HubNuggets Update & New Look on Topic Pages, Forums, and About Us Page

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  1. Simone Smith profile image87
    Simone Smithposted 11 years ago

    Hey everyone! As we recently announced on our blog, we have given a new look to some pages. Check it out!

    Here's the Food and Cooking page with a new, more magazine-like look.

    Here's our spiffy new About Us page.

    And of course, you'll have already noticed that we have new styling in the Forum!

    What's more, we've re-naming the HubNuggets Program as the Rising Star Program to make it more clear, and moving voting so that it takes place exclusively on these recently-redone Topic Pages.

    I hope you like the updates! Big thanks to Derek Gulbranson for the styling and Edward Zhang for the implementation.

    1. janderson99 profile image55
      janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hi,
      What's the formula or criteria used to determine the order of the hubs shown on the topics pages? Does it cycle?
      Thanks,

      1. janderson99 profile image55
        janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

        I noticed that a large proportion of the ones on the front page for various topics that I looked at were written by 'a' writers - Is this a deliberate HP policy?

        1. Simone Smith profile image87
          Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          Hey janderson99!
          1. I don't know the exact formula, but yes, it does cycle
          2. Though a high proportion of those Hubs may be Apprenticeship Hubs, Hubs by Apprentices don't have any special tags on them, so they're treated the same as any other Hub. I reckon the reason why they're doing better is that they meet higher standards (because they have to!). One doesn't have to be an Apprentice to create Hubs that are more likely to be featured- going for the elements highlighted in our Learning Center guide on stellar Hubs makes all the difference. smile

          1. janderson99 profile image55
            janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Do hubbers in the 'a' program bypass the 'pending for 24 hours' in a similar way to writers with hubber scores over 95?

            1. denisemai profile image67
              denisemaiposted 11 years agoin reply to this

              I'm an apprentice and my hubs take at least 24 hours to get out of pending status. My last one took 3 days. But, then again, I think there was a site crash during that time so I forgive them. Also, I have a habit of looking at my hubs on my Kindle after publishing and then spotting total bonehead errors that need to be corrected, so, that apparently adds to my pending time. Maybe it has more to do with the time we are publishing. It could be we publish at a time that is heavily used by everyone else. Who knows? I just don't bother sharing them until they are out of pending status. I can't control it, so, what else am I going to do?

            2. Millionaire Tips profile image92
              Millionaire Tipsposted 11 years agoin reply to this

              My new hubs pend too.  My guess is that those two people who didn't see their hubs get pended just got lucky with the timing.  If the sweep comes around at noon, say, and they publish at 11:58, they wouldn't have time to see the pend, but if you publish at 12:01, you have to wait all day.  Again, just my guess - I don't know if it works that way or what time the sweep happens if it happens.

    2. Rochelle Frank profile image89
      Rochelle Frankposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      The new "Rising Stars" logo looks familiar.
      http://s4.hubimg.com/u/7258623_f248.jpg

      1. WriteAngled profile image74
        WriteAngledposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        lol

        Brilliant find, Rochelle!

        1. Rochelle Frank profile image89
          Rochelle Frankposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          If you look at Google images under "star and wreath" you will find many variations of this-- mostly on flags of communist countries.  I think we need a 'do over' on the logo.

          1. janderson99 profile image55
            janderson99posted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Nah! Just make it red and add a sickle Loving It!

      2. Simone Smith profile image87
        Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        My stars and garters, that is hilarious!! I SO want to add a sickle now.

    3. jacharless profile image74
      jacharlessposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Very Nice.
      Now tell me how they got that corner shadow on both sides of the vertical separator, pretty please big_smile
      James

  2. rebekahELLE profile image85
    rebekahELLEposted 11 years ago

    I love the new About page.  It's engaging and easy to read.  There are two links that go to 404 pages, the Find out how... and Bring Someone along...

    Will those links be periodically changed to feature different hubs?

    The forum change will take getting used to, maybe it will encourage posters not to always reply with the entire reply from the previous post.  (Because it takes up so much space)  Sometimes a page can be repeat reply posts down the page and the actual response kind of gets lost.

    1. livewithrichard profile image73
      livewithrichardposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I noticed the same things.. and wondered too why certain hubs are singled.

      There needs to be some major fixes on the forum.. there is just too much white space... I haven't looked at it on a tablet or iPhone but I can only imagine what it looks like.  On my laptop it looks terrible and hurts the eyes..

    2. Simone Smith profile image87
      Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Hey y'all!

      rebekahELLE, thanks for pointing out those 404s.

      We may change out the Hubs featured on that page, but not in any regular, organized manner. They were chosen as good examples that reinforce the text that links to them.

      As for the forum and all the design changes- it's a wrok in progress! Rest assured we'll find and settle in on whatever works best for everyone. smile

    3. Simone Smith profile image87
      Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Oh! Oh! One thing though. I would LOVE it if you could recommend someone's Video for the "bring someone along" link, because the only travel video on HubPages that acts as an example of that is one that I made. If you know of one, send me an email!

