MLO new feature lifecycle?? utterly confused

[kitus]

As an active and a long-time paid MLO user, I must say I'm a little lost with regard to product new features... JIRA, UserVoice, Google Groups, Google Group for beta testing, etc.

I've tried my best in order to contribute in all these three services, and I doubt I know how the whole process works.

I wonder how can I know whether an specific request got on the Andrey's list or he ever took a moment to even to understand or consider a certain request I may have made on Jira or UserVoice. 

Last year I spent some time suggesting new features on JIRA, but it always seemed I did it wrong for either the information wasn't clear, or I had not gained enough momentum on the forum.

I wish any of the MLO aces here could comment on how to know what new features are under review, planned, discarded, implemented, etc. JIRA seems to be the right tool for that, but I don't seem to be 100% sure who can create new items there, how are they supposed to be created, whether or not it is indispensable to first start a topic here in the Group (which of course can be overlooked due to most people taking their annual leave in August), how do I know which ideas were initiated by me or by others (are we still sharing the same credentials?), etc.

There may be a user guide to all this somewhere, which I may not be aware, but if there isn't, I feel the information is way too scattered across several posts and services, and in some cases it may not be even clearly explained.

Don't take this as a complaint, I just feel there are several quick wins for MLO, which are always falling on deaf ears due to the fact that I may not know my way around all this.

Thanks

[pottster]

I share your uncertainty about the process we're supposed to follow now. There was a period when suggestions were being successfully diverted to UserVoice but that was largely due to the efforts of Mark Levison who had to withdraw because of other commitments. Since then, it's been a bit of a free for all. It would certainly help to receive some clarification. Forums like UserVoice can work well but the Development Team need to give users the confidence that suggestions are given due consideration and statuses are updated regularly.

[Stéph]

Hello Guys,

 

You're posting on the wrong forum here (perhaps just to demonstrate the confusion!). Jira is for bug reports and feature suggestions by the beta testers, so related discussions go in the beta testers forum - though if it's a feature request rather than a bug report, there's no harm in starting a discussion with the wider MLO community here.

 

The short answer to your question is that we don't get to know how Andrey reviews the Jira and beta testers forum posts.  My tactic is to post on Jira, with a linked post on the beta testers' forum to try to gather some support from other testers.  If things go quiet and I really feel it's an important feature request, I'll quite often post a comment to encourage more discussion on it.  Sometimes that works, and sometimes it appears not to - though who knows, maybe many of my suggestions are being worked on right now!

 

As far as how to post on Jira is concerned - the instructions are on one of Andrey's pinned posts at the top of the Beta Testers' forum.  Hope you manage to find them.  Let me know if you need help doing so.

 

Stéphane

 

On Sunday, 24 August 2014 11:11:42 UTC+1, kitus wrote:

[Joel Azaria]

Agreed.  I was mildly aware of a jira but wasn't sure and certainly didn't know users could view or contribute so I'm certainly with you on the "info too scattered" bit.

Might be a good time too to reiterate my dislike for uservoice - it's not terribly effective and if some reorg or streamlining of the user engagement/communication process is up for discussion, uservoice being rethought should probably be in that discussion.

Btw, share this jira tracker link please?

Thx.

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[Joel Azaria]

Looks like Steph beat me to the punch line.  Yes, definite confusion Steph..

It seems to me that the whole user engagement system/paradigm is somewhat disjointed.  I expect that this is a result of it growing out of a patchwork of different parts addressing needs as they came up.  However this patchwork is ineffective (IMO) at the most important function which is communication with the community.   Would you agree or am I alone in this thinking?

To wit note all the confusion, clamoring*, and despair around mlo v2 android (as but 1 example.)  Better communication to the user base I believe would not only quell the shouting but better still ally the constituency.  In this case a lack of any real communication is just feeding the frustrations of the users whereby instead it could be turning them into evangelists.  Just look at the momentum of Fog Creek and the Trello project for but 1 example.

Anyway, jm2c..

