"If its just to know who uses your site then there is software out there that logs unique ip address visits (someone like Kris or Vince would be better to talk to about that sort of thing)."

Did I hear my name? ;)

To monitor site usage, most decent hosts will provide site logs - these maintain details of every visitor, their IP address, the time, referral information (i.e. what they typed into a search engine to find the site), the pages they visit and so on. In their raw form, they aren't user friendly, but there are a variety of ways to analyse them. Indeed some hosting companies will include some form of analysis of the logs as part of the package (mine does) - and you can get software you can run yourself to analyse your logs; just search.

Another option is a third party analytics solution, such as Google Analytics. These typically require adding a bit of Javascript to your pages that pass to the analytics provider similar information to what would be found in your site logs. However, they aren't as good - because they aren't as complete: Too many pests like me, who either run a browser without Javascript or routinely block scripts (especially third party ones).

The best solution is to use something that works from your actual site logs.

Those are the alternatives, now I'll take it back to this new site:

I can easily see that it's built on WordPress - so the need to log-in doesn't (out of the box) provide any logging of which member is using the site anyway as far as I know, but it's possible that there are plug-ins that may do this.

I would therefore strongly suggest that if the content is free, and you have no legitimate need to be collecting email addresses, you do not lock that content behind a log-in and the need to register. There are a number of problems with doing that - I'll stick with the two main ones, though:

Firstly, Shaun mentioned that you need to get your site indexed on Google (and other search engines). The problem is that what they index is visible content. With just about everything on your site hidden behind that log-in, there's virtually nothing for the search engines to index. You will not get any decent search rankings, except for very specific phrases unique to the site, if there are any.

Secondly, depending on how you're handling registrations, you could either be opening yourself up to a lot of tedious work, or you could be opening yourself up to a false sense of membership numbers and/or a lot of tedious work. You will get a lot of bogus registrations - often bots - setting up accounts for blackhats of one type or another. So if you're approving them, you'll be doing this a lot and it becomes tedious, and you'll need to spot which ones are legit and which ones aren't. You won't always get it right.

And if you aren't approving registrations, the accounts will just get set up, and your membership numbers will seem much higher than they really are. The tedious work here comes if/when you decide to have a prune, deleting the accounts you think aren't legit. And again, you won't always get it right!

This problem also means that any boasts of membership numbers (such as the one in the bottom right corner of the home page) need to be taken with a massive pinch of salt.

Blackhats, btw, can mean spammers - with the goal of using comment forms on web pages to punt their wares - or it can mean people looking to exploit security holes in WordPress sites that aren't up to date, or which are using plug-ins that have exploits in them. They want to 'pwn' your website.

So unless you have a legitimate need for people to register and log-in to access content, don't do it. If the content is free, make it properly free.

Hum. Reading your first post again, I see you've mentioned about students asking questions, etc - so okay. You do still have the option of letting people register for additional content, or to comment on articles - though you'll also still have the two problems above if you do.

And now, being more critical, even if you do have a legit reason for the registration/log-in, you've gone too far with it. There are some things that you absolutely must have visible outside of the log-in. You've mentioned making your privacy policy more prominent, and that's one that needs to be accessible before sign-up. I'll leave it to you to figure out which others that might apply to.

Oh I have lots of those John! lol

The privacy policy doesnt cut it as far as the law is concerned Im afraid - needs more meat to it.

I've now had a look at the site and I can see what Shaun is talking about.  You do need to use the carrot to get people to sign up.

That said, registered in April and already 2379 users, you clearly don't need our help!

Well, that was fun - a nice little chain of 1980s brilliance. I needed that.

Now back to the plot:

"I could navigate round the site easily enough but have javascript installed so wouldn't have noticed any issues there."

Unless you are using an unusual browser, I think you mean "enabled" rather than "installed" - and more to the point, you probably mean that you don't have it disabled. In the majority of modern browsers, Javascript is a core feature (it needs to be in order to work within the DOM), not a plug-in you install afterwards, and it's usually not only enabled by default, but tends to need an add-on to disable it - or to provide selective control.

I'm just a funny bugger, so I run just such an add-on, deliberately blocking Javascript as a policy, allowing it on certain sites either provisionally or (later, if I decide it's necessary and I'll be visiting again) whitelisting it for those sites.

It can make visiting some sites for the first time a little inconvenient, but once you've got the balance right, it makes the web a much more pleasant experience: Some sites load and display faster, there are fewer intrusive adverts, there is less tracking and more security. Oddly enough, the first (speed) and the last two (tracking and security) are often a direct result of the second (adverts).

I don't object to advertising on websites, and don't run AdBlock, but some advertising is intrusive and gets in the way of the content, and that's annoying - and where the advertising requires Javascript, that Javascript is often coming from third party sites and that's a security risk (especially when coupled with Flash adverts and the ongoing security issues with that!)

All of that aside, there is simply no excuse for making basic navigation on the site in question Javascript only. Some links appear to work without it, but the main content is effectively hidden away behind Javascript (and some links that only work with Javascript are themselves effectively hidden by same text/background colour, unless Javascript is enabled).

I know perfectly well that WordPress sites can be made functional in browsers that don't have Javascript - I have three set up - so I suspect the problem may lie in the WordPress theme the OP has used (Press Customizr). Whatever the cause, as it stands that site may actually be on the wrong side of the Disability Discrimination Act on web accessibility grounds - though I'm far from an expert on that (by any means).

I know I'm starting to sound harsh and mean (my true nature emerges...), but I have very strong views on (and personally adhere where possible to a policy of) making sites accessible and maintaining web standards. The golden rule of that is that you can use whatever gimmicks you want, but you must make the site degrade gracefully so that it is accessible. (That's not a reference to hiding stuff behind a log-in, btw - that's a different matter altogether; this is just about the site design).

Having said all that, the truth is I like the idea of the site, and wish the OP all the best with it - but saying nice things about the idea and sentiment of the site is one thing: As it stands the actual site itself isn't something I can say nice things about. Sorry.