From spencer.graves at prodsyse.com  Tue Nov 24 01:09:01 2009
From: spencer.graves at prodsyse.com (spencerg)
Date: Mon, 23 Nov 2009 18:09:01 -0600
Subject: [Rd] CRAN Server download statistics (Was: R Usage Statistics)
In-Reply-To: <971536df0911231515t25d700ebicb599976106ae52b@mail.gmail.com>
References: <C8F304C52E72EF4EBD6CBEF0A2DE1BAA08DC4B9C68@MBX2.AD.UCSD.EDU>
	<f8e6ff050911230612t29831938w6c049a4de52f2ac@mail.gmail.com>
	<C8F304C52E72EF4EBD6CBEF0A2DE1BAA08DC4B9C69@MBX2.AD.UCSD.EDU>
	<971536df0911231515t25d700ebicb599976106ae52b@mail.gmail.com>
Message-ID: <4B0B241D.9000909@prodsyse.com>

Beyond what Gabor said, I might download a package that uses "zoo", then 
use "zoo" directly in other contexts without ever downloading it 
directly.  Total downloads would capture that;  top level downloads 
would not.  The flip side is that a package that requires "zoo" may only 
use it for features that I don't use.  This would support the use of top 
level downloads over total downloads.  Spencer

Gabor Grothendieck wrote:
> On Mon, Nov 23, 2009 at 3:51 PM, Fellows, Ian <ifellows at ucsd.edu> wrote:
>   
>> 6. Regarding package dependancies, I was thinking about also counting the number of top level downloads, as approximated
>> by the number of downloads where a reverse dependancy was not downloaded in the next 5 min by the same IP.
>>     
>
> Top level downloads discriminates against infrastructure packages,
> i.e. packages that are not necessarily directly used by users or even
> downloaded directly by users.  It can make it seem as if a package
> that is widely used, but not directly by users, is barely used at all
> so total downloads seems a better metric of popularity than top level
> downloads.
>
> I can't find it just now but remember reading a post on another list,
> or maybe it was his blog, by the author of certain software (not
> related to R) that was fundamental to Ruby on Rails but as
> infrastructure would not be directly observed by the user yet Ruby on
> Rails got all the credit and his key contribution got almost none
> despite the fact that Ruby on Rails likely would have never achieved
> its current high level of popularity without his contribution.
>
> ______________________________________________
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>
>   


-- 
Spencer Graves, PE, PhD
President and Chief Operating Officer
Structure Inspection and Monitoring, Inc.
751 Emerson Ct.
San Jos?, CA 95126
ph:  408-655-4567



[Rd] CRAN Server download statistics (Was: R Usage Statistics)
spencerg