Tutorials To Create Next - Feedback Needed

[rob]

We've already put together a fair number of tutorials that cover a lot of the core functionality of Realm Works. And we have more tutorials planned. But the big problem we face is that work on new tutorials is in direct competition with work on new product features, since it's members of the dev team that are creating the tutorials. So it would be extremely helpful for us to get your feedback on what tutorials to work on next.

To that end, please let us know what aspects of the product you feel would be most valuable for us to create first. If you agree with suggestions already made in earlier posts in the thread, please chime in with your agreement. This is an informal poll that will help us determine which tutorials to do in what order. The number of votes for a particular tutorial subject will be important.

Thanks in advance for your feedback!

[monsterfurby]

I'm a huge fan of trial and error, and usually not a manual/tutorial person. Of course, I'm not (yet) an expert on the software, but I think that beyond the basic functionality, it would be great to go one step further and explain some "best practices" and your thoughts behind certain mechanics to help people get the most out of them.

For example:
* How to get the most out of Tags (what they can be used for, i.e. sorting and searching by tags, example situations such as "I need an NPC who would be willing to betray the PCs, let's look at who we have with the Selfish tag...")

* What to consider when localizing database items to another language (i.e. hiding the English original database entries etc.)

* Category design, do's and dont's (Sure, this is a matter of personal style, but this could be an opportunity to get some user feedback and incorporate that into a listing of possible approaches similar to the world building video)

You see where I'm going with this - there are probably billions of other possibilities as well.

[CassusAevum]

I would almost rather have a FAQ (on use, not "what is the program") as opposed to a tutorial. There are some basic things that I ran into that would have been very quickly resolved via FAQ.

1. How do you create a tree directory (i.e. changing the "show containing hierarchy setting")

2. What data type should I use / does data type matter? (I understand that different data types result in different storage allotments in the database, but that's opaque to the user. How can I get the most out of data types?)

3. How do I re-scan for new linkages (i.e. I create Thing 1, which references Thing 2, not yet created. I then create Thing 2. How do I get Thing 1 to link again... and is there a way to do it on a large scale, and not by the onesie?)

For a more in-depth tutorial, I'd like to see something around how containers, relationships, content links, governed content, and tags all work together (assuming they do) and how to get the most out of them during both realm creation and game play.

[AEIOU]

Quests, Scenes, Incidents, Storyboards, Plots, Maps, World Reveal and how they all work together to form a setting or episode. Include a wide variety of examples like sci-fi exploration, dungeon crawl, buccaneer adventure and murder mystery that use the mechanics in different ways.

Provide step-by-step flow diagrams of different ways to approach data entry. The sheer amount of data that most people will want to input will be overwhelming to most. Having some guidance would alleviate a lot of anxiety.

[EightBitz]

Originally Posted by AEIOU

Quests, Scenes, Incidents, Storyboards, Plots, Maps, World Reveal and how they all work together to form a setting or episode. Include a wide variety of examples like sci-fi exploration, dungeon crawl, buccaneer adventure and murder mystery that use the mechanics in different ways.

Provide step-by-step flow diagrams of different ways to approach data entry. The sheer amount of data that most people will want to input will be overwhelming to most. Having some guidance would alleviate a lot of anxiety.

This.

Entering and linking all the data is great, but then what? If I create a realm for a one-off, the answer seems pretty easy. Everything in the realm exists to serve one adventure. But if I build a world with a structure that can yield many adventures in an ongoing campaign, how do I manage the mechanics of a single adventure in a larger world?

I have some ideas that combine the uses of plots, quests and containers, but it would be nice to see an official tutorial.

[ryntak4536]

Originally Posted by CassusAevum

3. How do I re-scan for new linkages (i.e. I create Thing 1, which references Thing 2, not yet created. I then create Thing 2. How do I get Thing 1 to link again... and is there a way to do it on a large scale, and not by the onesie?)

I second this!

[rogue_jm]

like many I eagerly awaited Realm Works and brought it the day it went on sale. I found the tutorials covered the basics nicely, and am happy with the "how to". What I am more interested in at the moment is the structure. Due to the flexibility of Realm Works this allows a wide array of structures, with some working better for varying users. I have found looking at what few screenshots are around by various users is helping more to define my preferred style. What I would really like to see before more tutorials is a wider array of these screenshots showing how others are using, and especially hoe Lone Wolf are using personally and for planned future public releases/sales. Knowing some details how these structures are going to be applied to commercial products will shape how I use it. From what I have seen across the boards I believe this would assist many of us not going gung-ho in getting vast amounts of data in place that then may clash with official products down the track.

[ryntak4536]

I saw this on another thread in here somewhere, but it was an excellent idea:

I'd love to see a tutorial of a completed realm (or part thereof) being used by a GM in actual game play. Using it to update his group as to game status at the beginning, running through a game session wherein he/she uses some or all of the features (showing maps/images to players, showing relations, etc).

This would be EXCELLENT!

[kbs666]

Originally Posted by CassusAevum

3. How do I re-scan for new linkages (i.e. I create Thing 1, which references Thing 2, not yet created. I then create Thing 2. How do I get Thing 1 to link again... and is there a way to do it on a large scale, and not by the onesie?)

https://www.youtube.com/edit?o=U&video_id=Og89ey9f8UI

[mirtos]

considering the amount of time needed to create that many tutorials, and the amount of features that we've requested, i would say opt for more CassusAevum's option.

In this case, I think breadth is more important than depth.