WoW Insiderhttp://wow.joystiq.comWoW Insiderhttp://wow.joystiq.com/media/feedlogo.gifWoW Insiderhttp://wow.joystiq.comen-usCopyright 2015 Weblogs, Inc. The contents of this feed are available for non-commercial use only.Blogsmith http://www.blogsmith.com/WoW Insider ShowEvery week, the WoW Insider Show brings you news and views from the World of Warcraft and the site that covers it all, WoW Insider. We introduce a panel of rotating guests, including bloggers from WoW Insider and other WoW blogs, and many popular personalities from around the WoW community. From the live listener chat and polls during the show, to the emails direct from listeners (reach us at theshow@wow.com), right on to the "meat" of the show -- in-depth discussion of the most popular news and posts on WoW Insider -- the WoW Insider Show is a terrific source of news and entertainment about what's going on with Blizzard and their World of Warcraft. Listen live every Saturday at 3:30 pm Eastern on our Ustream page (http://www.ustream.tv/channel/wow-insider-show) or subscribe to the feed and let us know what you think by reviewing the show right here in iTunes.Addon Spotlight: Macros, macros, macroshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2014/01/28/addon-spotlight-macros-macros-macros/http://wow.joystiq.com/2014/01/28/addon-spotlight-macros-macros-macros/http://wow.joystiq.com/2014/01/28/addon-spotlight-macros-macros-macros/#commentsFiled under:

Macros. They're great. For certain classes and gameplay elements they're almost required, and for many others they're terribly useful. Macros can do things like create a keybind that fires your damage mitigation cooldowns and uses a healthstone. Perhaps you want to stop casting whenever you hit your interrupt? No problem. They can allow you to use modifiers to cast your abilities on your focus instead of your target, or to use all your damage increasing cooldowns at once. But the macro interface, as one of WoW's older ones, leaves a little to be desired.

Therefore, today, we're looking at addons that make macros easier, particularly those that generate more space for their use. As you can see from the above, you don't get much from the default system. So let's get started with one addon whose whole purpose is to give you a bit more room to play with.


BindPad

BindPad is an addon designed to give you space, both on your action bars and in your macro pane. What it does is really pretty simple, so I'm not going to allot it a ton of space for explanation. Downloading and installing it is really pretty much the only setup that you need, there are no real settings for this addon. Once you have it up and running, type /bindpad or /bp into the chat to open it up and you'll be presented with a window. As an aside, I couldn't get it to generate a button in the macro window, which might be a great addition.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Macros, macros, macros

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Macros, macros, macros originally appeared on WoW Insider on Tue, 28 Jan 2014 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsbindpadfeaturedguidemacro-addonmacro-addonsmacro-toolkitmacrobankMTargetwow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceTue, 28 Jan 2014 16:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Reforging and gear optimization addonshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/10/01/addon-spotlight-reforging-and-gear-optimization-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/10/01/addon-spotlight-reforging-and-gear-optimization-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/10/01/addon-spotlight-reforging-and-gear-optimization-addons/#commentsFiled under:

Addon Spotlight Reforging and gear optimization addons
You all know the score. Siege of Orgrimmar is here, the Timeless Isle has been up for a few weeks, and gear is dropping like rain. But getting that drop you need isn't the end of the road for gearing, no, far from it in fact. Your work is only just beginning. Once you've got your hands on that upgrade (and, of course, actually ascertained that it is an upgrade at all) you will need to enchant it, gem it, reforge it, and consider whether to upgrade it. With the reduced cost of upgrades now, it's a far less significant decision, but nonetheless it is one that you'll have to make.

But fear not, friends! There are tools out there that will make your lives considerably easier.

Ask Mr Robot

What? Olivia, you nincompoop, Ask Mr Robot isn't an addon, it's a website! Silly brits, always mixing everything up. But you're wrong, since January 10th, there has been a great little addon that tags along with the well-known and widely used website. And since 5.4 dropped, it's started bringing the site's robotic advice straight to your characters in-game! So how does it work? It's very, very easy. Head over to askmrrobot.com, and load up your character details. You'll need to choose a region, as well as a server, and type in your name. Pretty easy so far? You'll need to be logged out on the character in question and Mr Robot will pull down all your gear data from the armory. Since you asked so nicely.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Reforging and gear optimization addons