  3. livewithrichard profile image73
    livewithrichardposted 11 years ago

    I like the look of the Food and Cooking page but the ease of search sucks.  There is no way to search each sub topic which is a huge turn off for someone searching for recipes.  I would rather go to a recipe devoted website and search what they have than try to surf through the thousands of of unorganized hubs as they are now.

    I know this is a site for writers but who are we writing for, ourselves...fellow hubbers?  NO

    We'll give you the content but you guys at HP have to make it easier for the general public to come search for specifics.

    1. Simone Smith profile image87
      Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks for that feedback, livewithrichard. I appreciate it.

  4. Mutiny92 profile image64
    Mutiny92posted 11 years ago

    I like the looks of the new topic page. 
    Great job.  It looks very professional!

    1. Simone Smith profile image87
      Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Yay, that's what we were going for! Thanks so much.

  5. Rosie2010 profile image68
    Rosie2010posted 11 years ago

    I like the new look of the "Food and Cooking" and "About Us" pages.  I also like the new name of HubNuggets Program... "Rising Star Program"... much better.  I also like the Rising Star Program accolade... so cool. smile

    http://s3.hubimg.com/u/7252518_f248.jpg

    1. Rosie2010 profile image68
      Rosie2010posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Oh I forgot to mention, the new forum layout looks much better now too. smile

      Great changes!

      1. watergeek profile image94
        watergeekposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        I don't like it. As someone mentioned above, there's too much white space. I used to be able to quickly skim the entries, but can't anymore. This forum layout is uncomfortable to me.

        1. TamCor profile image77
          TamCorposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          Again, I agree--can you guys PLEASE do something about all the white space on the right?  I know not everyone has a problem with it, but I think quite a few people do, including myself.

          I am on a laptop, and I have to prop a notebook up to hide the right side of the screen, where all the white is, because the glare bothers me so much.  Dorky, I know--but what else can I do if I want to read forum threads???

    2. Simone Smith profile image87
      Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Thanks so much! Derek also designed that new Accolade, and I like it much more, too. big_smile

      1. quicksand profile image82
        quicksandposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Talking of accolades, I am certain that I had more than I have right now. Is that possible?

        1. Simone Smith profile image87
          Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          Some can go away depending on the conditions that cause them (e.g. Great Commenter). It all depends on your cumulative recent performance and activity.

  6. denisemai profile image67
    denisemaiposted 11 years ago

    So far, so good! The serif font is more readable and better suited for body text. I can't remember the statistic, but, I do know from my days in advertising that serif fonts for body text will keep readers reading better than sans serif. I like the About Us page. It's great for writers who are interested in writing. It would be wonderful if you also had an improved landing page for readers giving a good sense of the types of articles they can find on the site.

    Thanks for all of the hard work improving the site. We all benefit in the end!

    1. Simone Smith profile image87
      Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I'm so glad to hear it! I've read the same thing, too.

      We are indeed hoping to create an improved landing page explaining HubPages to writers- so much to do, so little time!! We'll get to it once we tackle some more time-sensitive projects. big_smile

  7. ivanmarginal profile image61
    ivanmarginalposted 11 years ago

    I love the old forum layout...

    1. Simone Smith profile image87
      Simone Smithposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I'll agree that changes is not always fun- but we updated the forum layout to make it more readable and easy to work with. We hope that once you adjust, you'll love this new layout, too!

  8. Sally's Trove profile image77
    Sally's Troveposted 11 years ago

    On the Food and Cooking page, there's not enough space between parentheses to allow for the "s" at the end of "followers" when there are more than 999 followers.

    (999 followers) vs. (1,805 follower)

  9. Aficionada profile image78
    Aficionadaposted 11 years ago

    It will take me a bit longer to get used to the new forum layout, but the new, magazine-style Explore - or Topics - or Whatchamacallit - pages are AwEsOmE. Awesome!

    I stumbled across one of those pages by mistake earlier this evening, and I could hardly tear myself away. You all sure did a good job of making us look good. Better than we had done on our own. Wowsers! I hope visitors will spend some time browsing there, the way I do on Slate magazine. I'm pretty blown away by the look. Way to go, Derek and Edward!

  10. rcrumple profile image77
    rcrumpleposted 11 years ago

    I love the look of the new Rising Star accolade.  It's going to be a great award for those just coming in to HP.

    The only problem that many of the previous Hubnugget winners are talking about is that, "We didn't win a Rising Star, we won a Hubnugget."   

    The general feeling among previous Hubnugget winners is that it makes no sense to take away what we won and replace it with a new accolade that we didn't compete for.  Just because the design is more attractive, it is simply not our award.  Ours was the Hubnugget.

