Don't always trust the results

There is a tool that I use every now and again to report on websites. It provides summary information about the extent to which a site is indexed on Google, MSN and Yahoo! as well as providing information about inbound links.

This morning I took a quick look at some of the underlying data and found that although the numbers reported for indexed pages were pretty accurate, the figures for inbound links were significantly flawed.

It is important to understand how report programs work and to test out whether the figures they report are accurate. That's true for spreadsheets as much as for other reporting programs. I worked in a Big 5 environment for a number of years and they generated good revenue streams simply by showing clients that the spreadsheet models that they were using in their businesses were defective.