Biblioblog Rankings – October 2011
Posted by Steve Caruso on November 1, 2011
Sorry it’s a bit late, but here they are:
Jesus Creed has taken a very firm lead with nearly 200,000 article reads!
Announcements
1) If You Have a Biblioblogging Announcement
As the title says — a sort of announcement-announcement — if you have a Biblioblogging-related announcement and would like it to go out on the month’s Biblioblog Rankings, please email in and (provided it isn’t anything that would make all of us blush) I will include it.
2) More Statistics — As you watch!
The stats system is now completely moved over to the new database and it’s much speedier than before. You can check out the stats in real time (i.e. watch the hits happen) by visiting the following pages:
In the past month, nearly 850 thousand article reads have been recorded. Next month I would not be surprised if this broke 1 million.
3) Call For Submissions: The Biblioblog Reference Library Press
A goal has been set for 10 publications to start the Press off with. So far it looks like we have about 2 or 3 lined up. If you have an idea for a book related to Biblical Studies and have a blog on the List that demonstrates strong knowledge in that area, email in with a prospectus for consideration.
The main focus of the Press is in cross-disciplinary studies and teaching materials, but all ideas (with the exception at this time of fiction, inspirational works, devotionals, or commentaries) are currently being considered.
4) User Accounts on the Library
I know that a large number of you are waiting for the new user accounts to open to the public… but we still have a few more bugs to squash. The test team (about 30 users) is still encountering a few odd errors, but with luck they will be solved by next month, and we can open up user accounts before Christmas.
5) Library-Related Inquiries: A Bit Behind
I am — for lack of a better way to put it — behind with email correspondence. The past month has been very challenging due to some major family transitions, and now to top things off: We’re moving! Hopefully by Christmas the Caruso clan will be moved in to a bigger, nicer apartment just down the street. So please be assured that yes, I am getting your emails; however, responding to them is a bit slow with all of the planning and packing arrangements. :-)
With all of that said: Until next month!
Peace,
-Steve
Biblioblog Rankings – October 2011 « Fr Stephen's Blog said
[...] Are out. [...]
Rich Griese said
These stats don’t seem to reflect reality. Stephan Huller’s blog http://stephanhuller.blogspot.com is much more popular than almost all the blogs on the list, yet does not show up. Seems this is more of a personal favorites list, than a list of the popular blogs on christianity.
Cheers! RichGriese.NET
Steve Caruso said
Rich,
Rubbish and here’s why:
1) This is not a list of blogs about Christianity, it is a list of Biblioblogs. Huller’s blog is a Related Blog, not a Biblioblog. This is well established by its content.
2) These rankings are based upon hits counted by the voluntary ranking system. Huller (with quite the to do) removed the tracker from his own blog a while back stating he wanted nothing to do with it, hence no rank.
3) When he *did* have the tracker installed, his blog only managed a few thousand hits a month. That’s hardly more than “most” on the list.
Huller and the Biblioblog list go waaay back (dare I say that he’s infamous among members of the community; just search the Library for his name). He’s quite welcome to re-install the tracker any time he wishes, and as the data it collects is impartial and unmassaged he’ll rank wherever he ranks.
Peace,
-Steve
Biblioblog Top 50 for October 2011 | Exploring Our Matrix said
[...] 2, 2011 by James F. McGrath GA_googleAddAttr(“author”, “JamesFMcGrath”); Tweet ShareThe list of the top 50 biblioblogs for October 2011 has been posted. Exploring Our Matrix moved down… as Jeremy Myers’ blog Till He Comes moved into the #2 slot. And congratulations to Jesus [...]
stephan huller said
Abuse a dog and then act surprised it bites. Must be a bad dog. Thank God Steve never became a veterinarian.
I’m very happy blogging without the tracker but as I am always prepared to take on misrepresentation I can’t resist.
Scott’s blog ranks number 1 this month and it just so happens to be on the ‘first page’ of your ‘Biblioblog’ blog. Abused blogs and bloggers would never be granted that privilege. Most bloggers and blogs in the ‘in crowd’ reference one another and make links back and forth to one another thus raising their rankings. There are various carnivals and other promotional devices which also help raise the rankings of ‘popular blogs’ (at least within the ‘in crowd’).
There is nothing wrong having a family of bloggers each promoting the other and thus inflating their respective rankings. But let’s not pretend that there is an equal playing field. For whatever reason there are sites that are ‘encouraged’ and others that are ‘discouraged’ all based upon the whims of a not-so-impartial site manager prodding the dogs he likes and rewarding the cats he and those in the ‘in crowd’ favor. Again nothing wrong with that but let’s call a spade for a spade.
I do not think I have among the top tier religious blogs in terms of popularity or even quality for that matter. There are a lot of more deserving blogs and bloggers. Nevertheless the methodology at this site is fundamentally flawed and does not report what it claims to report. The very site tracking the results is also promoting select bloggers based on the taste of NT Wrong – or should I say Steve Caruso – a most radical and impartial observer.
Scientific results require an impartial observer and a fair playing field.
For those who are interested in engaging like-minded people interested in the origins of Christianity I’d recommend the Freethought and Rationalism Discussion Board. This is a fair playing field without the restrictions of a particularly radical theological point of view.
Best of luck with your little pet project where you can be a player and referee at the same time, Steve. At least you stopped hiding behind a false name.
Stephan
Steve Caruso said
Stephan,
I do not mean to put a damper upon your j’accuse! moment, but I — alas — am not NT Wrong. We can only continue to speculate about his identity because in all of our correspondence he sure as hell hasn’t told me. :-) As for pseudonyms, I have not participated on anything Biblioblog related as anyone else other than “Steve Caruso.” I do not participate in anonymous correspondence on blogs on principle, and in accordance to that principle, I put my name to every word I write.
As for the hits: The tracker is impartial. It counts raw hits with a 24 hour grace period. This means it sees a “hit” as one page read per person per 24 hours. If you have the tracker enabled and look at the Article Reads in Real Time page, you can watch as they come in. Of course people who are more involved in the community will get more cross traffic. Anyone can do it by commenting on other peoples’ blogs, writing response articles, or hosting Biblical Studies Carnivals (I reiterate: getting involved in the community, that’s really all there is to it and if you truly wish to be the odd man out, then I encourage you to ignore this advice).
As for “abuse”: I do not believe you should use that word as lightly as you have chosen to. In my correspondence with you I have never resorted to personal attacks; however, I have been the recipient of more vulgarity and ad hominem than is my fair share by any measure. This latest comment, even putting aside the fact that you — while composing it — believed me to be someone else who has been less delicate with you in the past, is simply an additional example of a very well-established pattern. You appear to enjoy ruffling feathers (if you will) and have expressed this in various ways and in a variety of words. It is not a quality that I personally enjoy being subject to; however, I will remain (as I have pledged) civil.
Peace,
-Steve