Wish, nay, urgent request.

I'd like a response from WA concerning this post please.

I know that this has been brought up many times before and I am sorry for no longer being patient and bringing it up again. In short, I've used your extensions for more than 5 years and have invested in over $900 in your extensions. I am grateful and pleased to still be a customer and don't plan on changing that. However I really implore you to heed this message.

I find myself on your forum pretty much daily using the search feature to try and figure out how to do something or find a resolution to an error. Now I understand that some of this is my fault for not being a better programmer or perhaps I misunderstand some of the documentation but the bottom line is, quite frankly for the most part your documentation lacks substance. I know this for a fact because if it was better, or maybe easier to find, or maybe kept updated and purged as needed, then quite a few of the forum posts wouldn't be needed.

But this post isn't really about the documentation or lack thereof.

I have recently spent more time trying to resolve conflicts with your extensions and searching your forums than I spend actually working for my clients. During all this time spent on your forums I see the same questions and posts over and over and over again and I'm telling you, that if you guys spent just one day, maybe even just put one person on it, to update some stuff in your downloads section, you wouldn't have half as many posts in the forum.

Heck, I'd much rather you spend one day stopping production to do whatever it took to clean up and document that area then answer any new posts or make further progress on extensions as I know in the short and long run we, your customers would benefit more from it.

This is all I am asking, in the Download Center next to the Current Version for example, add a note that says if you own and have Security Assist 2.0.4 installed do not install this. I don't know how many forum posts I see daily that Jason and Ray ask what other extensions are installed and the issues arrive due to old version conflicts. I understand that you don't want to simply remove older versions from the downloads as there may be reasons for them in certain circumstances, but we need to know up front the conflicts. Now you do have something similar on some extensions like Validation Toolkit once you click the download link, but it's lacking on many others. Please get with your support team to discuss all cross extension issues and let us know what those are. And then make them readily available/accessible and in our faces.

While doing this it is also a huge help for those of us that have collected a ton of extensions through the years that may no longer need one because it's now offered in another newer/updated extension. Please note this in the downloads area as well so we can know which extensions we no longer need to have and don't update obsolete extensions and screw up current files.

I'm really tired of renaming my configuration file and removing all 30 of my WA extensions and then installing them again because of undocumented conflicts. Or having to guess which ones I can use and not use together.

I guess what I'm really trying to say is please, before you spend anymore time creating fancy new home pages and discount ads, take some time and work on documentation for your current customers. This should not have to wait on a wishlist. This should be a priority. I've seen all the posts of people wanting refunds because they are frustrated and believe your software doesn't work. You can use documentation to overt most of them and many, many posts in your forums,

Sorry for the rant, but seriously, we all have been asking for something to be done regarding your documentation for a long time, and the truth is, we shouldn't have to.

Thanks

I have forwarded this to our documentation team so they can look into this.

I will second that. The ver knowing which extension is current and if its already included is a nightmare at times. A couple of sections in the download areaCurrent and Past. Or if you can go one better an update manager extension built so it can handle informing us of updates and downloading them and installing them (in the correct order) this is already achieved by another large extension developer so pretty sure you guys could manage it too.

We get informed of updates (current/latest) we then get the option to download and install but its handsfree the extension does it all. This is all smooth and does not lead to issues.

Ray/Jason email if you need more insight.

Regards

Mike

I think that WA have maybe created a bit of a rod for their own back by bundling extensions together (i.e. Validation is available in SA2, Form Builder etc but they are currently different versions!).

I do love the WA extensions, and they save me so much time, but I'd like to see the installs as separate extensions and if you buy CSS Form Builder then you get access to say 3 or 4 extensions in the download manager.

I think that WA are also going through a bit of a transitional phase with their extensions whilst they bring everything in line with the new file structure. I think they will come good but appreciate that it can be frustrating at time when extensions fall over, usually in the middle of a project :-)

Keep the faith.

Cheers
Ian

Thanks Jason.

Perhaps they will read it this time and possible act on it. I'm sure it would help if more long time members agreed and made suggestions as well. An automated system would be great but even if it never went that far and all you did was to add some friggin text listing the uncompatible extensions next to the newer, more popular ones that would save some headaches.

Thanks for listening and for all that you do well, which we do appreciate.

Great feedback!!!

Originally Said By: Jason Byrnes

  I have forwarded this to our documentation team so they can look into this.  

It would also be helpful, in addition to telling us which files have been superseded and should not be installed with newer files, a CHRONOLOGICAL LIST of release dates would be very helpful in the download lists or somewhere. Do you realize how LONG it takes to install or reenable WA extensions??? And then not to know if you should say No To ALL or Yes to ALL for newer/older js files to replace existing ones??? I think part of the problem is that your overlapping extensions use the same js files that others use and so if one is outdated, then you may replace a newer js file with an older one and mess up everything.

However, if we had a chronological release dates list, we could install the extensions in the order of creation, oldest to newest and be able just to say Yes to All.

It took me 10 minutes to disable and reenable HTML Editor today in DW and many times I update DW, it seems I have to reinstall WA extensions. I have 28 active WA extensions. 28 x 10 minutes!!!! Really, this is ridiculous.