Module developers, please read.....

I've been developing websites since 1997 and know my way around html, php, css, mysql. I'm not very familiar with OpenCart but impressed by the the vast range of extra modules. So far, I have installed 6-7, both commercial and free.

However, I am far from impressed by the lack of installation and configuration instructions. Quite the contrary. I'm not completely stupid (my wife may argue that though) but it pisses me off to no limit when I install a module and then have to spend the next half hour to plow through every single instance of the admin interface in the search of a way to handle it.

Please, please, please, please. Understand that most (or even all?) of your customers are far from being OpenCart experts. We're the web devloping guys who perhaps make one single OpenCart installation a year. If you help us utilizing your modules by obvious, clear instructions, it'll be easier for us to sell in OC to our clients. Hence, at the end of the day, you will make more money.

So, for each module you create, also provide an instruction so basic and step-by-step that even my grandmother should be able to follow it.

Thanks!
Dan

That is a good point of view, but in theory all modules does install the very same way in extension>installer and later in extensions>modifications has to be refreshed, and most of them has settings panel under extensions>extensions in a modules or other list. Also you are allways welcome to email a developer and ask a question where maybe some settings missing:)

I do agree that readmes would save also our developer time but this is not an "iphones" where you wrote one user warranty or terms page and it fits to all. it cant even work the same readme for the very same module as with time as opencart evolves evolving and modules , the very same modules get new features added:) so you can imagine if you have 100-200 modules ... Upgrading modules from 2.x to 3.x already takes time , upgrading and testing a module on any version takes time. and imagine where we would end up if we start writting a readme files how to install and use every single module.

Just my point of view:)

With all due respect, but that's BS.

It all boils down to a pretty obvious question: do you want your extension to be used or not. If you don't care whether people use it or not, then fine and don't provide info. If you want people to use your extension, then do.

I'm not God's gift to web development, far from it. But as I wrote before, I've been in the business for over 20 years and if I can't understand how to use en extension, regardless how much I try and try to understand the (often) incomprehensive instruction, then the guys who made it are at fault.

What happens is that I just delete and try something else.

Anyone doing business knows this. If users don't understand how to use your product, you're gone. It doesn't matter how fantastic it is. You lose.

Cheers

D3MO wrote: ↑

Wed Aug 08, 2018 4:03 am

That is a good point of view, but ...

YES, YES, a thousand times YES.

If you want to sell your extensions and make a buck or two, at least make useable instructions for not only the installation - but also how do to find the dang thing after it's installed.

Building your download zip accurately isn't a bad idea either.