Comments on: Taking (Yet) Another Look at the Hub

By: cthulu93

cthulu93 — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 15:25:10 +0000

That’s kind of what I was getting at,the ppl that used to hang-out in Central Plaza are hanging out in other areas while the Hub is full of ppl that are totally new to Home.I didn’t mean to infer the Hub was a ghost town just that the interesting ppl I used to run into in CP aren’t hanging out in the Hub.

By: ted2112

ted2112 — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 14:02:33 +0000

I love your airport analogy! The new hub totally reminds me of Orlando International Airport, a big white building with glass ceilings,stores and a subway/tram thing. The new hub, like the airport in Orlando is kind of a place you pass through to get to better places.

By: Kassadee Marie

Kassadee Marie — Mon, 19 Dec 2011 01:29:11 +0000

I’m amazed when it’s said that people don’t congregate in the Hub. Whenever I’m there (as little as possible now) it’s crowded, mostly with noobs. The dance “floor” always seems packed. If every felt a desire to be trolled, that’s where I would go.

By: julie_love

julie_love — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 20:49:29 +0000

Good analysis Gideon. I liked the design of The Hub when I first saw it, but after a couple of months I really miss the warm and welcoming Central Plaza.

For the first few weeks after The Hub rolled out I found myself thinking that I wanted to go to CP, then remembered that it wasn’t there.

I think we need a central location that is more warm and welcoming and gives Home the feeling of a small town.

By: Burbie52

Burbie52 — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 14:07:52 +0000

I think the Hub is truly meant to be only a place to pass through to other spaces. Like has been mentioned before in articles it makes you feel like it is a focal point not a staying point. I agree with your assessment that it has a very sterile non -- Homey feel to it, and I truly only go there if I see a friend hanging out to talk.
An outdoor Hub might have been a better choice, like the ones that EU and Japan got, they are larger and more welcoming than ours, and still have many direct connections to the other areas rather than an elevator. But since we have this I guess we need to take it as it is and move on, which I guess is Sony’s point.

By: cthulu93

cthulu93 — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 13:40:32 +0000

I agree about the sterile feeling,I’ve seen hospital operating rooms that had more personality to them,and with the questionable removal of the Listen@Home function.It seems as if they intentionally created the Hub to be nothing more than an entryway to other rooms of Home while Central Plaza seemed more like a living room unto itself.Basically what this has done,IMO,is taken the crowd of ppl that used to congregate in one place and forced them to split up and congregate in different areas according to each individuals tastes.Is this necessarily a bad thing for Home as a whole?I’m not sure but from a community building standpoint it seems like Sony built up the suburbs at the expense of their Main Street.The truth is,since we’ve been able to shop through our navigators I haven’t understood the need for storefronts or the mall spaces at all.I realize some ppl hangout at the mall and maybe there are good reasons for that but Idk what they are.I’d be quite comfy with navigator access to stores being the only access to them which would free up some acreage for other things,both in the Hub and in the spots where the malls floors are.I’m just not sure having all these access points creates anymore sales than if the navigator were the only way to get in the stores.In short the Hub has the feeling of a policeperson telling me to “move along nothing to see here folks” whereas the Central Plaza had the feeling of a pleasant gathering place,again IMO only.

By: Kid Fleetfoot

Kid Fleetfoot — Sun, 18 Dec 2011 06:22:45 +0000

The Hub looks to citified for me (not that I know that much about the city).
I expect I’ll get used to it though. Sometimes change takes time. Maybe if I pretend it’s science fiction? (I wonder what a city shopping hub really looks like.)