Please provide a sticky post at forum for download links and cookbook links

[Raindrops]

Currently, there is only ONE announcement thread in the Everything 1.5 forum. This page provides useful links such as download links, help doc and list of changes. The user is redirected to more detailed pages from here.

But the user is never told that after downloading the "plain vanilla" version of Everything, he can soup it up by downloading extensions (plugins) and importable settings (e.g. bookmarks created by other users).

For example,
1. a user (zonetrooperex) has created a fantastic menu of bookmarks.
2. The page that lists Third-party plugins
3. NotNull has started a compilation of cookbook recipes.

The user remains unaware of such information because this information lies scattered in the forum.

To make this really discoverable, such links should be provided just below the download link; and also on the help page.

[NotNull]

That is what the "Greatest Hits" thread is for: to gather the most useful information, so it can be reorganized in a meaningful way.

As far as Everything 1.5 is concerned: it is in alpha stage. As with all alpha/beta versions: it is work in progress and requires a certain amount of self-sufficiency (with help available on the forum).

[Raindrops]

I have already listed "Greatest hits" in my examples (#3).
(By mistake I had mentioned Horst's name as initiator. I have corrected that.)

But the point is that all such links remain buried in the forum, and a user cannot find them easily.
The only way to lead a user to these resources is to provide links on the download page and also in the help doc system.

I call this the support environment, and it has nothing to do with the maturity of Everything.
It can help a user now, and it will help him equally well when 1.5 alpha matures into a stable software.

[NotNull]

OK, I'll try again ...

The " Greatest Hits" thread is not a "compilation of cookbook recipes" as you stated.
It is a place to post (links to) useful forum threads and discussions.
That information will be reorganized and made into a useful piece of information.
All that so in the future the following is no longer an issue:

The user remains unaware of such information because this information lies scattered in the forum.

So: post your useful/interesting forum threads over there. That will help with the Everything documentation.

I call this the support environment, and it has nothing to do with the maturity of Everything.

I think the Everything documentation is very good. Just very 'matter-of-fact' with less spoon-feeding than with big-tech applications with thousands of employees.
If the current documentation (including forum search) is insufficient for you and you still have aproblem, just ask your question in the forum. Almost 100% of the problems get solved.
In my opinion that is a very good "support environment".


You should keep making suggestionss in this respect (very welcome!), but don't expect that they get the highest priority all the time. At least not in this stage of development.

[Raindrops]

Thanks for the clarification!

Yes, there's a big difference between "cookbook recipes" and "pointers to useful threads, so that they can be included in the help doc".
So this thread is indeed in the direction I suggested.
------
I really don't have any comment to make about the "support environment".

Yes, the forum is extremely responsive: We get immediate help.
Yes, it has a great compilation of help topics.

That said, all power users would like to know how to soup up his plain vanilla installation of Everything.
My only suggestion was to let him readily discover links to list of additional resources.
In other words, the download page and help doc page should have these links.

And these links are needed for the users of the alpha version also.

I only want to make that limited point.

Cheers!

[void]

I've added a Help link to the main Everything page.

I've added a Stickied Threads link to the Everything 1.5 help page.

I've stickied some of the mentioned threads.
Please let me know if you would like to see a particular thread stickied.

Thank you for the suggestions.

[Raindrops]

Thanks for the prompt response!

However, I still don't see the help I had in mind: Even with these changes, the user is still shown the whole forum.
He still has to search around.

I had imagined a much more distilled help: A single consolidated list that shows the user how to customize and soup up his "plain vanilla" installation.

Secondly, there's the question of when this help is presented to him.
The right moment arrives when the user has just finished his installation.

At this time, Everything should show him a focused list that takes him to the following resources directly:
1. A master list of plugins/extensions
2. A master list of user-contributed themes
3. A master list of bookmarks (search presets)
4. Any other things that extend the functionality of Everything

I am beginning to think that taking him to the forum may not serve this purpose.
The following tricks may better serve this purpose:

• A "first-time use help" wizard.
  This installation wizard will have multiple screens.
  Each screen shows him a different category of resource.
• An additional Help > Customization menu option.
• A small "tips" window that pops up whenever the software is launched.
  It shows one tip at a time.
  This fascinates the user, who keeps clicking the "next" button to see more tips.
  The resource links can be placed at the very top of the tips list.

[void]

Everything 1.5.0.1337a will now show the Everything 1.5 help page when pressing F1 or clicking Help -> Everything Help.

The Everything support wiki will be updated for Everything 1.5 when closer to release.

I will consider using Mediawiki for user created help content.



The Everything support wiki will eventually cover plugins, themes, bookmarks and customization.

I will consider a first-time use wizard, help -> Customization menu and tips.
Thank you for the suggestions.