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Reforging and gear optimization addons originally appeared on WoW Insider on Tue, 01 Oct 2013 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsAskMrRobotfeaturedgemmingguidereforgelitereforgenatorreforgingwow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceTue, 01 Oct 2013 20:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Reviewing readers' secret addonshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/09/03/addon-spotlight-reviewing-readers-secret-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/09/03/addon-spotlight-reviewing-readers-secret-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/09/03/addon-spotlight-reviewing-readers-secret-addons/#commentsFiled under:

Addon Spotlight Reviewing readers' secret addons
A couple of weeks back, I asked, in a discussion topic, for readers to submit their secret addons. I wasn't after addons everyone had heard of, like DBM, Recount, or Bartender, nor indeed addons that most people would have heard of, such as Adibags or TellMeWhen. I was after obscure little addons, maybe addons that didn't do a great deal, but were a huge help, and which their users wouldn't be without. And you wonderful people gave me plenty to be going along with!

Side note, though, many of you mentioned that you actually wrote addons yourselves, and that's something I'd absolutely love to do -- feature readers' addons. No matter if they're not on Curse or similar, drop me a line on olivia@wowinsider.com and we'll sort something out. Let's get started!

OneClickEnchantScroll

Oh my. OCES, as we'll call it from now on, was one addon that immediately caught my eye. It is one of those addons that really does exactly what it says on the tin. I've wanted a way to do this forever, and it's really only a minor efficiency gain, as all it removes is a single click. But man, it's great to remove that one click!

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Reviewing readers' secret addons

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Reviewing readers' secret addons originally appeared on WoW Insider on Tue, 03 Sep 2013 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsfeaturedguidewow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceTue, 03 Sep 2013 19:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Buffs and the removal thereofhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/07/22/addon-spotlight-buffs-and-the-removal-thereof/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/07/22/addon-spotlight-buffs-and-the-removal-thereof/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/07/22/addon-spotlight-buffs-and-the-removal-thereof/#commentsFiled under: ,

Last time on Addon Spotlight, we took a look at the use of powerful addon Weak Auras to track buffs on yourself, and as promised, we're back with a few other recommendations for you to have a look at. As we mentioned before, but it bears repeating, tracking your buffs is rather important for effective DPS, and for maximising your efficiency as just about every class. There's almost always something to be keeping an eye on, and there are several addons out there to help you with it! We're also going to take a look at something a little different, for your delectation, and that's an addon to help you with stealing other people's buffs! While more class-specific, only really useful for classes with an offensive dispel, it's definitely handy to have in mind.

Quoth the Raven

We're going to start with my current favorite tracker, outside Weak Auras, and that's Raven. You can see it in action in the video in the header image, on my mage, and I'm showing off both the buff tracker and the debuff tracker. The debuff tracker is the section that stacks up to the right hand side, while the buff trackers sit over to the left of the mage. As you can likely see, there are several different buff tracking elements visible.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Buffs and the removal thereof

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Buffs and the removal thereof originally appeared on WoW Insider on Mon, 22 Jul 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsfeaturedguideoffensive-dispel-addonpurgeravenspellsteal-addontellmewhenwow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceMon, 22 Jul 2013 16:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Buff monitoring with Weak Aurashttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/06/25/addon-spotlight-buff-monitoring-with-weak-auras/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/06/25/addon-spotlight-buff-monitoring-with-weak-auras/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/06/25/addon-spotlight-buff-monitoring-with-weak-auras/#commentsFiled under: ,

Why PvP balance is a big problem
Way, way back in the last Addon Spotlight, we talked about addons to monitor your debuffs on your target, and after a lengthy hiatus, we're back to look at buffs. Why is buff monitoring a good idea? Well, think of DoT classes. The way the game works is that when you cast a DoT, it will take a snapshot of your current situation, so, if you have a buff up that increases your intellect for a few seconds, such as a weapon enchant, then that intellect increase will be applied to your DoT. If you refresh that DoT without the intellect proc active, the second DoT will be weaker than the first. The same applies to healing, to general damage, to so many things, so monitoring your buffs is really important. Regardless of what class you play, there will be buffs you want to look out for to make the best of what you're doing.

