and, as has happened frequently in the past, it is absent from the extras section of the left sidebar, even after wasting time scrolling down the list, restarting DevonThink. If this happened only from time to time, on occasion, I would not write this post. It’s a constant recurrent problem.
The alternative to the Extras section of the left sidebar is to read “Working with Tags” in Help → Tutorials, which I find terrible because the user is asked to navigate through a series of mini windows. It’s so irritating that I did not bother readings your Extra about tags.
I wonder how many users end up not reading new extras because of all these problems.
I want to be able to read in PDF format your Extras (which are very well written and very informative), make annotations and save to a DevonThink group.
What I would like:
that the extras you promote appear in extras in the sidebar.
that you provide Extras in an easy to convert to PDF format
a library of current and past extras in PDF format would be ideal
Yes, you are right, it seems there is no way to search there, but theoretically, all of those things get integrated in DT. You can go the scripts menu, etc.
As noted in another thread, this particular extra isn’t yet showing up in Tips & Tricks, so for now has to be accessed in its other form via Help => Tutorials. But normally they do appear in the Extras at the same time as they drop as tutorials.
Im wondering how something that’s free and useful can be “a source of frustration”. Even if it’s not available in your preferred format (to which you can easily convert, btw), it is still free and useful.
In my book, frustration is caused by other circumstances.
There are many examples in which something free, useful, or both, causes frustration to people who are supposed to benefit from it. Aid to underdeveloped regions cause frustration. New government information websites in China, with their horrible UI and zero usability, cause frustration.
Hidden costs can be hard to see with foresight. And they often cannot be valued in dollars. UI issues mean that people spend more time scratching their heads, and less time for productive work. Social, political and economic problems with developmental aids are well documented. When the user/receiver perceives high hidden costs, frustration is felt.
Frustration is a subjective feeling. Its honest expression in a social setting helps the community sort things out. Gatekeeping feelings, therefore, is often counterproductive.
While I understand and agree with most of your points… The title chosen by the OP implies that the “Extras” have no value but only cause frustration.
Which makes no sense: If they have no value, there’s no reason to complain, one can simply ignore them. If they do have value, then they can’t be a constant (!) source of frustration.
The extras are something that is offered, not an obligation. So, recognizing the effort might be a nicer attitude than complaining about perceived shortcomings. Telling someone that their work causes only frustration and irritation is not motivating.
Well, your opinion is not shared by all of us. Extras are an interruption and self-promotion imposed on the customer (sometimes short-sightedly called a “user”). Just as you’ve advised that Extras can be ignored, so can you disregard the expression of opinions instead of trying to police them.
Extras are an interruption and self-promotion imposed on the customer (sometimes short-sightedly called a “user”).
This is also rightly called “an opinion”, and yes, you may choose to ignore the Extras if you wish.
Extras are not a vehicle for “self-promotion”. In fact, we had people asking for such a place to see activity from our site, including tips from the blog (almost 200 now!), new extras to install, recent releases, and obviously what sales or promotions may be running. In fact, any self-promotion is the smallest part of the entire sidebar.
Any interruptions can be silenced in the system’s Notification settings, also as you wish.
This “nicer” attitude is deeply ingrained in Chinese culture. Many of the educated Chinese see it as a major reason the Chinese government, both the current and the historical ones, never seems to realize what has gone wrong. What could be wrong if no one complains at all?
And yes, traditional Chinese culture gatekeeps feelings; Confucius’s ideal state is essentially one in which everyone is a really “nice” guy. Consequently, China as a culture has been suffering from a lack of diversity for 2,000 years.
The point I would like to make is that a community needs complaining people as much as it needs nice people. The former for the potential of change, and the latter for niceties that lubricate everyday transactions. Even better, someone could complain in a nice way, as the OP of this post have done.
Respectful disagreements are one of my favorite parts of online communities. DT has such a wide variety of uses that it attracts passionate, intelligent people. This forum is often a gold example of proper discourse.
Each person or side has an opinion, shares their reasons for such, and (this is the key) respectfully listens to the other person’s opinion AND is willing to accept their view as a valid data point to possibly adjust their own opinion or at least accept the viewpoint as valid if a threshold of validity is met.
Some people you can’t reason with, and it’s good to learn that sooner than later. As my grandmother said “Don’t wrestle with a pig, you’ll get dirty and the pig likes it” or “don’t argue with ignorant people, they’ll pull you down to their level and beat you with experience”.
Thanks for the kind words regarding the decorum found here. (I almost typed ‘decorum of our forum’ then cringed and avoided it )
Our rule is simple: Be thoughtful and civil.
This is not the place for ad hominem attacks. It’s also not the place for profanity-laden tirades (but a blue word spoken in passion or frustration isn’t the end of the world either). Express opinions and disagree as you all must, but you’re expected to show the same courtesy to others, allowing them to speak and even disagree in return.
We are fortunate to have the participants we have. With all our personalities and eccentricities, viewpoints and experiences, it’s indeed a rich and often illuminating place to discuss all things DEVONtech (and plenty of tangents as well!)
And the Extras sidebar doesn’t come up often so it’s good to hear views.
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