HobbyLark Is Live!

1. 95

   Christy Kirwanposted 7 years ago

   It's a busy week for site launches! The HubPages games & hobbies network site, HobbyLark is up and running. Please feel free to take a look.

   replyreport
   1. 0

      Robilo2posted 6 years agoin reply to this

      Christy - I have searched the forums and did not see any information as to how long the URL redirect from HP to HobbyLark (and other niche domains) will last.  Like everyone else, I have links on social media etc that will need to be updated before the URL redirect is removed for each article. 
      
      It appears the Short URL is the same for both domains, but I used the full URL when promoting.

      replyreport
      1. 88

         Marisa Wrightposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         The redirect is permanent.

         replyreport
         1. 0

            Robilo2posted 6 years agoin reply to this

            Thanks Marisa

            replyreport
2. 95

   Sue Adamsposted 7 years ago

   Sorry, but as a professional ballet dancer I really fail to understand how the category "Performing Arts" has managed to land on a hobby site. It is an insult to all performance artists alike, be they actors, dancers, street dancers, show ice skaters, performing artists, choreographers, musicians, conductors, costume and set designers, directors, producers, agents, casting directors, or any one else working in the theater or other performance arts.
   At the least, Performing Arts should be a part of an Arts site but since Performing Arts encompass such a wealth and variety of professions, it should have its own site.
   
   Big mistake. Typical of (sorry to say this) American ignorance and a lack of culture.
   
   A very baffled performance artist.

   replyreport
   1. 88

      Jason Marovichposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      I'm sure I understand your frustration.
      
      But there is no country on Earth with more culture than America.  We are the great melting pot.  Our culture is difficult for those outside the US to understand but I assure you, there is no lack of it.

      replyreport
   2. 95

      Melissa A Smithposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      Because the performing arts can also be a hobby. So far the hubs on there are not about professionals. I see talent shows, clowning, ballet for adults, and other forms of arts as recreation.

      replyreport
      1. 88

         Marisa Wrightposted 7 years agoin reply to this

         It's very true, the majority of performing artists are amateurs that do it for fun - only the lucky few get to do it for a living! But that's also true for the majority of musicians - yet music isn't on Hobbylark, it's on its own site. 
         
         Fishing is also a hobby - it's not there either, it's in outdoor pursuits.  Crafts are a hobby - they're not there, they're on Feltmagnet. 
         
         HobbyLark is overwhelmingly about games and puzzles, not hobbies.  Then out of all the other hobby actitivites they could've picked, they've added Collecting and Performing Arts for no apparent reason.

         replyreport
   3. 96

      EricDockettposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      So, because you are unhappy with a decision made by HubPages you have insulted an entire country.
      
      Nice.

      replyreport
      1. 95

         Sue Adamsposted 7 years agoin reply to this

         You are quite right Eric, and I apologise, I shouldn't have said that. Too late to edit my o.p.

         replyreport
         1. 96

            EricDockettposted 7 years agoin reply to this

            I can't speak for the other 300 million Americans, but apology accepted as far as I'm concerned.
            
            And I do agree with your point that "Performing Arts" seems quite misplaced on that domain. I'd be upset too.

            replyreport
   4. 81

      LuisEGonzalezposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      at least someone understands how I felt after seeing photography next to articles on cutting wood at Home Depot.

      replyreport
   5. 94

      Solarasposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      I agree. It's a miserable fail.  They can correct it by renaming that category: Charades, Kerokee and Amatuer Acting.
      
      There is still time to create  real Fine Arts and Performance Arts sites.

      replyreport
      1. 81

         LuisEGonzalezposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         IMHO they should have grouped all hubs that fit performing arts and all that fit visual arts into two separate niche sites.
         
         FYI: I asked about 93 students (teenagers) which names they found authoritative if looking for photography: FeltMagnet or another with the word(s) visual in it and overwhelmingly chose the site tha contained the word(s) visual. Same question was posed using HobbyLark and another with the words Performing/Performance in it. The results were about the same. When I told them what each site was composed of (what articles were grouped together) FeltMagnet and HobbyLark, many  simply  laughed.
         