So how do you watch them? With addons, that's how! We're going to take a look at several addons that monitor buffs, and we're going to start with the one I prefer, which is the oddly named Weak Auras. Weak Auras was originally created as an alternative to Power Auras, which, alas, has rather fallen by the wayside of late. Weak Auras is, therefore, the one to look out for. We've talked about it before here at Addon Spotlight, but Weak Auras is just so good at tracking buffs we thought it was worth dedicating an article to that specific role. Setting up Weak Auras seems daunting at first, but I promise you that this is really, really easy. You just need someone to tell you how to do it.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Buff monitoring with Weak Auras

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Buff monitoring with Weak Auras originally appeared on WoW Insider on Tue, 25 Jun 2013 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsbuff-trackerbuff-trackingbuffsfeaturedguideweak-auraswow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceTue, 25 Jun 2013 20:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: DoT trackershttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/04/04/addon-spotlight-dot-trackers/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/04/04/addon-spotlight-dot-trackers/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/04/04/addon-spotlight-dot-trackers/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight DoT trackers
DoT trackers are addons which monitor your DoTs, or Damage over Time effects. If you're playing a class whose damage relies on DoTs, and there are plenty, you should definitely consider using one of these addons. What they do is provide an easy-to-read representation of what DoTs you have on a given target, be it your focus, your target, or any target in the area, depending on your choice of addon. This is important to ensure DoT classes are maximising their DPS, and yes, the Blizzard standard UI does represent them, but the time display is not that clear.

To maximise DoT damage, efficient re-casting is key. You should certainly check out guides for your specific class to ensure you're using the right method, whether that's clipping -- replacing a DoT before it's expired -- or allowing something like a mage Living Bomb to explode. It's often useful to be able to start the cast of a DoT to time it with its expiration, and of course, to maintain maximum DoT uptime for the minimum of GCDs and mana, and for all those reasons, you need to track your DoTs.

Tidy Plates

What the heck? Why am I starting with a nameplate addon? Well, dear reader, I understand your confusion, but for PvP purposes, Tidy Plates, or any similar addon such as the built-in ElvUI nameplates, is a pretty decent way to track your DoTs.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: DoT trackers

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: DoT trackers originally appeared on WoW Insider on Thu, 04 Apr 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsdot-trackersfeaturedguidewow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-dot-tracker-addonswow-dot-trackerswow-guideOlivia GraceThu, 04 Apr 2013 14:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Your addon questions - chat, pet battles, mounts, Dinomancershttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/03/31/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions-chat-pet-battles-mount/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/03/31/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions-chat-pet-battles-mount/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/03/31/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions-chat-pet-battles-mount/#commentsFiled under:

Addon Spotlight Your addon questions
Right, it's been quite some time since I last scoured the internet for obscure addons on behalf of the WoW Insider readership, and the mailbag has been filling up, so it's time for another edition of Your Addon Questions! As always, if you have questions, pop them in the comments or send me an email.

Wordgardener asked:
I'm using ElvUI, and every time I do a quest that awards honor or another currency, the gain isn't displayed in my logs. It used to show up where the XP and gold gain was. I couldn't find a setting today for it - any idea where this info is? How to turn it on/make it appear?
ElvUI is a sneaky devil with this. It seems to shift from window to window with every update, but there's a very simple way indeed to make sure it pops up where you need it, and what's more, it allows you to completely customize your chat panels.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Your addon questions - chat, pet battles, mounts, Dinomancers

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Your addon questions - chat, pet battles, mounts, Dinomancers originally appeared on WoW Insider on Sun, 31 Mar 2013 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>Olivia GraceSun, 31 Mar 2013 16:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Skada versus Recounthttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/03/12/addon-spotlight-skada-versus-recount/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/03/12/addon-spotlight-skada-versus-recount/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/03/12/addon-spotlight-skada-versus-recount/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight Skada versus Recount
It turns out that Addon Spotlight hasn't done an exploration of what must be among the top ten most used addons in World of Warcraft for many years. So, of course, we had to put that right. Yes, there are categorically other DPS addons available, such as TinyDPS, but I think it's fair to say that these two are the biggest. So we should examine them, it seems, and wonder why people prefer Skada to Recount and vice versa.

As you can see, I've been running with both addons active, in the interest of testing, and what's more, I've been combat logging and uploading the results to World of Logs, in the interest of having the output verified against an independent third party. And the results have been fairly interesting!

But let's start with a comparison of some of the elements of the addons that don't relate to their numerical output. First and foremost, before we get on to the heavy stuff, by far the most important question one can ask about any DPS meter, what visual customization does it offer?

