First hub down...now a few questions

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   Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years ago

   I published my first hub tonight.  All the material was already written (was going to use it on squidoo before the 'great purge' and I got fed up with them.  So here are my questions...
   
   First, I plan on making a large collection of hubs about fishing, specifically saltwater fishing at first.  I'm wondering if it would be wise to include a 'master directory hub' which would link to each topic I write about.  Are hubpages links counted in the 'no more than two links to same page' rule?  IE if I made this master list to point to other articles about fishing, would it be ok?  This is also important since I will eventually incorporate links to hubs describing in more detail various aspects of fishing- IE if I mention balloon fishing as a viable method for catching a fish I'd like to have a link to an article on how to balloon fish etc..
   
   
   Secondly, I'm not sure whether I should break up the hub into 2 parts.
   
   http://glenkowalski.hubpages.com/hub/Southern-Flounder 
   
   Maybe the first part just have general information on the Southern Flounder, and then the second hub focus on tackle/gear/tactics? or some other split?  I couldn't find a table of contents module to allow a reader to quickly skip to the part of the hub he/she was most interested in..maybe I'm just missing it.
   
   finally I added an amazon module to my hub that isn't showing at all when I select preview-is this something to do with having to wait for adsense to kick in or am I again just missing it?

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      misterhollywoodposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Hi Glen!
      
      Nice looking hub and welcome to HP. Creating a part 1 hub and a part 2 hub isn't a bad idea if you have enough content.
      
      Be sure to fill out your profile page and add some type of oic. Helps readers connect with you and may influence your hub score.
      
      John

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      1. 93

         Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Thanks for the welcome.  I may start to break all the fishing articles down into two parts.  The first part will be fish ID, habitat and feeding habits while the second part will be tackle/gear/techniques.  I hate to do this and hope that we get a table of contents added soon.

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   2. 84

      Marisa Wrightposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Hi Glen and welcome to HubPages.  Your link may get snipped because you're not allowed to post links to your own Hubs, except in the "Improving Your Hub" section. 
      
      I took a look at your Flounder and Trout Hubs.  The length looks about right on both.   A couple of tips:
      
      1. Use heading formatting for your headings ("size", "habitat" etc), because they don't stand out enough.  A capsule heading is a Heading 2, so if you use Heading 3 for the sub-headings that should work nicely. 
      
      2.  When you hit "enter" at the end of a paragraph, HubPages automatically leaves a white space between paras.  It looks like you're hitting "enter" twice, which makes the space between paragraphs look too wide.
      
      How to create a Table of Contents within the Hub:
      http://darkside.hubpages.com/hub/tableofcontents
      
      You can also create a Capstone Hub, which is an "index" Hub, listing all your Hubs on one topic, with links to each.    It mustn't be just a list of links - you need to write a couple of paragraphs' introduction, then you can use Links capsules to list each of your Hubs.   Write a few lines of new, unique description for each Hub - otherwise you'll get duplicate content penalties.  Add three or four images and you're done. 
      
      At one time there was a Capstone program on HP and you got paid to create a series of Hubs on one topic, capped off by a Capstone Hub, so it is an approved method to use.

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         TIMETRAVELER2posted 9 years agoin reply to this

         Marisa:
         
         I used to do the capstone hub thing but read that including all of those links in a hub was a no no, so I undid the whole thing.
         
         However, I have found that by linking my articles together within hub things go pretty well because one leads to the next.

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            Marisa Wrightposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            I think there was a bit of over-reaction about links at one time, just like there was an over-reaction about Amazon capsules.  The Capstone Hub program was officially promoted and encouraged by HubPages (hey, they paid us upfront to write them at one time!), and mine are still published and featured, so I can't see why there would be any problem with them.
            
            It's true that if you add a lot of links to a Hub, you'll get an automated warning that says something like, "it looks like you're adding a lot of links in one place" - but if you dismiss it, it goes away.  It's just an advisory. 
            
            The important thing is that every link must have a short paragraph of unique description under it.

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            1. 93

               Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               thanks for the insight.

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      Writer Foxposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Welcome to HubPages!  Anytime you ask questions like this, you're going to get a variety of opinions.  Also, what works for one person may not work the same for you.
      
      1.  There are no limits to internal links on HP.  So, you can include several links to your other Hubs if you want.  When you publish several Hubs and "group" them, the previous Hub in the group and the next Hub in the group will automatically be linked at the bottom of your Hub.  You can find the group feature on your Accounts page. It's not a good idea to give more than one link to another Hub, so check to see what is already showing when you start using the group feature.
      
      When I link to my other relevant Hubs, I put each one in a text box with a picture.  Other people here use the links capsule.
      
      2. You can make a master Hub, but that will have to pass the QAP requirements.  What some people do is use a different HP subdomain for different niches.  If you choose the subdomain approach, your Profile page becomes the master list of your Hubs in that topic.
      
      3. I don't think the Southern Flounder Hub should be broken up.  It's a nice length now and would probably be shy on content if you split it in half.  I would recommend, though, that you change the title to something with about 55 characters (including spaces) to more directly target what people are looking for: How to Find, Bait and Catch Southern Flounder.  (This is just a wild guess. Check your keywords to see what people are actually searching for.)  The more keywords you use in your title, the more people will find your information. On HP, you can change the title to a Hub anytime you want to, but the URL cannot be changed.
      
      4.  Here's information about how to make a Table of Contents on HP:
      http://hubpages.com/forum/topic/113669#post2418957
      Scroll down that thread to see the options.
      
      5. I see your Amazon ad. But, people using ad blockers will never see it on HP.
      
      Hope this helps.
      
