New Feature - Box.net Widget

1. 0

   Jonno.Nortonposted 16 years ago

   I'm not sure how this could be incorporated into the site, but I use this feature on Google Blogger to add related content to my blogs, or hubs, as it would be in this case. I use it specifically to upload songs from the albums I review so readers can hear what I'm talking about in my review. Often times I will mention a certain part of the song, and then the reader can listen to the song and hear what I'm talking about.
   
   Here is just one example of the difference between my HubPages review on an album and my Blogger review of the same album. You'll notice the Box.net widget in the left hand side, and you might have to scroll through some songs to see the ones related to the blog/hub.
   
   My HubPages Hub on the album Riders by a band called Dibidim:
   http://hubpages.com/_jonno/hub/Dibidim-Riders-2007
   
   My Blogger Blog on the same album:
   http://thearkestra.blogspot.com/2008/05 … iders.html
   
   The Box.net feature adds a lot to the hub/blog, and gives the reader just a little bit more interactivity that might keep them at the site longer to click advertisements too. If they're listening to a 3-minute song they probably won't go anywhere until it's done, increasing the likelihood that they will read the entire review and possibly click other links.
   
   If this feature specifically can't be added, can a similar feature be put into place? I really just want to be able to play songs on my Hubs. I want to choose which ones I can play, and preferably upload them from my computer, to ensure it's the exact version I'm talking about.

   replyreport
2. 84

   Whitney05posted 16 years ago

   Hubs and blogs are different. HP is not a blogging site.
   
   I believe that music on hubs has been discussed a large number of times, and about 90%+ of hubbers don't like the idea.
   
   A quick search in the forums and you'll find all the reasons why it's a bad idea.

   replyreport
   1. 73

      Inspirepubposted 16 years agoin reply to this

      Whitney, I think you'll find those discussions were about having music the way MySpace does - just autoplaying when you get to the page.
      
      What Jonno is talking about is just like putting YouTube videos on a Hub, except that it is audio only. The reader would have to click to play it. I did exactly what Jonno wants to do on my Hub about Declan Galbraith, but I found video clips of all the songs on YouTube to do it.
      
      Jonno, you could always make the song you want the audio track of a video and upload it to YouTube, as a work-around.
      
      But I think an audio player would be a useful capsule to add. Especially if it made its own little screen-saver-like psychadelic display for people to watch while the audio was playing, the way some of the media players do.
      
      Jenny

      replyreport
      1. 84

         Whitney05posted 16 years agoin reply to this

         Hm.. The blue box that he referred to seemed to be something similar as what I've seen on myspace.  The blue box thing I saw on his blog was not a youtube video with a song on it, but a box that had a number of songs that played through.
         
         If the youtube is the case, then there's no need to add anything on HP to do that, you can just insert a youtube video capsule.

         replyreport
3. 0

   Jonno.Nortonposted 16 years ago

   I've gotten great responses to my music hubs. And hubs and blogs are very similar, in fact I don't see what the difference is.

   replyreport
4. 76

   Uninvited Writerposted 16 years ago

   The difference is that you add to a blog. Hubs are separate articles that stand alone.

   replyreport
5. 0

   Jonno.Nortonposted 16 years ago

   I'm not sure what you mean by that. I don't add anything to my blog, I just submit my writing to multiple sites. It's all exactly the same, but I like HubPages better because it allows more functionality with sites like eBay and Amazon, which I was wishing I could do with Blogger. I might not even continue to use my blogger account now that I found HubPages.
   
   Oh wait, I just got what you meant by that. You add to a blog, like you update it all the time. I see what you mean, but my Hubs about music stand alone. Each hub is about a different album.

   replyreport
   1. 0

      terrygposted 16 years agoin reply to this

      Just get yourself a hosting account, register a domain name and have the host company install a wordpress blog platform for you. That way you have free reign and much better then Blogger.
      
      There are plenty of widgets you can install with a WP theme. Maybe that might help.

      replyreport
6. 0

   Jonno.Nortonposted 16 years ago

   Yeah but that's not what I'm talking about. YouTube doesn't offer most of what I want to play, and I don't want to have to create fake videos with just audio tracks to put on their site. I don't think that's cool to abuse their site like that.
   
   Jenny was on the right track. I just want a little capsule that has music in it, but I'm kind of rethinking my box.net suggestion because the way their's works is the most recent songs I've uploaded will be at the top all the time, so if you're reading an older hub you'd have to scroll through songs in my newer hubs until you find them. Not really that helpful, or I'd have to explain that situation in the hub every time.
   
   It's cool though, I'll find some kind of work around for it. I know I could include links to download songs, but copyright issues always arise with downloading. And the point is to keep people on my page longer, and give them a little taste so they might click my amazon/ebay ads.

   replyreport
7. 0

   Jonno.Nortonposted 16 years ago

   Ok, so I thought of exactly what feature I would like to suggest in order to be able to get song samples on my Hubs. Amazon.com MP3 Clips Widget  It plays samples of songs, and allows you to download them via the widget without even having to leave the page.
   
   An HTML capsule would be adequate as well, with restrictions of course.

   replyreport