         However it did make for an interesting end of the school year activity...

         replyreport
   6. 90

      lisavollrathposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      I think we had this same discussion when FeltMagnet launched, and included drawing and painting. For those of us who do those things as professionals, it seems a little insulting, but when you look at the hubs that are included in the site, they're oriented towards those who do those things for fun, or with their children.

      replyreport
      1. 88

         Marisa Wrightposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         I totally get that, and I'm sure Sue does too.
         
         The thing is, why was Performing Arts picked for such special treatment?   
         
         Why isn't "Fishing for Fun" included in Hobbylark, or "Music as a Hobby", separating the serious fisherman/musician from the hobbyist?

         replyreport
   7. 95

      Christy Kirwanposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      Hi Sue,
      
      Essentially, there are some subjects we know won't be a perfect fit. Certain topics, like the performing arts category on HubPages simply don't have enough Hubs to justify creating a separate site. We've done our best to put topics like this on the whichever site we think makes the most sense based on what the content of the existing Hubs is actually like. In this case, the majority of dance Hubs are articles written for casual individuals looking to participate in dance as a hobby. In the future if some of these topics take off and end up with enough great content, it's possible we will spin off separate new sites for them, but for now we're doing our best to chose the least worst option.

      replyreport
      1. 94

         Solarasposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         Seems like you could have a fine arts site that includes dance, photography, art, art history etc... HighBrowArt.com is available lol

         replyreport
      2. 95

         Sue Adamsposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         Thank you for your reply. I understand. However, surely there must be enough hubs that fall under a general "Arts" category.  Like:
         
         Photography
         Poetry
         Performing Arts
         Classical Music
         Architecture
         Art History
         Great Artists
         Famous Galleries and Musea
         Art as a Business (dealers, auctions)
         Art Collections and Collectors
         Fine Arts (Painting, drawing, sculpture, i.o.w. anything found in galleries and musea)
         and so on.
         
         Perhaps you could mention this to whoever is in charge of creating new sites because many of us feel that the Arts should not be ignored altogether or shoved into inappropriate sites.
         
         A rich Arts site, if well designed, could be very successful and beneficial for HP as a company. It would  redress the cultural balance between serious info perhaps searched for by more affluent punters and more superficial subjects.
         
         Think about it.

         replyreport
3. 91

   Rochelle Frankposted 7 years ago

   I agree. This category does seem to be misplaced.

   replyreport
   1. 95

      jansharesposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      I just looked at it again and yes, it seems out of place. Do you remember that song on Sesame Street? That's what I feel like singing when I look at the landing page.

      replyreport
      1. 88

         Marisa Wrightposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         I suspect that HubPages wanted to keep all the niche sites about the same size with about the same number of high-traffic Hubs. 
         
         They were able to split most subjects up into fairly logical sets, but the Arts (both Fine Arts and Performing Arts) didn't really fit anywhere.  The logical thing would've been to put them on their own niche sites, but cultural pursuits are not populist high-paying subjects so it wouldn't be worth the investment. 
         
         So they waited until they had allocated all the categories, then looked at which niche sites were a bit low on numbers and just bunged them in there. 
         
         That's what it looks like to me, anyway.

         replyreport
4. 0

   calculus-geometryposted 7 years ago

   This site doesn't make sense to me.  Most of the categories shown are analog games (yeah, a type of hobby) with performing arts there sticking out like a sore thumb.  But you already have a niche site for video games, LevelSkip.  Wouldn't it have made more sense to merge video games and traditional games into one site?  Then you could take the fine arts off the craft site and merge them with the performing arts for a real art-art site.

   replyreport
   1. 95

      jansharesposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      +1

      replyreport
5. 88

   Marisa Wrightposted 7 years ago

   Yes, I was wondering what they'd do with Performing Arts as I have a few dance Hubs too.  Disappointed at the decision.   I was hoping that the move to a niche site would improve my traffic, but I'm pretty sure Google will look at the overall site and see all the Performing Arts as irrelevant to its niche, so I don't think they'll do well.

   replyreport
   1. 88

      lobobrandonposted 7 years agoin reply to this

      But still better than HP which isn't its niche, I reckon?

      replyreport
      1. 88

         Marisa Wrightposted 7 years agoin reply to this

         I don't see why they would do any better.  On HubPages, the dance Hubs are a minority in a bunch of Hubs that are completely unrelated.  On the new site, the dance Hubs are still a minority in a bunch of Hubs that are completely unrelated. 
         
