Why can't HubPages be like Squidoo?

1. 61

   wowtgpposted 11 years ago

   Hubpages is a great platform to publish your work and has a great community, but the format is really boring (sorry for the harsh words). Why aren't we allowed to use different tags here? I have seen some lenses on Squidoo. They look sophisticated and professional whereas on HubPages the hubs are kinda boring to read. Can't we do something about it?

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      EricDockettposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      The only thing Squidoo has that I'd like to see here is the Table of Contents capsule.  Otherwise, IMO, the HubPages layout looks much cleaner, and HP is way easier to work with.  Squidoo is starting to look like a Triond site with all the flashing ads and bars across the screen lately.

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         brianrockposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         I agree. I like the HubPages layout much more. To me, the HubPages layout puts the emphasis on information with supplemental ads, while the Squidoo layout puts the emphasis on ads and supplements it with some information.

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   2. 83

      sholland10posted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Having written on both sites, I like the way my hubs look much more than my lenses.  Also, I like that we can follow each other at HubPages and keep up with what good Hubbers are doing.  It is hit and miss at Squidoo.  I like their friendly community, but I feel HP's is not only friendly but more professional and has a better visual appeal.  Just my two cents...

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   3. 85

      agvulpesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      You know Apples v Oranges ?  Some people enjoy both and it also gives more variety in life.
      Just imagine how boring it would be if there were two identical sites doing exactly the same thing!
      You might as well ask : Why is Twitter not the same as Facebook?
      I ask you the question!  Why would you want that?

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2. 87

   Zelkiiroposted 11 years ago

   You just gotta know how to spice it up, I guess. Mine are pretty plain because I write reviews (which, by their very nature, are kinda plain), but some people out there in the World of Hubpages have made some really mind-bogglingly impressive hubs.

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3. 73

   relacheposted 11 years ago

   I use both sites.  Some types of content does better here, some does better there.
   
   And in all honesty, based on what both sites were like six years ago, they have done nothing but move closer and closer to being very much like each other.

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4. 86

   Simone Smithposted 11 years ago

   I have no particular comment to add aside from the fact that I find the question "Why can't HubPages be like Squidoo?" to be highly amusing.

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      wowtgpposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I should have asked that question in a different way. I know it sounds childish.

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         Matthew Meyerposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         If you have a specific feature or other suggestion for the site, you can suggest it in the appropriate forum here:
         http://hubpages.com/forum/category/6634

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5. 85

   rebekahELLEposted 11 years ago

   I'm glad that HP is different from Squidoo.  I think the lenses and format available are very distracting to a reader. I find hubs much more polished and easier on the eye.

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      Mark Ewbieposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I have been hanging around Squidoo a bit.  Tried reading what claimed to be a story the other day.  It was like one hundred words and them... bam!... adverts, photos and all sorts... and then back to another hundred words.
      
      Personally I thought it was mental.

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      1. 87

         NateB11posted 11 years agoin reply to this

         That's exactly what I wanted to say. That's why below I said Squidoo pages are too busy. I don't really like it. I mean, I want to read a piece, see some things that illustrate a bit maybe, but I don't want to be blasted with the hoopla.

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   2. 88

      GA Andersonposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      A simple +1 wasn't enough. I agree. It's only my opinion of course, but I think most of the "pretty and cute" formatting used on Squidoo - is for the writers ego, not the readers benefit.
      
      I come by this opinion purely from my own preferences when I am researching or reading. It is the content I want the effort spent on, not cute formatting.
      
      Of course there are appropriate uses of a "splash" of graphic creativity - but using the 72px text and arrow in a "featured lens/link" capsule/mod isn't what I had in mind.
      
      But then again. It could just be me. I was wrong once before. (back in '78, I thought I was wrong - but it turned out I was mistaken)
      
      GA

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6. 86

   dailytop10posted 11 years ago

   Hubpages is never boring if you simply apply a few creative ideas on your hub. IMO squidoo is a bit childish and unprofessional.

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      wowtgpposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      But if you visit Squidoo, you will see  a lot of people bashing HubPages.

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      1. 81

         Mark Ewbieposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         I visit them often.  I have heard nothing but kind words for HubPages and their writers.  Indeed I often venture freely into their forums to give them my opinion on weighty matters.
         
         There was a small incident when I apparently said their site was shit but it was all cleared up when I pointed out I meant "shut".

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            NateB11posted 11 years agoin reply to this

            lulz

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      2. 96

         EricDockettposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Squidoo and HP are two of the biggest UGC sites in the world.  You'll see people bashing both of them all over the place.  It just goes with being the leaders.  There are also a lot of people who are happy with both of them, but they don't tend to make as much noise as the disgruntled folks.

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            relacheposted 11 years agoin reply to this

            In a nutshell...