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Skada versus Recount

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Skada versus Recount originally appeared on WoW Insider on Tue, 12 Mar 2013 17:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsfeaturedguiderecountskadaskada or recountskada-or-recountSkadaOrRecountwow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceTue, 12 Mar 2013 17:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Your addon questionshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/02/27/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/02/27/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/02/27/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight Your addon questions
We haven't had an Addon Mailbag in a while, and the questions starting to mount up. The poor undead lady you see in the header is getting quite flustered about having such a full mailbox, so it seemed like a logical time to address the task at hand. If you have a question, do stick it in the comments or send me an email!

Let's get started with a very simple question that took me an inordinate amount of time to answer:

Chester writes:
I loved your article on getting started with weak auras. I have a question though, how do you make the box showing the graphic transparent? I followed your mindbender example but it showed the box as opaque. I would like to see only the graphic show up like in power auras classic. thanks for any help!
It took me a really, really long time to find this option, which was, quite frankly, rather annoying given that it's on the front page of the options screen.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Your addon questions

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Your addon questions originally appeared on WoW Insider on Wed, 27 Feb 2013 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsboss-arrowsdungeon-journaldungeon-journal-arrowsfeaturedguideincoming-whisper-colorotisoutgoing-whisper-colorweak-auraswhisper-colorwow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceWed, 27 Feb 2013 14:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Readers' bag addon recommendationshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/02/07/addon-spotlight-readers-bag-addon-recommendations/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/02/07/addon-spotlight-readers-bag-addon-recommendations/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/02/07/addon-spotlight-readers-bag-addon-recommendations/#commentsFiled under:

Addon Spotlight More bag addons
Thanks to everyone who responded to part one of this two-part series with their bag addon recommendations! If there are ones I still missed out, do let me know in the comments below, and as ever, links mean prizes! It should be noted that all prizes are imaginary.

In testing all the addons I've looked at so far, I've come to the conclusion that bag addons are all extremely similar, but most have some feature that helps them stand out from the rest. It's not a great surprise, after all, there are only so many ways that an addon can say "hey, look at all these things you have"! Today we're looking at two more bag addons, in addition to the three we looked at last week. I confess right now, one of these has almost persuaded me to move away from my beloved Adibags, not for certain just yet, but it has certainly been a very interesting couple of weeks.


Baud Bags

I mentioned last week that the one bag option was so intuitive and logical that I didn't really see why Blizzard didn't make it standard. I should clarify, having ruffled some feathers by saying so, that I didn't mean to force all you separate bag lovers into having one big bag -- I am an advocate of adding options, not of removing them, and so, it seems, is Baud Bag.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Readers' bag addon recommendations

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Readers' bag addon recommendations originally appeared on WoW Insider on Thu, 07 Feb 2013 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsbaudbaud-bagbaud-manifestfeaturedguidewow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceThu, 07 Feb 2013 19:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Bags and Bankinghttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/01/29/addon-spotlight-bags-and-banking/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/01/29/addon-spotlight-bags-and-banking/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/01/29/addon-spotlight-bags-and-banking/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight Bags and Banking
This is a really big topic, likely one that we'll be dealing with in several parts, rather than in one fell swoop. There are so, so many bag addons available in WoW right now, and so much of the assessment of them is simply down to personal preference. Addon Spotlight is going to attempt to cover just a few bag addons at a time, but please do be aware that we can't ever hope to get through them all in the one column!

As a result, I'm asking you not to be surprised or angry that your preferred bag addon isn't being covered, rather to let me know what it is and why you like it. I'm starting with my favorite today, and working through some others that I've either used in the past, or known of friends using. Let me know what you use, and next week, I'll take a look!

