Woopra: Google Analytics Alternative

I came across Woopra today via Manoj Jasra's Web Analytics World weblog. The beta tracking tool has all the standard metrics that Google Analytics offers, plus two very interesting features that Google Analytics doesn't - yet. The first is real time visitor analysis - showing users what source visitors comes from, the page they are on, and their path around the site. Another interesting feature is a built in chat tool, which allows users to initiate popup messages to website visitors and actually talk to them - a terrific way to keep visitors moving along the sales funnel.

Those looking for an alternative to Google Analytics will be pleased to know that Woopra is free during its beta testing phase, but only if you've got less than 10k pageviews. The downside for many will be that Woopra is a desktop client, not Web-based (editors note - see below for clarification), so needs to be installed on your computer and you can't engage away from the desktop. Woopra essentially tracks website statistics and activities through your active Internet connection so as such, you'll need to have the latest version of Java installed. 

Additional note from the editor: Got word that Woopra actually does feature web-based access. The desktop application however is more real time as there are no page refreshes and has more visual aspects.