Squidoo and HubPages Big News

August 15, 2014 - the Ides of August! It was a monumental announcement delivered to the lensmasters of Squidoo. Big News! It was the kind of news that surprised the heck out of a lot of lensmasters. Many of us were feeling that the end was near for Squidoo; but those fearing the end never guessed that HubPages, a former competitor, would be acquiring their lens content!

Seth Godin's Announcement - A Snippet

Seth Godin's Announcement - A Snippet:

August 15, 2014

Here’s some good news, big news, news that will open some new possibilities for you…

HubPages is acquiring key content from Squidoo, creating the largest site of its kind in the world.

For nearly a decade, both Squidoo and HubPages have provided a home for content creators online. We’ve made it easy for people to use our platforms to share content that they care about, to tell stories, write articles and link to places that matter to them. Over the years, more than four billion visits have been made to the two sites, which host content from more than five million people.

Today, we’re announcing that as a result of this acquisition, Squidoo is moving the best of its content to HubPages. They’re the industry leader, continually pushing the envelope in terms of their content, its presentation and the traffic and traction they get online. The best way we know to serve our users is to give them an even better place for their content, and when I talked with Paul Edmondson at HubPages, it became clear to both of us that combining these platforms leads to a stronger, more efficient, more generous way to share great stuff online.

Personally, I had felt, for quite some time, that things had to change. In November-December 2012, I made a bold move - a move that many scoffed at in the different forums. I began deleting hundreds and hundreds of my Squidoo lenses. After backing up each and every lens in their entirety, I hit the delete button. By February 2013, I had removed over 600!

"Oh, I would never delete one of my Squidoo lenses." I heard that quite a bit. And, others had already up and quit Squidoo and took their content with them. Others didn't have that kind of control as their lenses were locked and their accounts were deleted for them.

We were given the option of opting in early for the move. And, it was encouraged that we download backups of all our content. Boy were the gears ever cranking over at Squidoo! For me too!

At the time of the "big news" announcement, I had 219 Squidoo lenses in my portfolio. Well over 30 of them were new lenslets and lenses created within the past year. On August 15th, I did the early opt in and then I got busy. I began moving my content off Squidoo prior to the transport; and repurposing that content on my two blogs : JaguarJulie Blog On and Blondes that DIY. I then deleted those lenses and requested that Google deindex those lenses.

After two weeks time, on August 29-30, 2014, the ability to delete lenses was disabled! So, that made my decision easy. I couldn't delete any more lenses prior to the transport. But, I could still capture and repurpose that content in anticipation of the aftermath of the move.

HubPages Transport Engages

For me, my bewitching hour came on September 4th. The HubPages Emeryville, CA transport began at 1:23:13 pm EST and finished at 1:51:45 pm on September 4th, transporting over 100 lenses in approximately 28 minutes and 32 seconds. At the time of writing this blog post, I happened to notice that I got a second reconnect from HubPages Emeryville, CA transport on September 10th at 8:14:06 pm that engaged until 8:36:19 pm, involving 6 lenses. I'm not sure what that was about, but I was reporting the next day that deleted hubs were reappearing in my HubPages portfolio! Six of them. Very curious stuff.

JulieAnnBrady on HubPages

September 11, 2014 - HubPages

By September 11, 2014, I had 47 hubs remaining of my imported 100 lenses. All 53 hubs had been deleted by me and my content moved and repurposed on my two blogs.

I also had 144 followers and was following 137 hubbers.

As a Squidoo lensmaster, I got used to seeing those trophies or badges on my profile. For those lensmasters who loved those, I am happy to report that you have the accolades that prominently posts on your HubPages profile pages, for all to see.

My accolades aren't as impressive as other new Squidoo-Hubbers. And, because I was too quick on the delete of newly-imported hubs, I only got the 50 hubs accolade rather than the 100!

Accolades Legend L to R: published at least 50 hubs; at least 50 simultaneously featured hubs; at least 100 followers on HubPages; Hubs have been read over 10,000 times; and level VI commenter.

Editing Hubs

All new Squidoo-Hubbers were granted a 4-month grace period for editing newly-imported hubs to bring them in compliance and clear posted violations. I worked on my hubs for one week to revise them and remove the red skulls of violation. What I found during that intense period of revision? Working in the workshop mode for each hub was actually a bit of FUN! The building blocks of our pages were now referred to as "capsules." No longer did we call them "modules" as we did on Squidoo.

Some other "fun" bits of the process? Well, to categorize your hub, you got to use a browse and search feature to scan the topics by keyword. I liked that until I got to one of my hubs that just didn't fit neatly into any category! Another cool feature was the ability to position a photo capsule above a text capsule; then, by double-clicking on the photo capsule as it is displayed in the right column under the organizing your capsules in your hub, it would jump to the right and be positioned as a half-column element!

It was also very handy that you could easily insert certain capsules here and there in your content.

All, in all, the editing process was facilitated by a handy workshop. There are lots of other neat features; but I don't want to spill the beans and spoil the discover of fun for the newbies!

UPDATE: October 3, 2014, 6:30pm - Jacksonville, FL: The last remaining hubs in my account were deleted by me after transferring and repurposing my original content on my two blogs. You see, I had been experiencing new traffic highs and lots of reader interaction on Squidoo during the Summer months; especially right before the transport. The afternoon of September 3rd, my 100 remaining lenses were transported to HubPages. Within less than ten days, I earned the 10,000 view accolade for my hubs. Traffic was going great guns until something happened on September 23rd. Like somebody flipped the proverbial internet light switch. I lost 97.1% of my traffic to my evergreen content! Now, my pages weren't salesy product pages. But, articles that had sustained the test of time and built up a readership base. When ten days later, it was still nada in the traffic department, I opted to move the remainder of my hubs.

Have you found me there yet? I'm Julie Ann Brady on HubPages. Don't be shy! Be different. If you can.

Holy Purple Cow Stars Take 2

Good Day Purple Star Fans and welcome to Holy Purple Cow Stars Take 2.  Today is the six-week update on the purple star award tally on Squidoo.  Whew, what a lot of work it is nominating, reviewing and rewarding these purple star awards!  Yes it is.

Out first and last report on the purple stars awarded to Squidoo lenses was on June 5th which detailed the 1,267 purple stars which had been awarded thus far.  Today's reporting of the breakdown on the Squidoo lensmasters with purple stars reveals there have been 1,350 ... that's not quite 100 additional purple stars.

If you recall, our previous leader was Editor Dave with 18 purple stars. We show Editor Dave has gained another purple star to hold on to that purple star lead with 19! Kim Giancaterino holds on, again, to second place with 17 purple stars. We have two Squidoo lensmasters holding on to third place with 15 purple stars; kiwisoutback and Treasures-By-Brenda.

Here is the official purple star award line-up, showing number of purple stars awarded and listing the respective Squidoo lensmasters alphabetically!

