations for your papers by simply filling out a form.

Books.Google.com – Need to check out a book, but have no time to get to a real library (who still goes to those places anyway?), just try doing a search in this Google tool. You will find hundreds of books completely digitized by Google. Though, they do not have as big a selection as some libraries, it is still a good start.

All of the mentioned sites have helped me in school, but I am sure there are many other great ones out there. So if you have any not on the list, just add them to the comments section.

Good luck!

I love Digg and other social bookmarking websites. They are the news sites for the Internet- by Internet users, for Internet users. But as great as they are, they are also known as “Site Killers”. If a blog with very little bandwidth in it’s hosting package gets picked up by Digg or any of the other social bookmarking websites, and it all of a sudden gets a massive amount of hits, it can go down. And this can be a pain for both the website administration and the user.

In fact, there have been countless amount of times where I have found a very interesting link, and I could not see it because the site has gone down! So, to fix this I have been using a very useful Firefox extension, Mr. Uptime. The extension works by popping up whenever you arrive at a web page that is down and asking if the web page should be bookmarked for later.

If you decide the website is important enough and would like to bookmark it. Mr. Uptime will now keep an eye on the site, and it will alert you once the web page goes back up.

Thank you Mr. Uptime!