Utmcsr utmccn utmcmd questions

Hello,
I’m not sure if this is the right forum to post my questions, so pardon if this is not.

I can read cookies in my website and I’m receiving visits with this inside the cookie:

HTTP_COOKIE: __utma=84576653.1222308679.1256062278.1256062278.1256062278.1; __utmb=84576653; __utmc=84576653; __utmz=84576653.1256062278.1.1.utmccn=(direct)|utmcsr=(direct)|utmcmd=(none)

I understand they are entering the site DIRECTLY, I would like to know if there is other way than set my page into favorites for entering DIRECT.

Another question is, I get another cookie with this: utmccn=(organic)|utmcsr=search| … but it don’t especify the search engine. Which organic search can be like that one?

Thank you for your input
L

You can look at the referrer directly ($_SERVER[‘HTTP_REFERER’]), you don’t need to try to steal and parse Google Analytics’ cookies to figure out how someone got to your site. The cookie can’t even be read until a second page load, so what you’re reading isn’t information about the current page view at all.

How does someone get to your site directly other than favorites? Typing the URL, clicking a link in an e-mail client, or using “private browsing” features of new browsers to not tell you the referring URL.

Hello Dan, Thank you for your answer, I have more questions

Dan, I´m not stealing anything in Google analytics. The HTTP_COOKIE stuff is provided by a PHP script in a mailing form inside my website. Tha is why I posted my question in the PHP forum, otherwise I could post in in the Google forums.

Are youu talking about Google Analytics or in general?

Do you mean typing the URL directly in the address bar, don´t you? That will cause a: utmccn=(direct)|utmcsr=(direct)|utmcmd=(none) ?? Is there any other way to get a utmccn=(direct)|utmcsr=(direct)|utmcmd=(none) than having the site in Favorites and typing the URL directly in the address bar?

I can know when people enter the site by clicking a link in yahoo or hotmail or web based email clients, because I receive the utmccn as a referral and the client name in the utmcsr, just like this:

utmccn=(referral)|utmcsr=us.mc434.mail.yahoo.com|utmcct=/mc/welcome|utmcmd=referral; __utmc=84576653

How it works with clients like outlook? Does anyone know ?

Which are those new browsers?

I appreciate your reply
Thank you
L

Typing the URL in the address bar, having a firewall that blocks referrers, clicking a link in a program, visiting a page via bookmarks, dragging a link from a page into the address bar, dragging text from an input box into the address bar, and disabling referrers are all ways to appear as a direct visitor.

In general, but all of these cookies (__utma through __utmz) you’re reading are created by Google Analytics. The “u” stands for Urchin, the analytics company Google bought several years ago, whose software they remade into Google Analytics.

These cookies are not an inherent feature of the web. You are reading data Google Analytics is creating, and you can only read it after it’s been created, which means not on the first page load of your site.

$_SERVER[‘HTTP_REFERER’] is available directly to you; you don’t have to go through a middle man which is getting its info from the same place.

You get no referrer when someone comes to your site through means outside of the web browser.

Internet Explorer 7+, Firefox 3.5, Chrome 2+, Safari 3+, Opera 9+ all have private browsing modes.

Thank you to Dan and to sk89q