• 19 -- Editor Dave
• 17 -- KimGiancaterino
• 15 -- kiwisoutback, Treasures-By-Brenda
• 14 -- BigGirlBlue, drifter0658, janices7, Sylvestermouse
• 13 -- Enslavedbyfaeries, kab, OhMe, stargazer00, tandemonimom
• 11 -- aj2008, Evelyn_Saenz, Greekgeek, Heather426, JaguarJulie, skiesgreen, susannaduffy, WindyWinters
• 10 -- chefkeem, Comfortdoc, Pastiche, quippingqueen, Ramkitten, Susan52, The_Party_Animal

• 9 -- 24websurf, bethd821, boshemia, Christene, clouda9, ElizabethJeanAllen, Joan4, Spook, Stazjia
• 8 -- kimmanleyort, LindaJM, mbgphoto, monarch13, NanLT, naturegirl7, Norma_Budden, paperfacets, pkmcr, Pukeko, sandyspider, ThomasC
• 7 -- _Joan_, BevsPaper, ChapelHillFiddler, lakeerieartists, lisadh, makingamark, MeltedRachel, Mickie_G, mysticmama, vallain, WhiteOak50
• 6 - a_willow, AndyPo, Barkely, CDT, ClassyGals, Crystal_Booth, Frankster, hlkljgk, Jimmie, jptanabe, KathyMcGraw, LoKackl, luvmyludwig, MiaBellezza, mukunda22, spirituality, thefluffanutta, theraggededge

• 5 -- arncyn, badmsm, dc64, EverythingMouse, GrowWear, j_barnhart4, Janet21, Jewelsofawe, JoyfulPamela, Kate-Phizackerley, Ladymermaid, mulberry, Noadi, partybuzz, SemperFidelis, Sojourn, TheGreenerMe, Tipi, tirial, triathlontraining, WhitePineLane
• 4 -- ArtByLinda, AslanBooks, BarbRad, BFuniv.com, Chadrew, CleanerLife, daria369, gmarlett, Gordon_Hamilton, GroovyFinds, GypsyPirate, HorseAndPony, inkserotica, jkvkdailey, Laniann, LeanneChesser, LizMac60, lou16, mbrownauthor, missbat, Octavias0fferings, Peggy707, poddys, prosperity66, relache, Rob_W, Romaxx, ronpass, seashell2, SoyCandleLover-Maker, Squidster, strayspay, SusanVillasLewis, Victoria_Neely, WebSpinstress, WordCustard
• 3 -- andreaberrios, bdkz, boutiqueshops, Bradshaw, CherylK, CreativeArtist, dagsmith, daybreak, DMedley, draik, EelKat, Ener-G, flowergardener, Flynn_the_Cat, GonnaFly, GramaBarb, happynutritionist, jbdkz, JohannTheDog, Laddoo, LotusPetalYoga, Mac33, Macs, Marelisa, Margo_Arrowsmith, Michey, MissMerFaery, N376, NAIZA, ottoblotto, poutine, rms, smange, voodoomama, Wysiwigs

• 2 -- AddaptAbilities, AllThingsMichigan, anthropos, athomemomblog, awelldressedbullet, azpoppy, blondeheroine, Brookelorren, Caseyfern, CCGAL, charlino, Christopher_Scott, crosscreations, CrypticFragments, DessertLover, Dkprincess6, eclecticeducation, ElleDeeEsse, EternalFlame, Euryale, fefe, flighty02, flowski, Freaknoodles, genglo, gkygrl, hmsweaver, Irenemaria, jeffryv, JJNW, johndilbeck, JustBon-Crochet-Designs, Karendelac, katiyana, Kylyssa, LakeMom, LauraSchofield, lisakleinweber, Loyalis, Margaret_Schaut, michaelgibbons, MikeMoore, mosaic, NancyOram, NicoleRoberts, nightcats, nyfamily5, Pantherart, papawu, Photahsiamirabel, Pixelrage, puzzlemaker, Rajays, RichLeigh, rockycha, sandralynnsparks, Shar, SimeyC, squidoohelp, sukkran, The_Homeopath, thesuccess, Tiddledeewinks, TrinaSonnenberg, unique_freak77, vanidiana, vbright105, Webcodes, whitemoss, ZachG

• 1 -- 4U2C, AdrienneJenkins, aidenw, Aldric_Chang, AlishaV, allthatiscute, alteredkat, amandaquerque, AtHomeSource, babygirlboutique, Barrie, bcarter, bechand, beeobrien, bernadette1, Bob_Druwing, boredofeducation, BrandyT, burgessvillian, Bus_Stop_Toy_Shop, ByRoy, Carmel_Aaron, cary_quirkoutcom, Charlyjl, chloecavanaugh, Clairwil, confetta, CosmeticMom, danthemans, daoine, d-artist, Dawn_Mathisen_aka_Candle_Dawn, ddixonart, Diamond_Wizard, Donnette, ebay-grandma, EbizTaxTips, Eclectic_Muse, Ecolicious, emmalarkins, EuroSquid, flipflopnana, gods_grace_notes, grannysage, grayth, groovyoldlady, guardianstar77, GypsyOwl, hollandnumerics, HotbuttonPress, icjackson, imaginemdd, IntuitiveHealer, JanaMurray, JanTUB, Janusz, jeffwend, JenniferAkers, JenOfChicago, JimH, kajohu, KarateKatGraphics, KathrynDarden, kcbaker1, kellywissink, Kelsey-Budden-16, Kharadriisa, KimberlyDawnWells, KNicholls, Kyecerulian, Lady_Gotrocks, lollyj, Lou1842, lwhitelaw, Magicality, Makita, marsha32, MeganCasey, MobyD, motorpurrr, MrLewisSmile, Mrs_R, MsSnow4a, mynameiskate, nDee, nightbear, Not-Pop, ohcaroline, OneFootPutt, oneskms, only1bub, PatinKC, PeopleLive, PJ_Deneen, pmolinero, pyle_mountain, QueSea, ravedid, Rewards4life, RickBasset, RinchenChodron, rksmythe, rlmodranski, RMJ1940, Roving_Band, Samanthie, Sammie, SandraRose, Sarah, seedplanter, seegreen, SeeMyHealthyHairGrow, SherryHolderHunt, ShirlW, shwetashah, sirkeystone, SquidooKimberly, StaciJansma, steveffeo, Superwife, Tallguy2, TeaLady, Teddi14, The_Health_Lady, TheLeftFitz, thrivingmom, Tiffany, TopMovieSoundtracks, Trekkiemelissa, tssfacts, Twmarsh, ulla_hennig, Vacation-In-My-Head, Vladi, Waxing-Lyrical, weavz, webnh, webseitler, WeddingZazzle, Wednesday_Elf, WendyKrick, WhippetTalk, WhitneyWells, WhitU4ever, Winter52, xtnshun

P.S. By the way, have you seen my purple star awarded, Squidoo lens, Jaguar Julie -- Lensography of a WAHWW?  On that lensography, I have a very special Purple Star Award page which details those 11 purple stars that have been awarded on my 645 lenses. And, another VERY special page is the Purple Star Worthy Guide which presents about 25 Squidoo lenses that I feel are worthy of being nominated for a purple star. I'm not nominating my own Squidoo lenses, but I thought it would be kind of fun to let others know just what lenses I consider, of mine, to be purple star award worthy. You know?  Have a purple cow fantastic weekend folks!

Hey People - It's About the People Today

The Topicability blog has been spotlighting the Top 100 Squidoo lenses and lensmasters and taking a closer look at who, what, when, where, and perhaps why and how. The cornerstone of Topicability after all is "to be topicable :: that which is relevant, of current interest, contemporary, spot-on!"

Today we are turning our attention to the People Topic / Category of Squidoo.  We are looking at the various Squidoo lenses which have secured a spot in that Top 100 of the People Topic.  As I normally am thinking PEOPLE and different people ... throughout history, in politics, leaders, celebrities, actresses, models, stars, criminals and then some more people, I found it surely interesting to see this was the Wordle tag cloud today for that People Topic / Category of Squidoo.

Looking at this Wordle tag cloud, what really jumps out at me is Wedding!  Oh wow.  Wedding is dominating that People Topic, isn't it?  Then I see Quotes, Speeches, Toasts, Signs, Free, Maid, Sample, Women, Father and Cheating.  Isn't that interesting?  I don't see too many PEOPLE there which I really think is quite odd indeed.  After all, isn't the topic of people pretty straightforward?

