Is Sporcle publishing TOO much?

[Chenchilla]

I am probably not the only person for which this has happened, but early today, a quiz of mine was published (thanks, HQ). Unfortunately, by the end of the day, or at least as of now, it has already been pushed out of the even more quizzes section. At first, when I couldn't find my quiz on the home page, I thought that my quiz had been retracted of publishment, but upon further investigation, I soon realized that all four of the games in the even more games section were published from earlier in the day; in fifteen or so hours my quiz was on and then off the home page.

Admittedly, it was not the most favorite quiz of mine, and I am already so fortunate to receive the number of published quizzes I have, so I don't complain, but I can foresee this being very discouraging to newer users. The relegation off the home page in so quick a time can seriously stunt the popularity of the quiz. The newer users may be extremely disappointed that their quiz got so little limelight, especially if it was a first publish.

The way I see it, Sporcle has definitely been publishing more quizzes per day than in the past, and with the new system of the even more games, many quizzes disappear very quickly. Yet just two weeks ago or so, quizzes in the even more games section stayed on there for almost 2 and a half days, with about two quizzes being put in that even more section per day. Today it was at least 5.

Is today just a strong outlier? Is it because the SIA Puzzle Hunt is going on right now? Do you think the 'even more games' section should be expanded? Do you think that quizzes overall are getting less attention due to the increased number of published quizzes? What are your opinions?

[El_Dandy]

I have a similar concern -- Sporcle published one of my quizzes a few days ago (also thanks) -- my Top Billboard Albums of the 80s quiz. It got moved to Even More Games that same day and then disappeared entirely. I assumed it would still be visible in the published quizzes for that day once it got removed from 'even more games,' but yeah...poof.

Mind you, I'm not complaining...Sporcle has been very good to me and published me a bunch, but the disappearing act when quizzes get moved to 'Even More' stinks.

And I do think published quizzes are getting less attention, but I don't think it's the number of quizzes being published daily. I don't know what it is, though.

[Librarysquirrel]

I am not sure exactly how it works, but I was under the impression that quizzes shuffled. I believe I've seen quizzes at one point in the day being in the More Games only later to see them featured and vice versa.  Not sure how things have changed with so many changes going on.  Still, I think appearing on the categories does a lot to drive traffic as well.  I've noticed in particular editors or curators not picking anything for a while, then picking 2 or so in a day.  I think it would help drive traffic to those picks if they are spread out.  Maybe schedules have something to do with it.  But if nothing is picked for a while, then there are two at once, the first pick probably won't get as much traffic as the newest pick.  I think I've seen this on a couple of occasions.  I'm sure many don't scroll down beyond the latest pick.

[Quizmaster91]

@Librarysquirrel: Yes, the quizzes do shuffle, I've seen quizzes that were previously in 'today's quizzes' be moved to 'even more' and vice versa. However, that still means that quizzes that are unlucky enough to be in the 'even more' section at the end of the day remain there until they are pushed off by new quizzes, usually the day after. For the quizmaker, this stinks big time, because instead of a whole week on the main page, like 'genuine' publishes get, they get only 1, 2 or max 3 days to shine. And I say this as someone who hasn't had this happen to me. But also from a quiz playing point of view it sucks. I sometimes miss a day or two, especially in weekends (I know, shame on me for trying to have a social life). Still, I want to play ALL the games that are published by Sporcle (as long as they appeal to me). But that's often not possible since there were quizzes on the 'even more' section that have been pushed off already. I know that this has happened at least once since it happened to a puzzle hunt quiz a few days back, and I'm certain it must have been published like all the other parts. Luckily I could find it through SIA's page.
For me it's not a problem of Sporcle publishing too many quizzes; the more the merrier. Instead, it's a problem of a wrong way to show the 'even more' section. I'd prefer it if every day on the main page would have their 4 or 5 main games with four additional 'even more' quizzes. That way, 'even more' quizzes would be treated the same as normal quizzes and they would get exposure for just as long (a bit like how it was some time ago). This would not only be more fun for quiz players and creators, but possibly also better for Sporcle itself (because someone like me would be able to play more previously published games, which means more page views for Sporcle).

[iglew]

I think it's fine that publishes move more quickly than they used to.

Maybe each published quiz gets fewer plays, but there are more published quizzes, so overall it's the same amount of exposure.  If today 10 quizzes get 4,000 plays each where a few years ago 4 quizzes would get 10,000 plays each, I think that's an improvement.

For me, a big significance of the publish is not just that it sits on the front page for a while, but it's also that it is now officially approved by Sporcle and will thus show up differently in various pages, be included for random challenges from the computer, etc.  In that sense, the more quizzes that Sporcle chooses to "publish" the better (assuming the increased pace doesn't compromise their standards).

Also, I would think that faster turnaround on the front page will make casual visitors more likely to come back more often.  If they expect the same quizzes to sit there all day, someone might visit once and then decide not to come back again until tomorrow.

For Quizmaster91 and other who share the goal of "I want to play ALL the games that are published by Sporcle", I would suggest you forget about the front page and just use the new "unplayed quizzes" feature.  Just keep playing off of there until there's nothing left!

[Geo1]

Back in my day there were never 6 quizzes published in a day! 

Over time the amount of quizzes published increased, yes. Not a bad thing since it accommodates those who prefer to just browse through the home page, though a limit wouldn't be unreasonable.

[Quizmaster91]

@iglew: I've done that in the past. It's a good option, but there's one problem with the unplayed category. It's flooded with popular quizzes on subjects I don't care about (American sports, Harry Potter, etc). This can in part be remedied by selecting a category, but this doesn't always work (for instance for my favorite two categories, JFF and Miscellaneous). Most Sporcle categories consist of both subjects I like and subjects I don't like. Which is why the front page is so practical for me. Besides, playing only front page quizzes limits my Sporcle time, which is good for me.

[AdmiralMaxtreme]

If you go to the Stats page on your profile and select Unplayed, you can view every unplayed quiz, rather than just fifteen at a time.