Adibags

I said I'd start with my favorite, and that is Adibags. I've used it for a while now, after giving it a go on a friend's recommendation, and I love it. Why do I love it? Well it's a very simple addon really, provides the user with a single bag, as opposed to several separate ones, which is such a straightforward and seemingly popular change that I don't know why Blizzard doesn't just make it standard.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Bags and Banking

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Bags and Banking originally appeared on WoW Insider on Tue, 29 Jan 2013 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsadibagsarkinventorybagnonfeaturedguidewow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceTue, 29 Jan 2013 20:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Weak Auras, getting started and stringshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/01/17/addon-spotlight-weak-auras-getting-started-and-strings/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/01/17/addon-spotlight-weak-auras-getting-started-and-strings/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/01/17/addon-spotlight-weak-auras-getting-started-and-strings/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight Getting into Weak Auras
Weak Auras is a really incredibly powerful addon, enabling users to create custom alerts for pretty much anything they want to see. However, like many very powerful addons, it can be a little daunting, and there's an awful lot going on. Unlike several other very powerful addons, a user guide also exists, that walks you through the basic starting point of Weak Auras, creating your first display. But, it's missing a few bits. While I use it a lot, I am far from an advanced user, given some of the things I've seen people create with this addon, so I'm going to keep it basic, and I'm also going to hopefully, with your help, start a useful set of Weak Auras strings!

Weak Auras, when created, can be imported and exported as what are called strings. These, essentially, are huge text files full of mumbo jumbo that can be translated by Weak Auras into displays. When I first got started with Weak Auras, a while back, I found that the easiest way for me to learn to use it was to start with an existing aura and go from there.

We've collected some of our favorite Weak Auras strings, and published them for each class (and some general ones) on their own page:

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Weak Auras, getting started and strings

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Weak Auras, getting started and strings originally appeared on WoW Insider on Thu, 17 Jan 2013 18:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsfeaturedguideweak-aurasweak-auras-stringsweakauraswow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceThu, 17 Jan 2013 18:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Readers' addonshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2013/01/10/addon-spotlight-readers-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/01/10/addon-spotlight-readers-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2013/01/10/addon-spotlight-readers-addons/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight Readers' addons
Along with the usual questions about addons to use for specific tasks, and the like, we receive a decent number of readers' own addons that they ask for us at WoW Insider to take a look at. So here, we have a compilation of reviews of addons created by our very own WoW Insider readership! All of these addons have been sent over to me by our readers, and if you want yours featured in a future round up, do email me on olivia@wowinsider.com!

I have to say, I'm really impressed with these addons I've featured today. I would love to have a go at creating an addon of my own, and it occurred to me that we could have an addon spotlight addon creation brainstorm, and go through the process as a sort of collaborative effort! What do you think, dear readers?

Anyhow, let's get started with the reader addons from programmers who actually know what they're talking about!

Claw

Claw, created by Jpapertowels, is described as an addon for cat and bear druids that simplifies gameplay and maximizes DPS by doing all the decision making for you. Claw uses an advanced priority list developed by the people over at the SimulationCraft project and improved by Jpapertowels for ease of use in actual gameplay.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Readers' addons

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Readers' addons originally appeared on WoW Insider on Thu, 10 Jan 2013 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsclawfarmhandfarming-addonfeaturedferal-druid-addonguiderare-mob-addonwow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceThu, 10 Jan 2013 15:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Your addon questions answeredhttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/28/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions-answered/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/28/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions-answered/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/28/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions-answered/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight Your Questions Answered
Welcome to another addon question session! I was prompted to do one of these by the fact that a recent reader question has been answered by some updates on my curse client downloader. A while back I wrote a column about archaeology addons, in which I asserted that much-loved addon Archaeology Helper was all working perfectly, despite not being updated since 2011. Since then I've had a few people contact me to let me know that, actually, it isn't.

Apparently, it was all good in the old world, the only place I could test it as my toons don't have very high level Archaeology, but wasn't working in Pandaria. Prolific addon author Oscarucb has recently taken it over from Biasha, starting from mid-December, and since I wrote that last column back on November 1, has done a lot of updating. There's now a new release version for all you Archaeology fans out there, so do go and check out this fantastically useful archaeology addon.

Moving swiftly forward, let's tackle some more addon questions. If you have addon questions, or want to make us aware of an addon that we should be covering, do drop an email to olivia@wowinsider.com.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Your addon questions answered

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Your addon questions answered originally appeared on WoW Insider on Fri, 28 Dec 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>Olivia GraceFri, 28 Dec 2012 15:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: PvP Addonshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/20/addon-spotlight-pvp-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/20/addon-spotlight-pvp-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/20/addon-spotlight-pvp-addons/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight PvP Addons
You must have seen it coming, people. I'm the PvP columnist, and now the addon columnist, too. So, naturally, I had to eventually write a column about the addons I use for PvP. For clarity, I should state that the majority of PvP I do is in the arena. I am also on a couple of rated battleground teams, and do random battlegrounds to gear up my characters, but not once they're geared beyond honor gear, thanks to the changes to the conquest point cap. Now that that's out of the way, let's get started. I've got a lot of addons to talk to you about today.