The Squidoo lensmaster in the spotlight today in the People Topic is EasyW who has 6 Squidoo lenses in the Top 100 of that category.  That's not quite as many lenses dominating a particular topic as we've seen in our previous blog spotlights for some of the other showcased topics.  All of these 6 lenses are on Weddings and related stuff.

Oh, and here is that Wordle tag cloud that is automatically imaging the various Squidoo lensmasters who have their lenses in the Top 100 of the People Topic / Category.

Two Squidoo lensmasters have 3 Squidoo lenses each in the Top 100 of the People category. They are hanjee and ThomasC.

Quite a few Squidoo lensmasters have 2 Squidoo lenses each in the Top 100 of the People category and I can say that a couple of them I do recognize! Heck I found my name on that list, quite surpringly! These Squidoo lensmasters with 2 lenses each include audreylai, chrgr, CosmeticMom, ihearthiki, Irenemaria, JaguarJulie, kab, monarch13, photos, Sadheeskumar, spirituality, squiddles.

My two PEOPLE contributions to this topic include  Gloria Steinem -- A Feminist Superhero #68 and Blondes Are SEXIER and Have More Fun #76!

A rather sensitive topic of discussion on Squidoo is that of multiple IDs. I am saving my discussion of this sensitive topic for another date. But, what springs to mind, is the fact that multiple IDs can hide the fact that the same lensmaster is in the spotlight, but under a different ID. So, I can’t help but think, when I see a particular “topic” like say “weddings” or stuff related to “weddings” and lenses ranking in the Top 100s, I honestly wonder which of those multiple IDs is the very same lensmaster?

Say!  You did know that TOPICABILITY is a portmanteau, right? Think of TOPICABILITY as:  Top + ic + ability   ...   OR   ...   Topic + ability   ...   I hope you get that.

The TOPIC of discussion has been the Squidoo topics or categories.  We've showcased Parenting and Kids, Local, Computers Gadgets and Tech, and DIY Do It Yourself ... here is a recap for you! I hope you enjoy them as I've provided lots of Wordle tag clouds and lots of image mosaic lists of the top lenses.

• Spotlight on Parenting and Kids
• It Is All Local Folks Oh My!
• Computers, Gadgets and Tech Oh My!
• Do It Yourself this Summer

And, you surely must know, by now, that I've profiled the top Squidoo lens, for more than a year on a special Squidoo lens, Squidoo du Jour -- The Top Lens, in case you are curious what's been on top overall. Or, maybe you are wanting to participate in my Hey Monkeybrain debate about Squidoo Stats -- Public or Private?

It Is All Local Folks Oh My

Hello folks. Today's Topicability blog post has hit the Local meter! What's local any way? According to my favorite Wikipedia, "Local usually refers to something nearby, or in the immediate area."

Well we are turning our attention next, quite randomly, to the Local topic/category of Squidoo. And, we are taking a closer look at the Top 100 in the Local topic/category as captured on June 23, 2010.

Yes, it is time for the Wordle tag cloud conceptualization of all those Squidoo lenses that made it into the Top 100 in the Local topic/category. Feast your eyes on this:

What jumps out at us?  Well, I think that would be Fargo, Park, Kabetogama, National, Voyageurs, North, Dakota, Squidoo, Best, Local and County for sure.  And, then some more stuff!  When I think of Local, I think Jacksonville, Miami, Orlando, Florida, Atlanta, and Georgia.  But, I really don't think any of those are in this particular Local Wordle today folks.

Holy moly Batman and Robin!  Hold that Local phone for a minute.  Check out this mosaic image!  Gadzooks, folks.  We don't know how she does it, [ah, but we really do but are being diplomatic about it all] but Tipi aka TipiGal has snagged 28 spots in the Top 100 of that Local topic / category!

Yes, today’s lensmaster that is hitting the spotlight is Tipi aka the TipiGal. It is a WOWEE that Tipi is scoring, laying claim to 28 Squidoo lenses in the Top 100 of the Local topic/category. That is huge domination folks!

Now, on to our next Wordle tag cloud ... Here is an automatically-generated Wordle tag cloud that has imaged all the Squidoo lensmasters who were lucky enough to snag a spot on the Top 100 of the Local topic / category!

Not to be out-done, though, are a handful of other Squidoo lensmasters. The lensmasters making the grade, or scoring multiple placements of Squidoo lenses in the Top 100 of the Local topic/category are: OhMe= 5, louiswery= 4, SemperFidelis= 4, and SusanVillasLewis= 3. And, these Squidoo lensmasters have 2 each: ChrisLloyd, Elsie01, KimGiancaterino, monarch13, pcuser, Ramkitten, and ThomasC.

We do have a number of Squidoo lensmasters who have each scored ONE lens in the Top 100 of the Local category.  You do know it has been a TOUGH NUT TO CRACK for months to get a lens in the Local category! And, I know what I am talking about folks. You see, I have quite a few LOCAL topic/category Squidoo lenses, but a spot in the Top 100 of the Local category has eluded me for months too!

I have ONE lens along with my Squidoo peeps: 1SquidAddict, aj2008, ArtByLinda, bobcrain, CDT, Christene, cleansweeping, daybreak, draik, EricOlsen, familymoves, Flynn_the_Cat, genglo, Hillandglen, hlkljgk, inkserotica, JaguarJulie, Janiece, JenOfChicago, Joan4, JonitasKalimpo, jptanabe, jsmyth, Kapalbility, KarenTBTEN, kiwisoutback, lumpy22, MikeTobias, MrLewisSmile, mulberry, naturegirl7, NatureMaven, NorthWestUK, OneFootPutt, Pastiche, PR_am, southshoretees, spirituality, steve866, Teddi14, triathlontraining, and WebSpinstress.

HEY!!! Let’s hear it for ALL those Squidoo lensmasters scoring a spot in the Top 100 of the Local topic/category!

Oh, by the way!  The Topicability blog has been concentrating on the TOP news of Squidoo lately.  You know, or have noticed, haven't you, that the blog is NAMED Topicability or Topicability, right? You did know that TOPICABILITY is a portmanteau, right? Here's what Wikipedia says about Portmanteau:

A portmanteau [plural: portmanteaus or portmanteaux] is used broadly to mean a blend of two (or more) words or morphemes and their meanings into one new word. In linguistics fields, a portmanteau is defined as a blend of two or more function words.

Think of TOPICABILITY as:  Top + ic + ability   ...   OR   ...   Topic + ability   ...   I hope you get that.

In case you missed my most recent Topic + ability blog posts, here is a handy listing to check out:

• Celebrating the Return of Traffic Oh My!
• Computers, Gadgets and Tech Oh My!
• Do It Yourself this Summer
• Who has got an eye on you
• The top eight Squidoo earners

By the way, I've profiled the top Squidoo lens, for more than a year on a special Squidoo lens, Squidoo du Jour -- The Top Lens, in case you are curious what's been on top overall. Or, maybe you are wanting to participate in my Hey Monkeybrain debate about Squidoo Stats -- Public or Private?

Holy Purple Cow Purple Stars

OK ... perhaps I should rephrase the title of "Holy Purple Cow Stars" to actually read something like this:

Holy Cow! Purple Stars!!!  And, that's what I'm talking about.  I used the cow in reverence to our founder, Seth Godin, and I use purple because, gosh darn it, he's written about purple cows and we have purple stars on the Squidoo platform.  Ah, get it?