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      3. 88

         Len Cannonposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         Yeah, well, if you go to Squidoo you'll also see a lot of people crying because their crappy pages stopped getting traffic.

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7. 84

   lovebuglenaposted 11 years ago

   I've tried Squidoo and at least for me it is hard to get my lenses to be featured, even though I seem to be doing the same thing as I do on Hub Pages. I personally don't like that site and I don't think that the lenses look much more professional than the hubs on Hub Pages.

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   1. 61

      wowtgpposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I have also faced difficulties in trying to get my lenses featured over there, but the thing I was asking here is that articles over there  look good because of HTML tags allowed on Squidoo.

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         wowtgpposted 11 years agoin reply to this

         I meant saying

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         1. 86

            dailytop10posted 11 years agoin reply to this

            Allowing HTML tags made squidoo prone to abuse. I'm not really taking sides since I also have an active account in squidoo. But earning wise, what I earned after 8 months of being active in Squidoo and 50 lenses is tripled compared to what almost the same amount of hubs gave me within just 4 months.

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   2. 80

      Gamerguidesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      I tried squidoo but It didn't worked out so i decided to deindex my lenses then transfer it here. Its really hard to publish your lenses compared to hubpages.

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8. 79

   Healthy Pursuitsposted 11 years ago

   I have to vote for HP here. I know that some hubbers write on both sites. However, while I'm not entirely satisfied with some things in HP and have actually stopped writing here for a while in favor of other platforms, IMHO it's still better than Squidoo by a long shot. I wrote a couple of lenses for Squidoo, and tried to read others. To me the formatting is the least of the problems. Squidoo lenses seem only a platform for excessive advertising. Besides, all those cutesy little squid things and gamey credits made me feel that I was writing for a kid's magazine.
   
   That's without the payment system. That alone was a bummer.

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9. 87

   NateB11posted 11 years ago

   I don't really agree. I like Squidoo to some extent, but I found their pages to be too "busy". That's why I only really write on Hubpages, I like the format. To me, it's actually more sophisticated compared to squidoo.

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      Marcy Goodfleischposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      Your word 'busy' sums it up - the layout I saw there (while checking out TWO stolen hubs appearing there, but that's another story), was scattered visually and difficult to read due to the ad insertions.  And, related to the stolen material, HubPages acts quickly when they see plagiarized content; Squidoo has yet to respond to md.

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10. 87

    Will Apseposted 11 years ago

    The average Squidoo lens makes me feel unwell when I look at it. I say 'look at it', because on the whole the jumbled visuals and cheap gimmicks (giant arrows, 'you must read this!, multiple comment sections etc) are such an assault on the senses, reading is out of the question.
    
    For me, the classic Squidoo lens includes at least half a dozen colors that clash mightily, text that is hard to find and at least one picture of Santa Claus with his elves (although that might be some kind of visual hallucination induced by cognitive dissonance).

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11. 93

    viryaboposted 11 years ago

    I totally agree with Healthy Pursuits. Their payment system IS a bummer.

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12. 60

    paradigmsearchposted 11 years ago

    In my humble opinion I think the current hub format is clean, professional, and pretty darn good.

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       GA Andersonposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       Where did you get your humble opinion?
       
       I've been looking for one for ages, but all I can find are smarta** ones, and I already have enough of those in the closet.
       
       GA

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13. 82

    ologsinquitoposted 11 years ago

    I write for both sites and greatly prefer HP's look and the fact that it's designed to support content-rich, informational articles. There are some good articles on Squidoo as well, and they are readable if the author doesn't go overboard with module options, large font and jarring ad configurations. If an article is choppy like that I tend to lose interest and click out.
    
    Sqiudoo has its merits, but it's a cross between writing and affiliate marketing. On the forums, there is more talk of writing here than at Squidoo. At Squidoo there is constant chatter about Amazon affiliate sales because that is primarily how people get paid. They don't necessarily get paid for having a lot of traffic, unless their "lens" happens to fall in one of the top tiers. It's conceivable that a lens could get 100,000 visitors a month and still generate no income for the writer.
    
    Hub Pages and Squidoo are two very different animals.

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    1. 76

       mathomposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       Actually, no, if it's getting 100,000 visitors a month you can guarantee it's going to be taking top tier payouts (down to $40 since the traffic drop) plus ... if you could possibly bring yourself to put an Amazon link somewhere -- somewhere above $100 in sales commissions.
       
       It's not quite that crazy. Even after this horrendous traffic drop, my earnings per page on Squidoo are still more than Hubpages, although it's almost fallen down to the same.
       
       So then it's just a question of which site is best suited to which type of content. The interactive stuff goes on Squidoo. The informational stuff goes on Hubpages. Pretty simple, really.

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14. 60

    HattieMattieMaeposted 11 years ago

    Probably also determines on what you're interested in reading. There is wide variety of topics, just have to search for them.