SaySapped

When there's a rogue in your midst, particularly in random battlegrounds, and you're going about your merry way with a couple of cohorts nearby, they may not notice when you're suddenly sapped. SaySapped is a great little addon that does exactly what it says on the tin -- it makes your character say "Sapped". Simple as that! It's also very handy in rated battlegrounds, saves the use of the chat channel to announce such things, and allows your team to make a decision on whether to leave you as rogue-bait, or to stay and fight. Especially if there's two of you defending the flag or base, it's a boon.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: PvP Addons

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: PvP Addons originally appeared on WoW Insider on Thu, 20 Dec 2012 16:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsbattlegroundtargetsbgdefenderfeaturedgladiatorlossaguidehealers-have-to-diehhtdjukedpvppvp-addonssaysappedwow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceThu, 20 Dec 2012 16:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Raid healing addons, part twohttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/13/addon-spotlight-raid-healing-addons-part-two/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/13/addon-spotlight-raid-healing-addons-part-two/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/13/addon-spotlight-raid-healing-addons-part-two/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight Raid healing addons part 2
Two weeks back, I looked into two fine contenders for raid healing addons, namely Healbot and VuhDo. There was a great and lengthy tussle between the two, and no clear victor was named, although VuhDo snatched a narrow lead. As I promised back in that column, I've gone away to test two more raid healing addons, or party healing addons, as you prefer.

Actually, I tested three of them, to be precise, but one probably couldn't stand alone as a healing addon, and is more a raid frame replacement. Those three addons are Healium, Clique and Grid. I began with Healium, for no other reason than because that was the first one I decided to switch on, but as it happens that worked out pretty well for the testing as, when I wandered into the settings, I discovered it could work with Clique.

Healium

Healium takes quite a different approach to the other addons I've reviewed so far in this set of Addon Spotlights. VuhDo, Healbot, and Grid+Clique are all click-to-heal addons, that is to say, they take a set of either their own frames or a third-party set of frames, and set up mouseover macros on them. A left-click on a frame fires one heal at that player, while an ALT+ left click fires a different one. Healium, on the other hand, as can be seen in the header image, doesn't perform quite like this.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Raid healing addons, part two

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Raid healing addons, part two originally appeared on WoW Insider on Thu, 13 Dec 2012 15:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonscliquefeaturedgridguidehealbothealer-addonhealer-addonshealer-uihealing-addonhealing-addonshealiumvuhdowow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceThu, 13 Dec 2012 15:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Your Addon Questionshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/06/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/06/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/12/06/addon-spotlight-your-addon-questions/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight Your Addon Questions
I know, I promised you more raid healing rundown this week, and I apologize for the absence of that, but I'm testing a few new raid healing addons (Grid, Clique and Healium) and I want to be thorough. I've also been getting a lot of reader questions, so I thought it was high time we did an Addon Mailbag.

If you have addon questions, or want to make us aware of an addon that we should be covering, do drop an email to olivia@wowinsider.com. We have a lot of questions to cover, so let's get going. I'm asking for a lot of reader feedback this week for addon questions that have stumped me, so get involved in the comments below!

Ailindah of Wyrmrest Accord asked:
Using a laptop with a 17" screen I am unable to really customize the WoW UI the way I would like to, however there is one quirk I was hoping you could help me out with: Boss Frames. Like you I do not care for the default ones and have searched for ways to change them, however it seems to not be possible without using an alternative unitframe addon, something I do not really care for as I prefer the Blizzard raid frames.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Your Addon Questions

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Your Addon Questions originally appeared on WoW Insider on Thu, 06 Dec 2012 19:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsfeaturedguidewow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceThu, 06 Dec 2012 19:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Raid healing addonshttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/11/30/addon-spotlight-raid-healing-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/11/30/addon-spotlight-raid-healing-addons/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/11/30/addon-spotlight-raid-healing-addons/#commentsFiled under: ,

What's Tori Amos doing as the header? Well, since starting to do the research for this column, I haven't been able to get this song out of my head. I'm not 100% sure what the song's about, but I've replaced the words in my head with the two addons I'm going to be talking about today. There are other raid healing addons, and next week I'll likely be comparing the third of the big three, which I consider to be Healbot, Vuhdo, and Grid+Clique. If there are others out there that do the same thing which you'd like me to look at, do let me know via email on olivia@wowinsider.com or in the comments below, with links please!

