GVU Technical Report Number:
GIT-GVU-96-08
Title:
Results from the Third WWW User Survey
Authors:
James E. Pitkow
Colleen M. Kehoe
Abstract:
The tremendous success of the World Wide Web has led to an
ever-increasing user base. Intuitively, one would expect this
base to change over time as more people from different segments
of the population become Web users and advocates. What exactly
have these changes been? How do the original Web users differ
from the new users from major online service providers like
Prodigy? What trends exist and what picture do they paint for
the future of the Web user population? This paper, drawing on
results from three User Surveys spanning over a year and a half,
attempts to answer these and other questions about who is using
the Web and why. Additionally, a review of the methodology,
questionnaires, and new architectural enhancements is presented.
Although the surveys lack the scientific rigor of controlled and
accepted methods of surveying, we discuss analyses that help us
understand the limitations and process of this new type of
surveying. Finally, new quantitative analysis techniques are
presented based upon post-hoc log file analysis, yielding
guidelines for Web-based survey design.
Keywords:
World Wide Web, surveys, demographics, log file analysis, design guidelines
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