On January 20, 2010, in an attempt to stimulate thoughtful and constructive conversation on the purple stars and the purple star program, I posted a thread to our SquidU Forum.  Here is a paragraph from that thread:

Wow, I'll bet we have well over a thousand purple stars now! Gosh, remember when we were all chattering about the effect of those purple stars? Well, I am very proud of each and every one of you who have been so awarded a purple star or many purple stars! Wow! What a job that must surely be to evaluate all those purple star nominations to determine whether or not a lens is worthy of a purple star.

Say, speaking of that ... we have Bonnie and Robin [only] reviewing the nominations and awarding those purple stars? Right? Gosh, I'm thinking maybe we could have a Purple Star Review Committee to help out -- you know, we have so many groups and group activities and what not that occupy a lensmaster's time.

Well, my conversation, appeared to me, to get a bit testy although it wasn't meant to have people getting defensive, going on the offensive, and taking sides about whether or not they thought the purple star program was working.  Suffice to say, though, that my thoughtful discussion did seem to lead to some "improvements" and changes! Yes it did.

Many a lensmaster began to trumpet the swell program with purple star topic lenses! And, even those purple star topic lenses garnered purple stars for said lensmaster(s)! Oh yeah. Then, we celebrated the anniversary of the initiation of purple stars with a day to award purple stars to non-giant lenses. Oh yeah! And, as of today, we have now celebrated a couple more special occasions with actual purple star queens handing out purple stars. Oh yeah!  Thanks Susan for the swell job.  I tell you WHAT!  I sure wouldn't want the responsibility of determining which lensmasters' lenses deserved the purple star.

You see, we can nominate our own lenses for a purple star. However, I've always felt a little weird about nominating myself or my work. So, I do believe the very last lens I did nominate for a purple star was in December 2009 for a lens that was really a project lens. I've surely nominated MANY other lensmasters lenses and am happy to say that I do think all my nominations have garnered purple stars for those lensmasters ... and I do think only one of those lensmasters guessed that it was me who did the nomination.  I like to be a bit quiet and humble about those nominations and do get a big smile when they guess it was me.

On the other hand, I do believe out of all my purple stars, I've figured out the ONE lensmaster who has nominated my lenses.  And, I still can't believe it's been only one lensmaster to thank for nominating my lenses for a purple star.  I surely appreciate my friend and fellow lensmaster, Janet, who has reminded me that we should not draw our worth from purple stars ... you know, purple stars don't define the caliber of our work, but it sure can be nice when everyone else is getting them ... you know ... to actually be included too.  ;)

So ... here we are today.  I obviously had too much time on my hands this Saturday as I was multitasking ... doing the laundry, editing my lenses, reading my email, chatting on the forum ... that I was curious after our last celebration of purple stars ... to take the time to do a descending order tally to see WHO is getting those purple stars.  OH, and what a surprise!  Holy Cow! Purple Stars!!!  I did NOT expect to find a guy on top.

It is huge to see a friend and fellow lensmaster, EditorDave at the top of the purple stars tally!  Huge congratulations to EditorDave for garnering eighteen purple stars.  That is truly amazing.  EditorDave has got some of the most enthralling lenses.  I was just remarking, I think yesterday or the day before, about the komodo dragon pictures.  OMG!  Now that is one fella I wouldn't want to encounter in a dark alley ... the dragon!!!

So, to all my interested readers and lensmasters, here is that descending order purple star tally, from most to least, and presenting the lensmasters alphabetically by number of purple stars earned thus far.

CONGRATULATIONS everybody!

• 18 -- EditorDave
• 17 -- KimGiancaterino
• 14 – BigGirlBlue, drifter0658 , kiwisoutback
• 13 – Sylvestermouse, Treasures-By-Brenda
• 12 -- janices7, kab, tandemonimom
• 11 -- aj2008, enslavedbyfaeries, Evelyn_Saenz, Greekgeek, Heather426, OhMe, stargazer00
• 10 – chefkeem, JaguarJulie, Ramkitten, skiesgreen, Susan52, WindyWinters

• 9 -- boshemia, Christene, clouda9, Comfortdoc, ElizabethJeanAllen, Spook, Stazjia, The_Party_Animal
• 8 -- 24websurf, bethd821, j_barnhart4, Joan4, kimmanleyort, LindaJM, mbgphoto, NanLT, naturegirl7, Norma_Budden, Pastiche, pkmcr, susannaduffy, ThomasC
• 7 -- BevsPaper, ChapelHillFiddler, lakeerieartists, makingamark, MeltedRachel, Mickie_G, monarch13, mysticmama, paperfacets, quippingqueen, sandyspider
• 6 -- _Joan_, CDT, ClassyGals, CoolFoto, Crystal_Booth, Frankster, hlkljgk, Jimmie, jptanabe, KathyMcGraw, lisadh, luvmyludwig, MiaBellezza, mukunda22, Pukeko, spirituality, thefluffanutta, WhiteOak50

• 5 -- a_willow, AndyPo, arncyn, badmsm, Barkely, EverythingMouse, GrowWear, Janet21, Kate-Phizackerley, Ladymermaid, LoKackl, mulberry, Noadi, SemperFidelis, Sojourn, TheGreenerMe, theraggededge, Tipi, tirial, WhitePineLane
• 4 -- 0ctavias0fferings, ArtByLinda, AslanBooks, BFuniv.com, CleanerLife, daria369, dc64, gmarlett, Gordon_Hamilton, GroovyFinds, GypsyPirate, HorseAndPony, Jewelsofawe, JoyfulPamela, Laniann, LeanneChesser, LizMac60, lou16, mbrownauthor, missbat, poddys, relache, Rob_W, Romaxx, ronpass, Squidster, strayspay, SusanVillasLewis, triathlontraining, vallain, Victoria_Neely, WebSpinstress, WordCustard
• 3 -- andreaberrios, BarbRad, bdkz, Bradshaw, Chadrew, CherylK, CreativeArtist, daybreak, DMedley, draik, EelKat, Ener-G, flowergardener, happynutritionist, inkserotica, jkvkdailey, JohannTheDog, Mac33, Macs, Margo_Arrowsmith, Michey, N376, NAIZA, ottoblotto, partybuzz, Peggy707, poutine, rms, seashell2, SoyCandleLover-Maker, voodoomama, Wysiwigs

• 2 -- AddaptAbilities, AllThingsMichigan, anthropos, awelldressedbullet, azpoppy, boutiqueshops, Brookelorren, Caseyfern, CCGAL, charlino, crosscreations, CrypticFragments, dagsmith, Dkprincess6, eclecticeducation, EternalFlame, Euryale, flighty02, flowski, Flynn_the_Cat, Freaknoodles, genglo, gkygrl, GonnaFly, GramaBarb, hmsweaver, Irenemaria, jbdkz, jeffryv, JJNW, johndilbeck, JustBon-Crochet-Designs, Karendelac, katiyana, Kylyssa, Laddoo, LakeMom, LauraSchofield, lisakleinweber, LotusPetalYoga, Loyalis, Marelisa, Margaret_Schaut, michaelgibbons, MikeMoore, MissMerFaery, mosaic, NancyOram, nyfamily5, Pantherart, papawu, Pixelrage, prosperity66, Rajays, RichLeigh, rockycha, sandralynnsparks, Shar, SimeyC, smange, squidoohelp, steveffeo, sukkran, The_Homeopath, thesuccess, Tiddledeewinks, TrinaSonnenberg, unique_freak77, vanidiana, vbright105, Webcodes, whitemoss, XP