But back to Tori. I never was a Vuhdo girl, I thought that was a good solution, hanging with the Healbot girls... I've been a Healbot user since I found out what a raid healing addon was, way back when, when I discovered that there were ways of healing that didn't require you to select your friendly target then cast spells. If you're not aware of exactly what all these addons do, they essentially replace your raid frames, and turn them into clickable frames, allowing you to heal with clicks on frames while holding various modifiers. I've talked before about why I don't like these for PvP healing, but for PvE, they're very handy.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Raid healing addons

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Raid healing addons originally appeared on WoW Insider on Fri, 30 Nov 2012 14:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsfeaturedguidehealbothealing-addonsraid-healing-addonsvuhdowow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceFri, 30 Nov 2012 14:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Personal Cooldown Trackinghttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/11/24/addon-spotlight-personal-cooldown-tracking/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/11/24/addon-spotlight-personal-cooldown-tracking/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/11/24/addon-spotlight-personal-cooldown-tracking/#commentsFiled under: ,

Addon Spotlight Personal Cooldown Tracking
Last week's Addon Spotlight was apparently a little confusing for some readers, since it dealt with raid-wide cooldowns and addons to assist in managing those cooldowns. It was not meant as a column addressing your own personal cooldowns. We talked about addons for your entire raid to follow, such as healing cooldowns for healers, so that your entire raid don't blow them all at once.

But fear not, this week we're going to look at personal cooldown tracking! This, in contrast to last week's column, looks at methods to monitor your own things, and not share them with other players. I touched briefly on this topic in an addon mailbag a while back, but my main recommendation is not behaving itself at all well at the moment, so I figure we ought to have a second look at this.

Not-so-sexy cooldown

This is the addon I recommended last time I discussed this, and up to recently was my addon of choice for personal cooldown monitoring. It's a pretty simple premise, really, it has a bar, as you use spells, their cooldowns move from one end of the bar to the other. They can either have a timer on them or not. Up to you.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Personal Cooldown Tracking

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Personal Cooldown Tracking originally appeared on WoW Insider on Sat, 24 Nov 2012 20:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonsfeaturedfortexorcistguideomniccomnicc-addonsexycooldownwow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceSat, 24 Nov 2012 20:00:00 ESTAddon Spotlight: Cooldown trackinghttp://wow.joystiq.com/2012/11/15/addon-spotlight-cooldown-tracking/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/11/15/addon-spotlight-cooldown-tracking/http://wow.joystiq.com/2012/11/15/addon-spotlight-cooldown-tracking/#commentsFiled under: , ,

Addon Spotlight Raiding Addons
I'm certainly not going to pretend even for a second that this is a comprehensive list of raid cooldown tracking addons, encompassing every addon that exists with this purpose. I'm starting off today's column with an addon suggested to me via email. If you want to suggest any addon for review, do email me with download links, a brief description, and why you think I should test it out!

Today's topic is the start of a set of raid-related Addon Spotlights. I'm really hoping that our commenters will provide more addons that they consider vital for raiding, with links and all, and that I can have a look at them so we can do this again next week. Inevitably, you'll have raiding addons I don't use, or maybe ones that I don't even know about. Tell me about them in the comments! And, of course, today's addons could also be really, really handy for PvP!

Anyhow, a while back in late October, Frego of The Wyld Hunt on The Sha'tar (EU-H) sent me an email regarding an addon he thought I should take a look at.

Continue reading Addon Spotlight: Cooldown tracking

WoW InsiderAddon Spotlight: Cooldown tracking originally appeared on WoW Insider on Thu, 15 Nov 2012 13:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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]]>add-onadd-on-configurationadd-on-guideaddon-configurationaddon-guideaddonscooldown-timercooldown-trackercooldownsdbmdbm-spell-timersdeadly-boss-modsfeaturedguideomniccora3raid-cooldownstelepathywow-add-onwow-add-on-guidewow-add-onswow-addon-guidewow-addonswow-guideOlivia GraceThu, 15 Nov 2012 13:00:00 EST