- Jeremy
- Administrator
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- From: United States
- Registered: August 30, 2009
- Posts: 2,773
Repeat Visitor Changes
After careful consideration, we are making changes to how repeat visitors to your counter are handled. For more than a year now, we have offered the choice of whether you want your counter to use cookies, or IP address tracking to determine if a visitor should add a flag to your counter.
Using cookies to determine if someone has viewed the counter in the past has unfortunately proven to be unreliable and a source of confusion. In some cases, antivirus software deletes cookies, or a user has their browser configured to delete cookies when they close it. In other cases, a user has brought their laptop with them traveling around the world, and doesn't understand why they aren't adding a flag from the new country they're visiting from.
Effective immediately, all Flag Counters will no longer use cookies to track repeat visitors.
Any counter that was previously using cookies will now count a unique IP address once per day by default. This can be changed to 8 hours, 24 hours, 3 days, or 1 week.
The following new features have been added:
-An "Ignore This Browser" section now appears in Flag Counter Management section. Using this option will set a permanent cookie on your browser only that prevents your counter from adding a visitor, a pageview, or a visitor log entry whenever your browser is used.
-A new 8 hour option for repeat visitors.
Flag Counter Developer
Boardhost.com, Inc.
- Jeremy
- Administrator
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- From: United States
- Registered: August 30, 2009
- Posts: 2,773
Re: Repeat Visitor Changes
After consideration of the feedback we have received since making these changes, we have realized that there are a lot of users who didn't register their counter.
If you have an unregistered counter, below the "Regenerate HTML" link is a new link that says "Ignore this browser". This will set the same cookie that is available in Flag Counter Management section in your browser to prevent your visits from counting.
Flag Counter Developer
Boardhost.com, Inc.
- •Thread Starter
- nikolaos p.
- Flag Enthusiast
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- From: Greece
- Registered: November 24, 2011
- Posts: 641
Re: Repeat Visitor Changes
The changes are welcome, but I think that I have a problem: I have chosen the 8 hours option, but my counter behaves as it has the default 24 hrs option! First I 've noticed a decrease of visits at the last 2 days from certain countries about at the 1/3 or less of the normal. Then I 've checked this watching visits from certain visitor within 24 hrs.
Maybe I do something wrong, or my fc did not accepted the option of 8 hrs, or there is something else?
Last edited by nikolaos p. (March 25, 2014 10:57 pm)
- Jeremy
- Administrator
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- From: United States
- Registered: August 30, 2009
- Posts: 2,773
Re: Repeat Visitor Changes
There was indeed a bug that was causing the 8 hour option not to work. This has been fixed.
Flag Counter Developer
Boardhost.com, Inc.
- •Thread Starter
- zekeian
- Flag Newbie
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- Registered: October 23, 2013
- Posts: 2
Re: Repeat Visitor Changes
Thank you for this feature! Now, I have run into this problem. My malware application and/or Norton Internet Security, removes that cookie each time it runs!! How can I identify this cookie 'signature' so I can add it to cookies to be ignored whilst those Apps are doing hteir thing?
Thank you for any hints or suggestions ..
Zekeian
- haider
- Flag Newbie
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- Registered: September 27, 2014
- Posts: 1
Re: Repeat Visitor Changes
The changes are welcome, but I think that I have a problem: I have chosen the 8 hours option, but my counter behaves as it has the default 24 hrs option! First I 've noticed a decrease of visits at the last 2 days from certain countries about at the 1/3 or less of the normal. Then I 've checked this watching visits from certain visitor within 24 hrs.
- Jeremy
- Administrator
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- From: United States
- Registered: August 30, 2009
- Posts: 2,773
Re: Repeat Visitor Changes
Hi zekeian,
You should be able to simply add our domain name flagcounter.com to your list of cookies to ignore.
Flag Counter Developer
Boardhost.com, Inc.
- •Thread Starter
- Jeremy
- Administrator
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- From: United States
- Registered: August 30, 2009
- Posts: 2,773
Re: Repeat Visitor Changes
Hi haider,
What is the address of your counter? These changes have been in place since March when this thread was opened.
Flag Counter Developer
Boardhost.com, Inc.
- •Thread Starter