[naturalized]

We do not want Google to know the true size of our service, so we have analytics code in every 5th pageview (when templates are constructed by scripts, it inserts the analytics code only when the UNIX time is divisible by 5.

[nl]

Umm - I assume you know this, but inserting the analytics code only when the UNIX time is divisible by 5 isn't the same as every 5th pageview.

(Also, doing it on a pageview basis instead of visitor basis means you lose all the nice visit path tracking Analytics does)

[dennisgorelik]

What's the reason to hide your size from Google (or anybody for that matter)?

[rodh257]

though that would skew the referrals and other metrics wouldn't it?

[oasisbob]

If your numbers are large enough, no. As long as the selection isn't biased, it doesn't matter.

Another commenter on this topic has a good post about convincing management of the validity of sampled metrics, I'd read it then tip your chair back and stare at the ceiling for a while.

[brown9-2]

Well, now they know.

[tcarnell]

I thought every number is divisible by 5