• 1 -- 4U2C, AdrienneJenkins, aidenw, Aldric_Chang, AlishaV, allthatiscute, alteredkat, amandaquerque, athomemomblog, AtHomeSource, babygirlboutique, Barrie, bcarter, bechand, beeobrien, bernadette1, blondeheroine, Bob_Druwing, boredofeducation, burgessvillian, ByRoy, Carmel_Aaron, cary_quirkoutcom, Charlyjl, chloecavanaugh, Christopher_Scott, Clairwil, confetta, CosmeticMom, daoine, d-artist, Dawn_Mathisen_aka_Candle_Dawn, ddixonart, Diamond_Wizard, Donnette, ebay-grandma, EbizTaxTips, Eclectic_Muse, Ecolicious, ElleDeeEsse, emmalarkins, EuroSquid, fefe, flipflopnana, gods_grace_notes, grannysage, grayth, groovyoldlady, guardianstar77, GypsyOwl, hollandnumerics, HotbuttonPress, icjackson, imaginemdd, IntuitiveHealer, JanaMurray, JanTUB, Janusz, jeffwend, JenniferAkers, JenOfChicago, JimH, kajohu, KarateKatGraphics, KathrynDarden, kcbaker1, kellywissink, Kelsey-Budden-16, Kharadriisa, KimberlyDawnWells, KNicholls, Lady_Gotrocks, lollyj, Lou1842, lwhitelaw, Magicality, marsha32, MeganCasey, MobyD, motorpurrr, MrLewisSmile, Mrs_R, MsSnow4a, mynameiskate, nDee, nightbear, nightcats, Not-Pop, ohcaroline, OneFootPutt, oneskms, only1bub, PatinKC, PeopleLive, Photahsiamirabel, PJ_Deneen, pmolinero, puzzlemaker, pyle_mountain, QueSea, Rewards4life, RickBasset, RinchenChodron, rksmythe, rlmodranski, RMJ1940, Roving_Band, Samanthie, Sammie, SandraRose, Sarah, seedplanter, seegreen, SeeMyHealthyHairGrow, SherryHolderHunt, ShirlW, shwetashah, sirkeystone, SquidooKimberly, StaciJansma, Superwife, Tallguy2, TeaLady, Teddi14, The_Health_Lady, TheLeftFitz, thrivingmom, Tiffany, TopMovieSoundtracks, Trekkiemelissa, tssfacts, Twmarsh, ulla_hennig, Vacation-In-My-Head, Vladi, Waxing-Lyrical, weavz, webnh, webseitler, WeddingZazzle, Wednesday_Elf, WendyKrick, WhippetTalk, WhitneyWells, WhitU4ever, Winter52, xtnshun, ZachG

As of June 5, 2010, the list shows 1,267 purple stars have been awarded in total.  The majority of purple stars have been awarded to lensmasters who are giant squids.  The purple star is awarded to lenses with quality content. There are only a limited number of purple stars handed out on a weekly basis.  Many, many more lenses are deserving of purple stars.  To be awarded a purple star, your lens must be nominated!

The top tiers of lens raters

Are you a lensmaster yet at Squidoo? Just in case YOU have not yet joined Squidoo and begun to experience the power of Squidoo for yourself, hey follow me. Click on my referral link to join Squidoo.

For anyone who is an author, "if you build it they will come."  We authors and writers who have composed our masterpieces on the platform of Squidoo HAVE realized just that.  We have the ability to express ourselves in our unique, authentic ways and we have the ability to be read and commented upon.

What is an extra plus thus far at Squidoo is that we could also be rated for our writings and creations.  In the beginning, there were the stars of Squidoo.  The star ratings which ranged from 1 through 5.  Then, rather recently, those stars translated over to LIKES or thumbs up in which all 4 and 5 star ratings became a like.  The 1, 2, and 3 stars were thrown out.

Now, Squidoo lensmasters can garner a thumbs up like from fellow lensmaster-readers-raters.  Today's Topicability blog post is recognizing the top tiers of lens raters over at Squidoo.  Here is what I have envisioned as the TOP tier of lens raters!

The legend for this artsy mosaic of the top tier of lens raters, left to right:

1. Romaxx a member since February 2 2008, has rated 11,304 lenses.
2. KimGiancaterino a member since October 30 2006, has rated 8,810 lenses.
3. MeganCasey a member since October 17 2005, has rated 8,660 lenses.
4. Jewelsofawe a member since August 20 2007, has rated 7,497 lenses.
5. JaguarJulie a member since March 21 2006, has rated 7,417 lenses.
6. bdkz a member since February 17 2007, has rated 7,158 lenses.
7. rms a member since May 8 2007, has rated 7,025 lenses.
8. OhMe a member since July 18 2008, has rated 6,740 lenses.
9. EelKat a member since April 18 2007, has rated 6,246 lenses.

The legend for this second artsy mosaic of tier two of lens raters, left to right:

1. Evelyn_Saenz a member since September 12 2007, has rated 3,940 lenses.
2. Music-Resource a member since November 4 2007, has rated 3,938 lenses.
3. GrowWear a member since January 27 2007, has rated 3,894 lenses.
4. tdove a member since June 29 2007, has rated 3,792 lenses.
5. Susan52 a member since April 15 2007, has rated 3,707 lenses.
6. mulberry a member since February 16 2007, has rated 3,367 lenses.
7. triathlontraining a member since June 27 2007, has rated 3,367 lenses.

No matter how YOU slice or dice this bit of information, you simply cannot take away from the significance of what these lensmasters / lens raters have accomplished!  Time spent reading, commenting, and rating lenses takes productive time away from lens authorship.  I know that from personal experience.  I've tried to balance my membership at Squidoo to give back to my fellow lensmasters.  Throughout the course of over 4 years, I have rated over 7,400 lenses and left at least that many comments in guestbooks and duel modules.  I have helped many a lensmaster one-on-one in private.  It has been a fulfilling period of time for me.  I am not sure how much longer there will be a Squidoo, but I know I will be somewhere out there on the internet giving back.

Thank you to my fellow lensmasters, friends, and those lens raters who have helped by contributing so much. Thanks for not passing by, but for taking a moment to comment AND rate. YOU rate! Why, you ARE a form of chicken soup for my soul.

Ah ... let me repeat what I just said ... "Thank you to my fellow lensmasters, friends, and those lens raters who have helped by contributing so much. Thanks for not passing by, but for taking a moment to comment AND rate. YOU rate! Why, you ARE a form of chicken soup for my soul."

And, I thank YOU!

UPDATE: JaguarJulie has been transported via a time machine from Squidoo to HubPages. Oh, and that lasted for about a minute. LOL

An integral element to every lens - guestbook

An integral element to every lens should be the guestbook. When selecting the building blocks or modules that I like to have for my Squidoo lenses, there are a number of modules that are signature to the lenses I create. The guestbook is perhaps one of the most integral elements to every lens. That is my opinion that I know I share with many lensmasters. I have many a time contacted a lensmaster to suggest that they might want to consider adding that guestbook.

I used to think that there was nothing lonelier than an empty guestbook with no reader comments. You know, after over 3.5 years authoring lenses, I have stumbled upon some of my lenses whose guestbooks stand empty! Gosh, that is so unfortunate that not one visitor took time to say hello. So, what is lonelier than an empty guestbook? Why, it would be a lens with NO guestbook included. I can't tell you how important that guestbook is to invite in your reader to share their thoughts.

Think about this: when was the last time you attended say a wedding? Remember that guestbook that the bride and groom had to capture the memories of their blessed day?