         True, there are fewer Hubs on the new site but then, they haven't moved all the dance Hubs - so the ratio may not be that much different.

         replyreport
         1. 88

            lobobrandonposted 6 years agoin reply to this

            What I meant was: the new domain wouldn't have any kind of penalty hub pages may have had. It's not the best site for the niche, that I agree with, nonetheless I feel it should do better on this site compared to hp, but would surely do way better had it been on a more closely related topic.
            
            Hope you get my point. Late in the night and I'm typing on my phone so not reviewing.

            replyreport
6. 93

   rajan jollyposted 7 years ago

   Performing Arts is a totally misplaced category on this site, I agree with Sue Adams that this category is so broad it needs a separate website to do justice to it. When one think of performing arts, it is not as a hobby, most of the time, it is serious business.

   replyreport
7. 95

   Sue Adamsposted 7 years ago

   That argument does not stand up. A hobby is an occupation that is practiced as a non-professional, an occupation engaged in for pleasure rather than to make money from. Of course Performing Arts can also be a hobby. In fact, all the following categories could be classified under hobbies.
   
   Antiques
   Blogging
   Carpentry
   Clothes Making
   Cooking and Baking
   Cryptography
   Dance
   Do it yourself
   Drama
   Drawing
   Electronics
   Exercise and Fitness
   Fashion
   Foreign Languages
   Furniture Making
   Gardening
   Genealogy
   Glassblowing
   Graphic Design
   Ice skating
   Jewelry Making
   Juggling
   Machining
   Magic
   Mechanics
   Metalworking
   Movies
   Music
   Painting
   Photography
   Politics
   Recreational Vehicles
   Sculpting
   Sewing
   Singing
   Sketching
   Sports
   Stand-up comedy
   Travel
   Video Gaming
   Web Design
   Wood Carving
   Woodworking
   Writing
   Yoga
   
   The question to pose is this: when someone is googling for valid information on any of the above topics (even as a hobby), would they find satisfactory results on a general hobby site or a site dealing with the actual topic they are googling?
   
   I believe they would find the information in the latter.

   replyreport
   1. 91

      NateB11posted 7 years agoin reply to this

      I agree that putting serious performing arts on a hobby niche site is an error, but I don't agree with your definition of hobby. A person can seriously practice and perform an art without making money from it, and they aren't simply a hobbyist. Money is not the deciding factor here. A person can be a master of an art and never make money from it, and it isn't a hobby, it is a very serious endeavor that they may even pass along to others for free.

      replyreport
   2. 95

      Melissa A Smithposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      So then you agree? I don't understand the issue. My guess is that there aren't enough quality hubs about dancing to create a niche for that, otherwise obviously that's what they should do.

      replyreport
      1. 88

         Marisa Wrightposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         There may not be enough Hubs to make a niche site for dancing, but we are talking about "Performing Arts", not just dancing.  That encompasses the whole of theatre (drama, musical theatre, comedy etc  etc), opera, all the different kinds of dance from ballet through to folk, circus etc.  That's quite  a big field.
         
         Also, consider that the other Arts - i.e. Fine Arts (sculpture, architecture, painting) are also on a niche site where they stick out like a sore thumb.  Again, these are arts which many people do as hobbies but they are not craft, which is the main focus of that niche site.  So they could've been put with Performing Arts to make an Arts site which would've made a lot more sense.

         replyreport
         1. 95

            Melissa A Smithposted 6 years agoin reply to this

            That was my mistake, I meant to say performing arts (that you participate in) vs. watching performing arts. Well, I guess if they have enough hubs to make six categories. I worry about how certain niche sites will fare in an already overly saturated subject.

            replyreport
            1. 88

               Marisa Wrightposted 6 years agoin reply to this

               OK, that distinction makes more sense - you're saying performing arts that you study, can reasonably be separated from performing arts as entertainment.  But why separate performing arts that you study as a hobby from performing arts that you study with a view to turning professional?  Millions of children all over the world study dance or drama because they dream of being on stage.  Most of them won't make it, of course, but they would be as indignant as Sue if you suggested it was "just a hobby".
               