      Here's where you find the groups feature on your Accounts page:
      

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         Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         thanks for the help!
         
         Question on the 'one link suggestion'.  Some articles will be linked to from multiple places-IE I will have a hub on how to make a stinger rig (two hooks in tandem with a haywire twist) which will be linked to from any article that suggests using a haywire twist (wahoo, King mackerel, shark fishing come to mind).  Will I get in 'trouble' with the powers that be at HP for that?

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            Millionaire Tipsposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            No, linking like that is fine. The key is to remember to add value for the reader, not simply advertise to them.

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            Writer Foxposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            This is what I was referring to:
            
            On Hub A, if you want to link to Hub B, only link one time from Hub A. (Link to Hub B one time each from Hubs C, D, E, etc.)
            
            This is not an HP rule, but Google might find it suspicious if you link to your Hub B more than once from Hub A.

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            1. 93

               Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

               Ah ok.  Well there would be only one link from each hub to the other. Ie if I tell someone they should use a stinger then it would have a link to the 'stinger rig hub' once.  and the 'directory' hub would only link to each sub-hub once, and each sub hub would only link to the directory once.

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                  Writer Foxposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                  Sounds good.  Except for the 'stinger' part, because I have no idea what you are talking about and it sounds painful!

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                  1. 93

                     Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

                     lol it can be.  A stinger rig is two hooks used in tandem- useful for short-striking fish like bluefish, mackerel, and wahoo.  A short strike is when a fish eats on the back half of the bait, missing the hook.  The stinger makes this less likely since there is a second hook near the mid point of the bait

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         3. 84

            Marisa Wrightposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            No, you won't get in trouble for linking to the same Hub from several different Hubs.  For internal links, the only important rule is that the two Hubs must be related - which in this case, they clearly will be.

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      DzyMsLizzyposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      I have several articles on photography techniques, and I made an index hub to point to the other articles...and, that's an idea I borrowed from another Hubber!  ;-)
      So, sure, that's an option to use.

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   imsevenofnine4posted 9 years ago

   Hi Glen,
   
   I'm not sure about the master directory hub, but you can include a link at the bottom to show more like this...see http://imsevenofnine4.hubpages.com/hub/ … d-of-Herbs
   
   I would break your hub into multiple hubs. Remember most internet users want to be able to quickly skim the article to find the information they want. A super long hub can result in a user bypassing the hub to find one that is to the point.
   
   Have you entered you information for your amazon acct into your account info? It can take a day or two to process if you haven't gotten approved beforehand.
   
   Hope this helps,
   Lisa

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   1. 93

      Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      related topic is nice, but how many related topics can you add?  I intend to have apx 100-150 hubs about saltwater fishing broken down in two parts: FISH specific like the hub I posted, and then technique specific (ie drifting, trolling, balloon fishing, how to hold up, etc...).
      
      As for breaking up the hub- I take it there is no 'table of contents' module on hubpages to allow readers to more easily jump to what part of the article they need?

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         wildernessposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         There is no such function, but it has been done before.  Search for table of contents - it has been discussed in the forums and an excellent hub written about how to do it (I don't remember the hub, though).
         
         *edit* check http://sidkemp.hubpages.com/hub/TOC and there are others as well.

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            Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            thanks for the link.  Guess I'm going to have to play with HTML again.

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      Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      also thanks for the reply.

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   Millionaire Tipsposted 9 years ago

   Welcome to HubPages, Glen.  We don't have table of contents capsules here.  The 2 links per page limit do not apply to internal links, so you can feel free to link to relevant hubs.
   I wouldn't reduce the size of your hub.  Look over the Learning Center articles in the help section, particularly the Stellar Hub.  Do you have an Adblocker on that is keeping you from being able to see the Amazon capsules?

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   1. 93

      Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      guilty as charged on the ad blocker-my newer computer crapped out and with all the new fancy animated ads my old (nearly 10 y/o) computer was having trouble so I had to use one .
      
      No table of contents means I may need to break the hub down into 'sub hubs' if it* will to help the reader find what he/she wants more quickly.
      
      edited for terrible grammatical error.

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4. 93

   Sue Adamsposted 9 years ago

   I used to have a Table of Contents hub for all my health/fitness articles. The hub consisted of a long list of link capsules with pictures and descriptions of about 30 hubs. It worked fine for a long time until, for some reason, its score went right down to below 70. Consequently my Hubber score went down as well. I figured the rules must have changed and I deleted my beautiful TOC hub. As soon as I did that my Hubber score jumped back to its original glory.
   
   Suggestion:
   If all your hubs in one account are in the same niche (fishing) then your profile page already serves as a TOC.
   Maybe you could have one account just for fishing and open another account for different topics.

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      Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      Does your hubber score actually matter though?

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         relacheposted 9 years agoin reply to this

         If an individual Hub's score were to fall below 40, then it would matter because that individual Hub would incur a no-follow penalty, whereby all outgoing links are marks no-follow.
         
         If YOUR author score falls below 85, all outgoing links on all of your Hubs have the no-follow label applied to them.

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            Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

            ok good to know.  Since my score hasn't actually gotten to 80 yet I'm not too worried about it.  It will be a while before I have anything I want to 'do follow' anyways-though I am thinking about starting a fishing blog eventually.

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5. 81

   tillsontitanposted 9 years ago

   Your first hub is well done and is sure to elicit many followers.  Making a hub with links sounds like a good idea and others have done it in the past with much success.
   Linking to other hubs as you mentioned is not only a good idea but helpful and can increase your readership.

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   1. 93

      Glen Kowalskiposted 9 years agoin reply to this

      thank you for the support and information.

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