That's a picture of a lonely guestbook, but it is from a new lens and has yet to experience its first visitor -- hopefully the reader likes to leave comments in guestbooks. New lenses awaiting guestbook comments: Bodum Glassware -- Award-Winning Design and Luigi Bormioli Glassware -- Designed in Italy.

Oh, and by the way? It seems comments on Google blogs are now like the lonely guestbook of lenses. Please let the writer know that you dropped by ... leave your paw prints and a meow.

Traffic is Both Down and Up

The topicability index for today has stopped on traffic. Many lensmasters have spotted an anomaly with the traffic to their lenses reportedly not registering correctly. I've noticed that as well ... enough to stop and do this blog post.

MHM-666

It's not just one or two lenses that are off, but quite a few which raises a bit of a red flag. While it is difficult to analyze each and every lens when you have over 445 lenses; I have looked at some of my more popular lenses which have always gotten good traffic. It's odd to see so many different types of lenses being 'off' ... can this be attributed to the time of the year? For the most part, school is out for the Summer. Are less people on their computers? Are people going to other sites?

Many are saying that their lenses aren't getting the traffic to which they've grown accustomed.

On the other hand, I've noticed other traffic that is way up! For example, my inbox is flooded these days with the good [thank you my friends], the bad [bummer!], and the ugly -- those spammy emails! Traffic might be reporting as down to lenses, but traffic is up with the number of emails.

Looking through some of my stats, it was quite interesting to see that 96% of my visitors are new and unique! That's up considerably from the 77% or so of previous months. It's great to see that new readers are discovering the benefits of Squidoo. Now, we just need to sort out what's happening with those numbers!

P.S. I'd like to see some seasonality studies -- I'll report back when I find some. Meanwhile, I'm off to find the traffic. May the force be with you! And, if you haven't yet discovered the benefits of Squidoo, why not join me as a lensmaster and we can discover that traffic together!

Should I be a Squidoo lensmaster

Should I or shouldn't I be a Squidoo lensmaster? Today in his blog post, Seth Godin asks the question, "Why am I here?" Indeed! I'm not waxing philosophical when I say that I've recently been asking myself that question a lot! It's been a time of examining how my time is spent; whether it is making sense that I participate in some form or fashion online at certain social media sites. After all, a person can spread themselves a little thin by trying to keep active everywhere -- unless you are a Wonder Woman or a Superman or perhaps Guy Kawasaki who is one amazing guy -- especially on Twitter!

Just as Seth's blog post was quite topicable for me today, so was the blog post from the SAMBA blog. The latest post asked another resonating topicable question of What do you hear? That topicable question was also picked up on by ChefKeem when he asked, "Do You Know Who Is Talking About You On The Web?" The SAMBA blog suggested that we check out Social Mention which is an aggregator that collects information from a number of different social media sites.

In addition to listening to what people are saying about your brand, also listen what they are saying about your competition. It is not sneaky, but smart!

So what does that have to do with whether I should or shouldn't be a Squidoo lensmaster? Here, hear! When I was taking a hard look at my presence online, I was evaluating my presence at a number of social media sites. I took a particularly close look at two different activities: blogging and Squidooing. I've been blogging since December 2004 and on Squidoo since March 2006. There is a ratio of 2 to 1 when you compare the number of lenses I have authored to the number of blog posts I have penned. Squidoo has had me in its hold for over 3 years.

It is interesting to compare worldwide readership of blogs to Squidoo lenses. Here is a snapshot of readership -- the worldwide visitors -- from my Jaguar Julie :: Blog On and On ... blog:


For comparison purposes, here is a snapshot of the worldwide readership -- the worldwide visitors -- to my >445 Squidoo lenses:


It's pretty obvious from the second snapshot that there is more cultural diversity in the readership for Squidoo lenses. The worldwide reach of Squidoo is quite phenomenal! When you author a quality Squidoo lens that has been optimized with rich, meaningful content and relevant keywords, your lens has an excellent opportunity of being indexed by a variety of search engines so that you can have a strong worldwide readership base. The icing on the cake is when you additionally promote your lens judiciously to social media platforms.

Let's take a closer look at the top twenty countries for the worldwide readership comparing Squidoo lenses vs. a Google blog. Looking at the snapshot above, and comparing the list on the left with the list on the right, you see many of the same countries. In this example, the top three countries for both are the same -- the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom! Together, for lenses they account for 77% of the readership base; for the blog, 72%. For the most part, this would be what I expected to see without looking at the tangible evidence.

You know it would be interesting to have a snapshot of the membership base of Squidoo lensmasters to see how their percentages stack up against the readership base. Much has been said that more Squidoo lensmasters are of the female persuasion; many of which are work-at-home moms. I'm thinking that the greatest percentage of Squidoo lensmasters DO come from the United States, Canada and the United Kingdom!

OK, so back to the question, "Should I or shouldn't I be a Squidoo lensmaster?" If you are interested in having a worldwide reach that is quite phenomenal, I would say that the answer is a compelling YES! Do you have something that you are passionate about? Why not create a phenomenal lens to shout out to the world? Why not join me! I've invested many an hour writing about a number of things that I find interesting; looking to engage my readers -- my worldwide readership base.

And, now I'm looking to judiciously monitor my time by asking, "Why am I here?" and What do you hear? Can you hear me now?

The Topicability of the Purple Star

The topicability of the purple star ... in the titles of lenses. Well it was just another Wednesday morning for me until I ventured into the SquidU Forum to find that yikes, my Stuffed Cabbage lens was a hot topic of discussion in that a star symbol had been inserted into the title of the lens after the title of "Stuffed Cabbage."





To help you determine how you would like to weigh in on the debate about showing special characters in lens titles, I have included a snapshot of the Stuffed Cabbage lens with the open shadowed star design that I currently employ on my twitter profile. Thus far, I have heard no comments one way or the other on the appearance of the stars on my twitter profile. So, I can't weigh in with the scientific evidence about that.

However, a few lensmasters have mentioned that browsers other than FireFox do not recognize this special shadowed open star! Hmmm -- must fix that!


OK -- so this snapshot above of my Stuffed Cabbage lens uses a special character star that I believe should image correctly in browsers other than FireFox. It doesn't quite have the impact of the other star and it is definitely not purple -- haven't figured that one out.

Well, the purple stars are being handed out now at a rate of 21 per week -- we will be close to one hundred lenses I think by the end of this week. I've got ONLY one purple star while there are lensmasters with 2 purple stars and quite possibly some of these lensmasters may earn a third purple star in the near future. I'm holding my breathe for a second one although I did NOT nominate any of my lenses this week.

So, what do you think? Like any of these stars in the titles? Actually, thinking about it ... I know I did happen to see a registration mark or a copyright mark on a lens title for a trademarked product. I think those special characters should be allowed to be used!

By the way! You wouldn't believe how many other lensmasters started employing the asterisk in their lenses titles. Good to see so many jumping on the star bandwagon.

New Look to Squidoo Home Page - Like Alltop

I simply must go on vacation more often -- why you ask? Well, lots of things happen when I go away! It's rather like Murphy's Law.


The first thing worth mentioning is that a whole new group of Squid Angels were chosen -- I missed out on the call as I had no internet access in Southern Spain; dog-gone it! The 'new' Squid Angels were chosen by invitation from Kimberly. I've asked that she put me on her list for the next go-around! Now, we have many returning Squid Angels doing second and third tours of duty; I'm thinking there are probably some doing a fourth tour of duty -- those lucky guys and gals!