               The funny thing is, performing arts (for the performer) is not a saturated niche at all.  In fact some dance genres still have a distinct lack of information online about dance technique, costuming etc.

               replyreport
8. 95

   brianlokkerposted 7 years ago

   I was notified that most of my stamp collecting hubs have been moved to the HobbyLark site. That's fine with me. But my question is, why just most of them? I have a series of ten related hubs about ten stamps that were issued as a set. Seven were moved, and three were not. That makes no sense to me. They belong together. And as far as I can tell, the quality of the three that weren't moved is pretty much the same as the quality of the seven that were. How are these choices made? Is there anything I can do to get my ten related hubs back together?

   replyreport
   1. 94

      Solarasposted 6 years agoin reply to this

      Yes, email Robin. She has helped get series put back together on one site.

      replyreport
      1. 95

         brianlokkerposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         Thanks, I'll give it a try.

         replyreport
      2. 95

         brianlokkerposted 6 years agoin reply to this

         Is there a way to email Robin directly, or do I just use the general HubPages contact form?

         replyreport
         1. 95

            Sue Adamsposted 6 years agoin reply to this

            Go to Robin's profile (http://hubpages.com/@robin), click on "Fan Mail", then click on the blue link that says "Send Robin an email".
            
            Or, for short, go straight to:
            http://hubpages.com/@robin#email

            replyreport
            1. 95

               brianlokkerposted 6 years agoin reply to this

               Thank you, Sue. I had never used this HubPages feature before and had forgotten that it's there.

               replyreport
            2. 95

               brianlokkerposted 6 years agoin reply to this

               Thank you, Solaras and Sue. Robin was very responsive to my request and agreed to move the remaining Hubs in that series over to HobbyLark. I appreciate your help.

               replyreport
               1. 94

                  Solarasposted 6 years agoin reply to this

                  Awesome - Best wishes on the niche site!

                  replyreport
9. 91

   NateB11posted 7 years ago

   I don't agree with some of the decisions made for the niche sites. I was a bit bewildered that they chose certain Hubs - for a subject matter I'm very knowledgeable about - that were pretty substandard. However, the decisions were made for some reason or another, maybe because of issues with traffic, so I figured I'd wait it out and see if my Hubs end up on the niche site and, if not, move them to my own site. That's the alternative I see here, except, I suppose, in reverse.

   replyreport
10. 95

    Sue Adamsposted 6 years ago

    All 22 (so far) new sites can be found here:
    http://hubpages.com/help/sites-editorial-policy
    
    HobbyLark (hobbies)
    HowTheyPlay (sports)
    SkyAboveUs (outdoor sports)
    SoapBoxie (politics)
    Holidapy (celebration)
    LetterPile (writing)
    WanderWisdom (travel)
    TurboFuture (technology)
    KindredBond (family/education)
    ToughNickel (money)
    Exemplore (paranormal)
    Spinditty (music)
    ReelRundown (film & TV)
    Levelskip (computer games)
    Dengarden (gardening)
    FeltMagnet (crafts, drawing, painting, photography, sculpture, sewing)
    CalorieBee (fitness)
    AxelAdict (vehicles)
    Dishably (food)
    Bellatory (beauty)
    Pethelpful (Pets)
    Tatring (tattoos)
    
    Mostly OK, except for
    FeltMagnet which includes Photography, Fine Art (painting, sculpture etc), and HobbyLark (wrongly including Performance Art).
    
    Considering the complexity of the job, I take my hat off for the work HP staff have done so far in such a short time. However, if the intention is to go more nichy, then surely we could iron out the few misplaced topics of Photography, Fine Arts and Performance Arts which all need their own sites.

    replyreport
11. 95

    TeriSilverposted 6 years ago

    Please take a look at all of my vintage Barbie/Francie articles. They would fit in with "collecting," perhaps.

    replyreport
    1. 88

       Marisa Wrightposted 6 years agoin reply to this

       Of course they would, but that's not the only criteria for inclusion.   
       
       HubPages is choosing the initial Hubs for inclusion based on how popular they are - and that's based on how much traffic they're getting via the Google search engine.   If they haven't been moved then it's probably because they're not getting enough traffic to qualify.

       replyreport