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On 11/08/2012 06:24 AM, Tom Davies wrote:
Hi :)
I have always thought LO seriously underestimates it's number of users.  I grumbled about it years 
ago.  On the other hand (as people pointed out to me at the time) at least TDF only counts numbers 
that we can be reasonably confident of.


Tim downloads the latest release and builds up a Dvd with a couple of other OpenSource programs that 
people might want in an office, some dictionaries, some fonts and bits&bobs and then gives away the 
Dvds at local events and to people and organisations locally.  He then supplies User Support 
occasionally asking the lists here if they ask something weird.  As they get more knowledgeable about 
LO they can help each other.  The entire infrastructure he has been building up counts as 1 user.  Rob 
Weir would spin that into being a dubious figure and say it's just 1 user being wrongly re-counted for 
each release.

My boss uses LO nowadays when i send him a document but when he starts to write  document he uses 
MSO, similarly for the manager and my colleagues.  When they have a bunch of images such as logos 
that don't line-up or space out well enough or any of the many and varied problems that MSO creates 
they get me to fix it (if there is time) with LO.  Obviously they don't get counted as users either 
despite the fact that they do rely on LO.


Regards from
Tom :)
Tom,

Marketing and usage data for many products is often imprecise not just for LO or FOSS. You raise implicitly the question: how do you define a user of any software package (or product)? The definition of user/consumer of a product would determine who gets counted such as primary users, part-time users, and occasional users - and the definition of each group is nebulous.

In marketing, according to the experts I know, trends are often more important than absolute numbers or arguing over precise definitions. Most business analysts are more worried about market/company sales trends than which group a purchaser/user belongs. Increases are generally good while decreases raise concerns. Rob Weir appears to be trying to argue over precise definitions of something that is inherently imprecise and probably not that critical.



________________________________
From: Italo Vignoli <italo.vignoli@gmail.com>
To: marketing@global.libreoffice.org
Sent: Thursday, 8 November 2012, 8:43
Subject: Re: [libreoffice-marketing] Re: Dubious claims

Il 08/11/2012 07:08, Alex Thurgood ha scritto:

In other words, at least for download/user stats, the answer is "no",
and for the other points Rob mentions, obtaining raw data of any
significance is for the git expert.
Downloads are extracted from the mirrors, and there is a script for that. GIT is for development 
related figures.

Thanks, I'll check it out, but basically what you are saying, if I
understand correctly, is that the data in question is provided in a
format which is not necessarily comparable to that which Rob has used
for AOO, and thus a certain amount of internal interpretations,
assumptions, etc are made by the LO project to arrive at its view of the
data. Are these methods/assumptions, as used by the LO project,
publicly documented on the LO wiki ?
Our data are in a simple format (sum of units), while Mr Rob Weir is using complicated 
interpretations to hide the truth, which is that the developers and the community are with LO and 
not with Apache OO.

There is no interpretation and assumptions in our data: the number of developers is a sum of 
individual developers, the number of commits is a sum of single commits, and so on.

The number of community members has never been calculated using wiki subscribers (in this case we 
estimate around 1,000 contributors), and Mr Rob Weir has just got that number because it could be 
argued.

The number of community members is estimated using global + local mailing lists (many people are 
subscribed only to mailing lists in their native language) + wiki contributors + developer numbers, 
etcetera.

So, being the method that we use a simple sum of data (and this should be easy to understand by 
looking at the charts published on a monthly basis), I do not think that we have to document such a 
methodology.

The number of users is estimated (and the term "estimated" has always been associated to it). Of 
course, any estimate might be right or might be wrong, according to the point of view.

Apache OO has a higher number of downloads, of course, but I wonder - for instance - if users who 
were previously used to get the software in their native language are as happy as in the past when 
have discovered - after having downloaded the software - that the software is not available in 
their language).

By using this metrics, for instance, it would be possible to reduce Apache OO download numbers at 
least by one third (but maybe even more), because you could easily cut downloads in countries where 
the software is not available in the native language (version 3.4 was not even available in British 
English).

Bus, as we are not Mr Rob Weir - and having him as an opponent is a blessing (please ask Microsoft) 
- we are not going to embark in such a useless calculation.

Apache OO is available in 20 languages, and they are currently adding Danish and Norwegian (but 
many major languages are missing).

LibreOffice is available in over 100 languages (over 95% of the world population), and the 
community is now working at Filipino/Tagalog or other minor languages.

Number of languages available is a simple measure of community numbers (although estimated, because 
many people involved in localization do not show up in maling lists) but of course Mr Rob Weir is 
not looking for simple measures because they can be understood by everyone, and by using obscure 
measurements he does try to obfuscate the reality.

Best regards, Italo

-- Italo Vignoli - italo.vignoli@gmail.com
mob +39.348.5653829 - VoIP 5316436@messagenet.it
skype italovignoli - gtalk italo.vignoli@gmail.com

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Jay Lozier
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