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15. 68

    yansky23posted 11 years ago

    I like Hubpages the way it is. I also do write in Squidoo, but I don't want Hubpages be as identical as Squidoo. Each of these websites has its own uniqueness, and it should remain as it is. I like Hubpages as it is, just plain and simple.

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       viryaboposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       My thoughts exactly.

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       mathomposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       This!
       
       Thank goodness they're different so that we can find different places for different kinds of content.

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16. 62

    kohuetherposted 11 years ago

    I like both sites and use them both for their strengths. Squidoo understands that there are a lot of bad lenses with minimal content. They are going through a major cleanup. They are flagging all the subpar lenses they see and will delete them at the end of the month if they don't hold up.

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       TIMETRAVELER2posted 11 years agoin reply to this

       I know absolutely nothing about Squiddo, but I can say this about HP:  From what I've seen, HP is a cleverly designed site run by people who do everything they can to help writers improve their skills.  What they are doing now has provided a bit of a bumpy road, but watch what happens once everything goes into full swing and they have the time to go back and get rid of the poorly written hubs that have been dragging all of us down.  This site is going to "fly"...I can feel it in my bones, and I want to be on board when it happensl!

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17. 74

    WriteAngledposted 11 years ago

    Well, I started writing on Squidoo last autumn and have earned way more since then than I have on Hubpages,even though most of my lenses are informative rather than salesy.
    
    As for overall quality, I admit there are many thin content lenses on Squidoo. However, I have also found some amazingly interesting and informative material there, the like of which I have never found on Hubpages.
    
    Maybe I am infantile, but I also find Squidoo a heck of a lot more fun than HP. Even more importantly, I have been able to join the RocketSquid programme and through it learn how to optimise my lenses. I was able to do this because there are no minimum requirements for lens production. There is no way I could join the apprentice programme here. I need to earn my living and often have harsh deadlines while doing so. There is no way I could churn out the eight hubs a month that are required to remain an apprentice.
    
    Despite the recent Panda slap, I still feel a lot more motivated to create lenses rather than hubs.

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18. 85

    DzyMsLizzyposted 11 years ago

    I have never visited "Squidoo," and have no knowledge of them or their layout/style.
    
    The only thing I have to say in answer to this question should be obvious:
    
    "Because Hub Pages is Hub Pages, and Squidoo is Squidoo.  Why be a copycat?"

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19. 88

    TheKatsMeowposted 11 years ago

    If Hubpages was more like Squidoo, I don't think I would be on here as much. Reading articles on squidoo involve scrolling through clutter, ads, amazon capsules and then more amazon capsules. I am not knocking squidoo, I just like Hubpages so much more, and I love the fact that the two are very different.
    
    What I like about squidoo is the points system, I love how you get points and level up every now and then, but I enjoy the fact that I can follow Hubbers that I like on Hubpages.

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       ologsinquitoposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       I feel the same way and prefer to read articles on HP. The points and monsters are sort of fun, but silly. Squidoo is a very interactive site, which I think draws a lot of people in.

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20. 81

    Mark Ewbieposted 11 years ago

    The thing is that Squidoo have a logo...
    
    
    whereas our nearest effort is this.
    

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       DzyMsLizzyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       ROFL, Mark---love the comparison--and the suspenders!  Great fashion addition to stick-man! 

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          Mark Ewbieposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          Thanks Dzy.  It's supposed to be a mankini.

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             agvulpesposted 11 years agoin reply to this

             It looks like a VERY uncomfortable 'wedgey'

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             DzyMsLizzyposted 11 years agoin reply to this

             Oh, how very unobservant of me...so sorry to make such a faux pas! 

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          GA Andersonposted 11 years agoin reply to this

          I must be having a"blonde" moment, but ...I don't get the bottom drawing.
          Is there a class or seminar I can go to?
          
          GA

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             Mark Ewbieposted 11 years agoin reply to this

             The second drawing is a stickman in a mankini barbecuing something.  It has a tenuous link back to HP and saved me drawing something perhaps with the letters "H" and "P".
             
             As for classes.  The Stickman Learning Center is a good place to start.
             
             edit.  It is not a barbecue.  He is poaching eggs.  That's the link.

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                Will Apseposted 11 years agoin reply to this

                I thought it was Paul Edmondson searing an innocent salmon in typical Californian attire. Now I realise it is Paul Edmondson poaching an egg in typical Californian attire. If someone is in a position to post photos, please don't.

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                   PaulGoodman67posted 11 years agoin reply to this

                   Squid-do or Squid-don't, that is the question?
                   
                   Paul E has had his eggs poached in the past for sure, but it was Google wot dunnit! 

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21. 94

    PaulGoodman67posted 11 years ago

    It's good that Squidoo and HP are different.  Let's just leave it at that. 

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