by Joan Inong

Created on: August 16, 2009

As a Helium writer who spends many hours each day writing on Helium, I intensely want Helium statistics to be made real-time. Though patience is a virtue, having real-time stats at Helium would help people keep track of their earnings and article ratings.

After having written my fair share of a large number of articles, I want to know how I am doing in an instant. If you look closely at your "My Helium" page, you will see that there is a disclosure that tells you that the statistics are not presented in real-time. This means that the number of writing or rating stars that you see now is probably going to change in a few minutes, hours, or even the next day. As such, you cannot rely on what your own Helium page is telling you.

This may be a good scare tactic to encourage people to rate well and write daily, but it can also be frustrating for those who try to make a little bit of income through Marketplace, writing contests, or even just through upfront payments. Personally, I try to write at least nine or ten articles a day. This task could be daunting if I don't keep track of what kind of articles I've written to. For instance, I may have written to a few "empties," but then again, how would I know that those were empties in a few more days, when they might be no longer empties?

If you look at the Help section (scroll to the bottom of the Helium homepage and click on "Help"), and then at the "How do I earn on Helium?" you will find this question: "Why not make counters on people's pages that tells them how much money they have made that month?" This is a really good question, because it is one that I have asked myself over and over again. Although the "Earnings and Payments" page has a counter right under the "Amount of Money earned in ____" this counter is not reliable at all. It can differ slightly from the payments located under the Adjustments and accounts summary, located in the top half of the Earnings and Payments page.

As a writer who is constantly trying to earn upfront payments, I would be ecstatic if I could know how much money I have earned through upfront payments each month.

If Helium statistics were presented in real-time, many writers' lives could be made easier. And, it seems as though this desire for real-time stats isn't that hard to fulfill.

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