The next really big thing that I noticed that was new was the super cool view of the Squidoo welcome page -- the home page. It gives an overall look at all the topics or categories within Squidoo by spotlighting the Top 5. I love this! Especially if I can make it into the Top 5 in any of the topics -- not an easy feat to do. Luckily, I seem to have hit on two of my lenses being spotlighted: Stuffed Cabbage and Meniscus Tear -- Not just a jock's injury! I think some lensmasters have several of their lenses showcased on this welcome page -- a hearty congrats to them!

P.S. Here is another view of Top Lenses from Squidoo -- it's Squidoorati @ Alltop.

Celebrating 3 Years on a Social Platform

Celebrating 3 Years on a Social Platform - Not a Flash in the Pan! March 21, 2009 marks my third anniversary as a lensmaster on Squidoo. That is a pretty long time to be able to stay active on one social platform and not be a flash in the pan! Squidoo has been a remarkable place to BE -- I absolutely LOVE Squidoo. I originally came to Squidoo from a personal BzzAgent invitation. At BzzAgent, we learned to be word-of-mouth evangelists [not religious fanatics]; and we learned to spread the word or buzz about worthy topics.


During the past 3 years, I've authored over 404 lenses along with 6 groups. I became a Giant Squid and achieved the honors of Giant Squid 100 Club, rather a daunting achievement at the time as I experienced a crushing hard drive crash in the midst of qualification. HQ blessed me with the wonderful experience of being a Squid Angel -- putting me more in touch with my spiritual side. ;) Hard work and luck gave me 3 different lenses of the day or LOTD! Each of these LOTDs were very special lenses to me: To Catch a Thief in under 40 Days!, Jaguar Julie Lensography, and Julia Nagy -- My Grandmother, Namesake and Superhero.

So, are you celebrating a special anniversary on Squidoo, or have one coming up? I'd love to hear from you! Please take a moment to visit my signature lens, Jaguar Julie Lensography, and be sure to sign my guestbook to let me know you dropped by! Thank you and may the force be with you.

P.S. Want to join me on this wonderful platform? Hey, what are YOU waiting for! Get started now. Do you have a favorite food like stuffed cabbage or maybe basa? Have something to debate; e.g., blondes are sexier and have more fun? Experienced a sports injury like a meniscus tear and want to write about your personal experiences? Or, maybe you just want to remember your mom!

Ahem What is your lowest ranking lens

So, what is your lowest ranking lens today? Has it been your lowest ranking lens for a while or is it a different lens? Is it a lens that you feel shouldn't be a lowest ranking lens? Did you notice that usually video showcase lenses seem to be the lowest ranking lenses? Check that dashboard of yours and weigh-in on the topical twitterstorm, What is your lowest ranking lens? run by inkserotica.

What happens to be my lowest ranking lens today? Well, it surprises me to say it is NOT a video showcase, but is actually a travel-related lens of some mysterious place that I would love to visit: Carpathian Mountains -- Border Miles! This lens is actually part of a series of somewhat obscure places that I have on my travel agenda: Ural Mountains -- Border Miles, Carpatho-Ukraine -- Who, What and Where, and Ruthenia! Actually, they are all related in the sense that we are talking about Eastern Europe. I've done a lot of writing about Eastern Europe because of my family genealogy.
High Five to My Bottom Five: [update -- alas, I have deleted these lenses]

• Carpathian Mountains -- Border Miles
• Jaguar Julie Lensography-ography -- My Lensographies
• Damselflies -- Mating is Unusual
• Don't Get Bored -- Get a Board Game
• Listology -- L-I-S-T-O-L-O-G-Y -- List of Jaguar Julie Lenses et. al.

Amazon is a Cool Platform - Cool Modules

Amazon is a Cool Platform - And Makes for Some Cool Modules. One of the coolest Squidoo modules for generating a little sale or two; i.e., royalties, is the Amazon module. A module is a building block that you add to your lens when you create it. I've loved the Amazon module when there was ONLY one of these. As of the writing of this blog, there are now 6 different Amazon modules to select from.

• Amazon -- In this standard module, you can only feature up to 5 products per Amazon module. If you want to feature more products, you will need to add more of these modules.
• Amazon Recommendations -- You can select a category and enter the link or Amazon ASIN and feature up to 5 products in this plexo style module.
• Amazon Spotlight -- Perhaps my favorite Amazon module in which you select one item to promote that makes sense for your lens!
• Amazon MP3 -- I like this module because your visitor can listen to music selections during their visit to your lens and debut music prior to purchasing -- how cool.
• Amazon Search -- I love this Amazon module and will include it to allow my visitors the ability to search Amazon for the products related to my lens topic. You can present search results as 3, 6, or 9 results. Your reader can also use their own search terms to find items on Amazon.
• Amazon Voting (Plexo) -- Feature items from Amazon that your readers can vote up, or vote down if allowed, to show popularity of products. You may want to monitor the links that your readers add to this module!

I'm still studying the effectiveness of these various Amazon modules to identify the better performing module of those offered. Some of the interesting Amazon sales resulting from the use of these modules include the product widgets.

P.S. I was writing this blog post JUST as the payout of royalties on Squidoo was occurring for the month of January 2009. Now that is topical indeed!

Topicability Drink - Starbucks Coffee

The Topicability Drink - Starbucks Coffee vs. Dunkin Donuts vs. Coffee Shops. To know that coffee is topical, look no further than today's SquidU Review email from Kimberly -- Coffee Shops: We want YOU!

What do you think about when you think “coffee shop?” Do you think brick walls covered in abstract art, with the hiss of the espresso machine interrupting delightful chatter? Do you think serene walls in teal and cream, with enormous ceramic cappuccino mugs and oversized chairs that wrap you into their folds while you read? Or do you think of your own local coffee shop, with the chalkboard menu you’ve memorized, coveted internet connection, and regulars that appear like clockwork? -- Kimberly

My Sample Coffee Shop is the lens Squidoo HQ has designed to show you how to start creating your coffee lens for highlighting your very own "java central."

P.S. While you are thinking about it and what you think about Starbucks coffee, why not weigh in on the Hey Monkeybrain debate that I've been hosting at Squidoo. It's STARBUCKS vs. Dunkin' Donuts - Coffee Wars! This debate has been waging for well over a year. It was the FIRST of its kind; now there are a number of similar debates on coffee. To know that coffee is hitting the topicability index, searching Squidoo produces 986 lenses at the minimum. A "Starbucks" search yields 286 lenses; "Starbucks coffee" returned 157 lenses. I predict that number will rise very soon!

Yahoo Overtakes Google as Traffic Generator

There has been an interesting SHIFT in the traffic generators for pulling in readers to Squidoo lenses. Not so long ago, you would expect to see the majority of lens traffic attributable to Google searches. Now, you can clearly see that Yahoo is making up the majority of lens traffic. In this particular pie chart analyzing the make-up of 30 day lens traffic, Yahoo is 47%, Google is 19%, and Referral is 13%.

However, taking a look at the pie chart for the same lens for the previous 7 day traffic, you see that Yahoo is gaining on Google! Yahoo generates a majority of 52% of the traffic while Google has dropped by 2% to 17%! Interestingly, Referral traffic has held steady at the 13%!

In a previous Topicability blog post -- The Topicability of Traffic -- It's Just NOT Enough! -- I presented another pie chart which showed that Google was holding a commanding majority of lens traffic easily exceeding 55%! That doesn't appear to be the case any more!

P.S. Have you participated in the very topical Hey Monkeybrain debate, GOOGLE vs. YAHOO -- Which side are you on? Now is the time to be heard!