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[Dwight Arthur]

 As a user who has had some success in getting suggestions incorporated into MLO, I will share my observations on how it works. Please note that I am *not* trying to say that this is working well or that this is how it should work, I'm just reporting the current state of affairs as I see it.

Joel Azaria recently posted a passionate and articulate plea for MLO developers to devote more time and attention to communicating with users and managing expectations.  You can find the post here: https://groups.google.com/d/msg/mylifeorganized/zmK6efRXbag/KdM_e6qNvuIJ

I highly recommend that you read this post, especially if you are a developer with MLO.

Here are the channels available for advocating changes to MLO:

1. E-mail to the MLO support email address. 

It is a virtual certainty that someone from the MLO organization will read at least the beginning of your message. This works best when your request is short and very compelling, like a fix for an annoying bug, or a simple clear request "please implement flags on Android". Complex, controversial or vague request like "please provide workload management" will lukelt get a quick brushoff.

2. Jira is a tool used by MLO developers to manage bug reports during beta testing. It can also be used to request enhancements. In general, these requests have a good chance of serious consideration by MLO staff, though I'm not certain what happens to requests made for a product that's not in active beta testing at the time.  Requests have a much better chance if they have been thought through, include suggestions for how they could be implemented, recognize and address the downside, and include some understanding of users who will dislike the suggestion and how to handle it. Requests also have a good chance if they are reasonably easy to build and if Andrey finds the idea appealing and exciting. The disadvantages of Jira is that there's no opportunity for collaborative discussions, making it difficult to bring an idea to the level of development and consensus that's needed; also the fact that access to Jira is limited to active beta testers.

3. The forum on Google Groups is a great place to propose an enhancement, talk through implementation alternatives, discover downsides and users who are opposed and seek solutions. It's open to everyone and it's possible to build a strong concensus around a proposal. From time to time MLO developers will even engage in the discussion but this is hit-or-miss and you shouldn't rely on it happening.

4. There is also a forum specifically for beta testers. Sometimes you need a beta tester forum, for example if you are proposing a change to an unannounced feature that's currently in beta. For requests that do not involve anything unannounced my opinion is that the general forum is better - more people participate and it's a more diverse group than the beta forum.

 5. UserVoice is open to anyone and there's no question that proposals with very high vote counts get noticed even if the proposal is poorly thought out, vague or controversial.  The problem is how to get a high vote count for your. New ideas are at a disadvantage in UserVoice because they sit at the back and dont get noticed. Also, there's a recurring problem where similar or identical proposals split the vote so that some popular idea remains with a low vote count.

My suggestion on how to navigate through all of this:start by proposing your idea on this forum (unless it involves unannounced features in beta, then use the beta forum). Sell your idea -explain why people need it. Tell what it will enable them to do. Describe how it will lead to new sales of MLO licenses. Give a few (at least one) options for how it could be implemented and ask questions that will draw others into the conversation. Don't be defensive - consider each suggestion that gets made and see if they can help you make your proposal better. Try to get some enthusiasm going. When you have a concensus of support and the discussion seems to have matured, submit your idea. If you are a beta tester or if your idea has attracted the support of any beta testers, submit it to Jira with a pointer back to the discussion on your forum. Otherwise, submit it to UserVoice but be sure to encourage your supporters to vote. Don't be afraid to be a cheerleader. 

[Dwight Arthur]

Hi, Joel.

I really cannot add much to your commentary, so I will just answer one of your questions:

Last week, as it happens. See http://www.itbusinessedge.com/slideshows/ten-free-android-apps-to-organize-your-life.html

Regards, Dwight

 

From: mylifeo...@googlegroups.com [mailto:mylifeo...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Joel Azaria
. . .rant . . .When's the last time you saw mlo on any mainstream media's top 5, top 9, top 20.. list of todo apps?. . ./rant

[david....@gmail.com]

A quibble perhaps but I personally wouldn't use the term "mainstream" for that source.  To each their own however. 

David J. Mangen

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