[LINK] RFI: HTTP 'GET favicon' requests from Google Toolbar

[Crispin Harris]

On Mon, Apr 20, 2009 at 7:00 AM, Roger Clarke <Roger.Clarke at xamax.com.au>wrote:

> I'm puzzled by a pattern in the web-server logs for my old ANU site.
>
> In the latest server logs, 205/1327 (or nearly 20%) of entries are
> requests for either:
>    favicon.ico
> OR favicon.gif
>
> Any thoughts much appreciated!
>

Hmmm, further to the comments of our learned friends, the FavIcon is also
(under some circumstances that I cannot off the top of my head remember)
pulled when you look at the bookmarks to the links.

Therefore, if I had your site in my bookmarks, and then hit "Favourites", my
browser would attempt to gain the site FavIcon for your entry in order to
provide a "pretty" interface to the end-user.. <sigh - insert rant about
form over function here>.

This may account for a number of your (otherwise unrelated) hits.

C

-- 
Crispin Harris
crispin.harris at gmail.com
"Well, you know... most Catholics are so boring, you kind of expect them to
be fairly reasonable and not, say, frothing papal fanboys with the IQ of a
turnip. So he had me fooled. Not any more, though."
Thanks to Eric The FruitBat (etfb.livejournal.com)