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Weather Related Organizations => WeatherUnderground => Topic started by: WeatherAnomaly on October 30, 2008, 08:35:24 AM

Title: WX Station order in Weather Exchange has changed
Post by: WeatherAnomaly on October 30, 2008, 08:35:24 AM
I have noticed a few changes to the display of the "Weather Stations" section at the bottom of Wunderground (Example: http://www.wunderground.com/US/NC/Raleigh.html -->for Raleigh, NC). My WX station (KNCRALEI19 - Durant Trace - North Raleigh) is now listed as the 6th WX station down. It used to be the first. I recently started sending data to APRSWXNET. Next I noticed that I had duplicate station data showing at different positions (KNCRALEI19 and MD1552) up so I entered my MADIS ID (MD1552) in the wunderground WX station section where you add/edit a station. After a day the MADIS link issue was resolved and no longer was displaying as duplicate data with KNCRALEI19. However, my station is now listed at the 6th. It was 1st before I started sending data to APRSWXNET. How is the station order determined? Is it based on Zip code of the area to lookup? I even entered my 9 digit zip to see if the station would be listed first and it was not.
Title: Re: WX Station order in Weather Exchange has changed
Post by: mackbig on October 30, 2008, 05:03:43 PM
I always thought it was distance from your station (gps coords???), mine has alway been and is still first on my list.  And if I scan down they appear in order of distance from me.   With the one exception of the official weather stations are listed at the bottom, even though 3 of them (same station) are only a mile of so from my house.

Andrew
Title: Re: WX Station order in Weather Exchange has changed
Post by: ocala on October 30, 2008, 06:48:30 PM
They appear in order of their distance from the town that the forecast is for.
Example. I live in Candler, Fl and that is where my station is located so I appear first on the list. Now if I type in Ocala,Fl at the top of the page I am way down the list because I am farther from Ocala.
Title: Re: WX Station order in Weather Exchange has changed
Post by: mackbig on October 30, 2008, 06:52:31 PM
I thought WeatherAnomoly was talking about his VWS created web page, not a WU search for a town....
Andrew
Title: Re: WX Station order in Weather Exchange has changed
Post by: WeatherAnomaly on October 31, 2008, 06:32:22 AM
I'm actally talking about both. I seem yo be the same rank if I put in Raleigh, NC in the search window of wunderground or if I put in the Zip code. I assume the 9 digit zip is not respected? If it was I should moft definately be first. Here is my ranking:

PWS page (www.weatheranomaly.com): 6th
Wunderground using Raleigh: 9th
Zip code 27615: 6th
9 digit zip 27615-3999: 6th

I'm just trying to figure out why I have dropped in rack from 1st to 6th. The only change I made is the MADIS ID that was added.
Is the ranking based on distance from the Lat/Lon? If so how is the bulls eye determined for a zip code? The post office itself?
Title: Re: WX Station order in Weather Exchange has changed
Post by: ocala on October 31, 2008, 02:04:58 PM
It's probably city hall or some other kind of official building, or I guess it could be the post office it self.
Just doing a quick visual of the stations in Ocala they had them listed by distance from city hall.
Check that on your end and see how it works out.
As for dropping from 1st to 6th it probably had something to do with the duplicate data.
Title: Re: WX Station order in Weather Exchange has changed
Post by: saratogaWX on October 31, 2008, 02:47:28 PM
My understanding is that WU uses the lat/long for the geo-center of the town as 'home', then stations appear in the list based on 'nearest' to that geo-center.   My station is in the middle of Saratoga, close to the geo-center of the city, so it appears first in the list.  The town center, is a ways to my south-east, so it appears that they're using the geo-center, not the 'town hall' as the metric.

Best regards,
Ken
Title: Re: WX Station order in Weather Exchange has changed
Post by: capeweather on October 31, 2008, 10:39:11 PM
That makes a lot of sense. Cape Coral has been getting more and more stations and it seems like my listing is getting pushed farther down the the list which probably explains why my traffic statistics are rarely or never seen from WU from outside visitors. They used to have it setup to where visitors could easily notice your weather data and the courtesy URL back to your homepage. Having the data at the bottom makes it a bit more difficult for users to see your data and the link.
Title: Re: WX Station order in Weather Exchange has changed
Post by: jmcmurry on November 01, 2008, 10:59:07 AM
We have several locations available in Wisconsin if you wish to be #1 on the list.

- Jim