The People Who Make My Day

I've been online for more than 12 years, first with free websites and later with several of my own websites. I've sold online through eBay, eCrater, iOffer, and Overstock; and only had an eCrater store until I closed that too. Next, I tackled blogging in 2004 and still manage to do a bit of blogging although not always daily. On March 21, 2006, I joined Squidoo and began my quest toward the Giant Squid 100 Club.

Today, I have authored over 400 lenses and spend many an hour weekly administering to my lenses, groups, and comments -- while also taking time to visit other lensmasters' lenses to offer my advice, encouragement, or to just plain make a thoughtful comment.

Well, I've had my share of some pretty remarkable comments through the past 3 years. Today, I was particularly touched by the comment I received on my Stuffed Cabbage lens. My reader Erin Baxter wrote:

I remember quite clearly the smell of stuffed cabbage floating through the house when I was a child. My family called it Sodoma (I'm not sure of the spelling) and it was my Great Grandma Fox's recipe. She was of Croatian and Slovenian descent. I never liked it but my mother still loves it although she is disabled now and can no longer make it. I am the one preparing it for her now. I put all of the ingredients together in a crock pot but instead of cooking it at my house, I take it to hers and my father and her not only get to enjoy the taste, but they get the aroma as well. Here's my family's secret ingredient - when everything is in the pot and ready to cook, you pour a pan of bacon grease ( what is left in the pan after cooking a lb of bacon) over the top. How unhealthy is that?! But my family swears by it's deliciousness!!! This recipe and other recipes of old world food MUST be passed down from generation to generation! Food is the international language of love! God bless

Join me on Squidoo! Create a lens or two, participate in the community and meet some great people like I have!

Topicability of Numerology - Square Root Day

The Topicability of Numerology - Square Root Day or NOT. Yesterday bore a significance in that it was a memorable day for its numerology. March 3, 2009 = 3/03/09 OR referred to as Square Root Day. I recall seeing a couple of lenses promoting that day; now those would have been an appropriate Lens of the Day [LOTD]! Too bad no one asked me about my opinion for a good LOTD!


Well, today may not be a Square Root Day for me, but I did just notice the MOST curious coincidence when I posted about my dead battery on Twitter. You see, immediately following my Twitter Update, @SquidRich Actually, it's a 1999 yellow roadster as seen here -- "I keep it garaged" dead battery and all > http://blondesthatdiy.blogspot.com/2014/08/best-roadsters-ever.html, I noticed that it was my 1999 update! I actually think that I was hearing the Twilight Zone movie music playing.

Isn't it interesting to note the topicability of numerology on the internet? Just yesterday, @Scobleizer was talking about how cool 66,066 would be for number of followers --> The next person who follows me will be 66066 -- that is a cool number!

P.S. It was because of my car having it's second dead battery that I am sitting here doing this topical blog post!

P.P.S. And, I am now reflecting on a related topic, Chirp, Chirp, Chirp -- How Often Should You Send a Twitter Update?

Competing for the top lensrank

Competing for the top lensrank = earning charity dollars. I've just taken a look at the Top 100 listed lenses in several categories. Some rather surprising lenses -- no, I didn't have the time to visit each and every one of these. In some categories, I'm seeing multiple lenses on the SAME topics -- I personally would like to see more of a variety. And, be a little more topical on the topics; i.e., if holiday related and the holiday is past. ;)

The lure of many a new lensmaster joining Squidoo can probably be chalked up to the enticement of sharing in the thousands of dollars that some lensmasters say they are earning each month. There are plenty of ebooks out there instructing lensmasters how they can earn boatloads of money online. This is a tough economy; people have financial issues and are watching their budgets. I personally wouldn't want to get wealthy at the expense of putting another person in debt. But, that's me.

I'm of the belief that you need to "show me the money" before I believe all those claims about lensmasters or affiliates making thousands of dollars a month. I can believe that some lensmasters are making $100, $200, $300 or possibly $400 per month off their lenses -- but it is becoming less of a viable earning platform when you consider that you are competing with over 850,000 lenses rankling for a lensrank in the Top Tier which might pay $10-$11 for that position. Remember, the Top Tier only encompasses the top 2,000 lenses.

The enticement to join Squidoo has also brought with it some pretty spammy and non-quality lenses, recently referred to as SquidJunk. Well, I don't like spam and I surely don't like junk. Thankfully, there are efforts underway to address the spam and the junk -- thank you!

OK, here is what I propose and I'm sure this will be received with mixed reviews. Change the lensrank tier position royalties to automatically default to charity. Let the lensmaster select which charity or charities they would like to earmark their royalties to benefit. That could be the first step ... how do you feel about this?

Lensrank tanking for some lensmasters

Why is lensrank tanking for some lensmasters? The funniest thing about lensrank -- for some lensmasters lenses, their lensrank is tanking and in the toilet while other lensmasters are NOT experiencing such a tanking. Perhaps it is because of a new algorithm? Or because of more Giant Squids sharing in the wealth? I'm hoping that because I've started blogging more and am taking a look at some topical topics objectively, that there isn't a correlation to this apparent tanking. To be fair, ethical, objective, and evaluated on the same scale across the board -- is that too much to ask?

My THREE year anniversary with Squidoo is one-month away! For me, this is really quite an incredibly long period of time to be involved with one 'project.' I've held the passion and convictions that what I am doing is of value and worthy of my time. During these three years, I have spent COUNTLESS hours working on creating unique lenses, some of which are my 'pride and joy' although one wouldn't be able to tell by lack of a desirable higher lensrank. I've taken lots of grief from my hubby who has asked me way too many times if I was making more than $1.00 per hour with this 'hobby.' Squidoo has given me the opportunity to express myself through my lenses that I've not had the pleasure to experience ANYWHERE else.

In the past three years, I have achieved the 'honors' of Giant Squid, Giant Squid 100 Club, 2008 Giant Squid of the Year, Squid Angel, Lens of the Day three times, and 2008 Best Cooking lens, among a few other nice honors. I have not yet been tapped as a Citizen Squid -- that would have been nice though. I've created over 402 lenses and 6 groups and done my best to be a positive contributor on the forum. Through my private mentoring, I've helped many a lensmaster. Through the power of Squidoo, I've had the distinct pleasure to become online friends with so many wonderful PEOPLE -- people who matter to me ... Hello, you undoubtedly know WHO you are.

Recently, my lenses were HIT by a speed-rater who might have been disgruntled for some reason -- I can't speak for them as I don't know why. HQ was great in helping to remedy MY problem. Thanks Gil. And, thanks to Blake, Corey, Kimberly, Megan, and Seth -- and anyone else that I might have missed.

As Squidoo has exploded and grown to nearly one million lenses, there are a lot of issues to deal with -- how to handle all those bugs in a timely fashion with such a small staff is a top concern. How to handle all those lensmasters with multiple accounts; I'm not going to discuss that here -- I can well understand what I read about this in many a lensmasters' blog. What about non-authentic content; or God forbid plagiarism? What about all those many lenses on the same topics and the same questionable topics? Oh my! What about spam, one stars, locked lenses, being nasty to other lensmasters? That's not good at all. My grandmother Julia Nagy taught me that I should treat others as I would have them treat me; AND, if I didn't have something nice to say, to not say anything at all.

Squid Angels, and others with the power, can only do so much to ding those SPAMMY lenses to move them out of the top tiers so that the deserving lenses have the better lensrank. Squid Angels are human after all.

But, why is lensrank tanking for SOME lensmasters? In the following graphic, you see three columns of numbers which are squidoo lensrank for lenses. In each row, you see the lensrank day #1, day #2, and day #3. The numbers show the progression of lensrank downward in just days for lenses.