Resource Manager not noticed or understood

[Morgain]

I've been noticing a steady stream of newcomers who either don't notice the Resources tab, or don't understand what it is.
If they don't notice it they ask a lot about possible functions which are often done by addons. So a lot of newcomer support consists of a) telling them the Resource Manager exists, and b) suggesting addons in it they might find useful.

Suggesting addons in it they might find useful is a useful and probably unavoidable newcomer support task (which I tried to help via my Addons tutorial).
But telling people the Resources Manager exists, what it does, and to "click Resources on the top navbar" gets repetitive after a while. OK support work is repetitive on many things. I just wondered if the XF welcome statements could include a one line ref. to addons and the RM and "click Resources on the top navbar."

Also place this info in the Customer Area desktop?

Addons and how XF handles them are a major part of XF sexiness after all.

 

[Lisa]

Have you got links to this steady stream? I've only seen one thread asking about it and he figured it out in three posts.

 

[Morgain]

Have you got links to this steady stream? I've only seen one thread asking about it and he figured it out in three posts.

No I have not counted or collected. Just noticed how I often end up typing that same info for newcomers' benefit.

 

[Lisa]

No I have not counted or collected. Just noticed how I often end up typing that same info for newcomers' benefit.

Well if you've not counted then how you can you claim it's a steady stream?

 

[Shelley]

No I have not counted or collected. Just noticed how I often end up typing that same info for newcomers' benefit.

We can safely say the majority of the time the reason you have to post it is because you do this willingly rather than the user actually needing or asking.

 

[Morgain]

Oh Azhria I expect I'm completely delusional, have no capacity to notice that I type this about twice a week, and i'm the kind of crazy person who makes things up just to waste my own time and others.

 

[Lisa]

Oh Azhria I expect I'm completely delusional, have no capacity to notice that I type this about twice a week, and i'm the kind of crazy person who makes things up just to waste my own time and others.

I never said you were delusional.. I just asked where the steady stream was. But if you want to get all defensive about a genuine request (made out of curiosity since I haven't noticed this steady stream) then that's not really a concern of mine and I'll happily leave you to "waste your own time and others" - don't forget.. those are your words, not mine.

 

[Shelley]

Oh Azhria I expect I'm completely delusional, have no capacity to notice that I type this about twice a week, and i'm the kind of crazy person who makes things up just to waste my own time and others.

I'd like to see this steady stream also.

 

[Morgain]

We can safely say the majority of the time the reason you have to post it is because you do this willingly rather than the user actually needing or asking.

Yes I do it willingly. No problem.

No the user is not asking where are the addons because they dont know addons are stored on this site. That is an XF genius.
They ask 'How can I do X' and we tell them it's an addon which they can get from the Resource Manager, which is located under the Resources tab on the top navbar.

It seems quite important that newcomers do not know that addons are stored here or where.
Especially as this is so convenient for them, and such a significant part of XF's USP.

It would be even more convenient for newcomers if they could have this RM info as their newcomer basic advice. Like where to find the Manual - which they also often don't know about, and where the RM is and what it is.

 

[Morgain]

I never said you were delusional.. I just asked where the steady stream was. But if you want to get all defensive

Not at all. I was being quite merry and playful. Today is a good day.

I'd like to see this steady stream also.

Now Shelley you often say you don't believe in spoon feeding. I do, if it's newcomers but I'm not going to tell an elderly veteran like you how to find stuff here.

Now girls could we just let this thread be about whether it's a nice idea to give some useful info to newcomers or not.

 

[Mike]

Now girls could we just let this thread be about whether it's a nice idea to give some useful info to newcomers or not.

Yes please. Further posts on that will be deleted. If you don't like the suggestion, fine. I recommend that if you don't like it, you leave the thread...

Let's just make this clear: non productive posts aren't welcome.

 

[Ingenious]

It's very hard to look at a community with the fresh eyes of a newcomer, so people will wonder what the difficulty here is, but the point is a valid one, "Resources" does not exactly spell out what a useful place it is for mods, add-ons and tutorials, but I cannot think of a better way to word it. So I agree with the suggestion that catering to the lowest common denominator (a potential or new customer with no experience) and having something more obvious pointing or linking to it would be good. Ideally, if not a notice, then a welcome email or PM to new users here with a bullet point of tips and useful links.

 

[Deepmartini]

Maybe renaming the resources tab to "addons" might work? Resources is sort of a generic descriptor. or make a hover description popup that explains it? Can we add tooltips tp menu items?

 

[Morgain]

Maybe renaming the resources tab to "addons" might work? Resources is sort of a generic descriptor. or make a hover description popup that explains it? Can we add tooltips tp menu items?

Deep hi - I think renaming the tab is a bit risky - people tend to dislike such big change of fundamental navig. look what happened re changing What's On! But of course sometimes such change is justified, it's just my vote is caution on this.
"Addons" is a name specific to XF - known confusingly but commonly as mods elsewhere? Anyway not a standadrised name.
I think tooltips is a great idea.
For all we know there already is a Notice for newcomers - we wouldnt see it. If there is yes I think the RM deserves inclusion as a big community resource, together with the Manual - which Brogan and others often point out and gets overlooked.

... something more obvious pointing or linking to it would be good. Ideally, if not a notice, then a welcome email or PM to new users here with a bullet point of tips and useful links.

Yes I think a welcome email with a reference list of resources - Manual, RM, Tickets, selected forums.

 

[Renegade]

Perhaps a forum sidebar widget with RM statistics and custom text explaining what it is will be of help.

 

[Shelley]

Maybe renaming the resources tab to "addons" might work? Resources is sort of a generic descriptor. or make a hover description popup that explains it? Can we add tooltips tp menu items?

That wouldn't work since there are more than just "add-ons" people offer and submit collectively known as resources so add-ons or the term "add-on" wouldn't work. The term needs to be generic (as it is now) which works perfectly fine. Anther solution is required I feel.

 

[erich37]

make a separate "Recent Activity"-Tab for "Resources" only.
In order to differentiate the RM-activity from the other activity and thereby making the activity which is happening at the RM more outstanding.

Which in turn will increase "visibility" of what is going on at the RM and therefore users will notice and been given a better understanding of what the RM is and what is happening at the RM.....

http://xenforo.com/community/threads/tabs-for-recent-activity.51552/#post-555827

 

[Lisa]

I think adding a sidebar block showing the latest resources could help with this (it's something I suggested a little while ago )

 

[Mike Edge]

I think adding a sidebar block showing the latest resources could help with this (it's something I suggested a little while ago )

Yeap, would like to see latest and most popular add-ons and styles. Just like vB org does

 

[imno007]

I think something simple like just listing "Modifications/Addon's" and "Styles" in the Resources submenu might be helpful. It's not going to take most people long to get around to clicking Resources to see what it's about, but they'll probably only do that after first looking for addon's and styles specifically, including perhaps searching for them on the forums.

But anyway, to be honest, I think a lot of people probably have searched the addon's before asking such questions, but they're often not getting the search results they're expecting, either because the developers are naming their addon's something other than what the searchers are expecting - which sometimes has to do with Xenforo using "unconventional" naming conventions ("nodes" for forums being a good example) - and sometimes it's because the features they're looking for are buried within larger more general purpose addon's, like some of the widget packages. So don't get your hopes up that there will be a sudden significant decease in such questions.