    Awards given are not changed after the fact.  When a competition takes place, the award is presented.  Personal achievement and attachment is formed.  There may be "old styles" and "new styles", and even the names may change for future winners, but award groups don't go out and collect old awards and replace them with the new.  It would only lessen the value and the meaning of the award.

    That's the way of the world.  There's no logical reason for it to be different here.

    1. WriteAngled profile image74
      WriteAngledposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      My hub nugget accolade, for a lens that won Hubnuggets 2 years ago, has automatically been changed to a rising star one. I don't have my accolades set to viewable, but can reverse that for a few hours if anyone wants to check.

      1. Mark Ewbie profile image82
        Mark Ewbieposted 11 years agoin reply to this

        Congratulations!

        I never got one.  It is something I have come to terms with although it still rankles a bit.  Mostly I sleep but my doctor prescribes something when it all gets too much.

        Fourth I came.  Fourth out of five.  Not once but twice.

        As I think Kipling said "If at first you don't get an award move to Wizzley".

        1. WriteAngled profile image74
          WriteAngledposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          Well, I was a bit sad at the time, because although I won by quite a large margin, as far as I can make out, it was never featured as a winner in the Newsletter or anywhere else. Rather put a downer on my excitement. It was about that time that I decided there was no point to the accolade system, because winning the nugget barely brought in any more views to the hub.

    2. Robie Benve profile image94
      Robie Benveposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I love that my nugget-looking accolade became a rising star, I like the name much better too.
      Great change. : )
      I'm not so fond of this new forum font. On the laptop it's too big and I find it too "classy". I'd like a cleaner, more contemporary look... just saying. : )

  11. jpesch1 profile image77
    jpesch1posted 11 years ago

    I agree with WriteAngled.  Never did see my hub featured in a Newsletter.  Still the accolade came at a time when I was needing some kind of affirmation to keep writing and I had a momentary feeling of elation for being chosen.

  12. tillsontitan profile image81
    tillsontitanposted 11 years ago

    As always changes made are exciting and visually pleasing.  It takes a bit to get used to change but Hubpages continues to move onward and upward wink  Pending and Zzzs will take a while to get used to, but we will.
    Thanks guys for all that you do and all that you bring to us.

  13. Pearldiver profile image66
    Pearldiverposted 11 years ago

    I would LOVE to report this spammer above me...  BUT

    But Alas... the accolade fairy has once again removed from my profile, my accolade for being helpful with advice for newbies and reporting spammers to moderators etc>  lol

    So.... let me say (helpfully) to this newbie french spammer -
    "Bonjour... bon chance.... vous c'est mort!"  big_smile

    The accolade fairy didn't award my Hub Nugget when I won 3 years ago... it was a non event and it was not given until someone mentioned the fact in a forum and then, after 20 months it arrived!  But now it has little relevance because accolades tend to be given to be taken away!  During my time here, I must reported well over 2000 spammers and I don't believe that I have never helped helped a newbie! roll 

    So where do we manage to keep a track of the number of Forum Posts we have made during our time on this site?  That figure is an important one to many of us..

  14. Pearldiver profile image66
    Pearldiverposted 11 years ago

    Now that I'm back being valued at an 89... I might add SA on mine lol

  15. psycheskinner profile image83
    psycheskinnerposted 11 years ago

    The laurel crown is a universal symbol of excellence based on ancient roman tradition. It is used to mark a massive number of achievements from naval rank to post-graduate degrees. Unless you think Mercedes Benz, Amy Winehouse and the Olympics are/were communist too based on using a laurels logo?

    1. Rochelle Frank profile image89
      Rochelle Frankposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      It seems  to vary. Sometimes it looks like a laurel wreath, and sometimes wheat is used-- which goes better with the sickle.

  16. LetitiaFT profile image74
    LetitiaFTposted 11 years ago

    Looks wonderful. The sleek, professional & readable look of HubPages is part of what sets it apart from the likes of Squidoo and co., and it just keeps getting better. The notion of "rising star" is much clearer too. Thumbs up.

  17. profile image0
    GoldenThreadPressposted 11 years ago

    I do like the new layout changes on HubPages. In as much as we Hubbers need to periodically re-evaluate our Hubs, so too, I think it's good to look at HubPages as a whole and tweak it here and there. And, in as much as life (and dare I say the Internet/Google/etc.) is a work in progress, our Hubs and HubPages also must follow suit. Some changes require us to get used to them, while other changes will eventually fall by the wayside to be replaced by better serving ones. I guess that's how we make progress and making this site better (as well as our Hubs) is something I relish and definitely look forward to. Kudos!--Deb

  18. tillsontitan profile image81
    tillsontitanposted 11 years ago

    As always a great job.  You guys are so dedicated and provide us with so many innovations.  Just as in the past not everyone will appreciate all the changes, but time heals all wounds wink  Seriously, this is a great way to promote the hubs written with such love and care.

 
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