Addon Spotlight: Grab bag 2
Addon Spotlight focuses on the backbone of the WoW gameplay experience: the user interface. Everything from bags to bars, buttons to DPS meters and beyond -- your addons folder will never be the same. This week, raaaaaaandom addons!
You are cordially invited to another wonderful Addon Spotlight Grab bag extravaganza! Next week, I'll be talking about the Cataclysm in-game ability notification system that Blizzard is working on. That would have been this week, if my beta wasn't screwing up and I didn't get all the pictures and potentially video required for a proper post for you fine readers. Instead, you get a grab bag of fun, useful and downright crucial addons that might not be the biggest guys of the bunch, but they definitely do ... something. Plus, "grab bag" is fun to say.
Let me reach into my bag of random addons and pull out some special selections for you! If this column had sounds, you'd hear a rustling noise, followed by some crashing, glass shattering and maybe an air horn.
RedDrake
Cataclysm is coming, so get those achievements from Wrath dungeons as soon as possible before no one wants to run them ever again! RedDrake is an achievement addon that reminds you, upon entering a heroic or raid instance, what achievements you are missing for meta-mount achievements, such as Reins of Red Proto-drake or Reins of the Bloodbathed Frostbrood Vanquisher.
RedDrake requires little to no customization and is active once you install it. If you've already completed certain meta achievements, RedDrake will not display any information, staying neatly out of your way. Hopefully, this addon can help you remember when you've got a shot at some meta achievements before the world is torn apart.
Download RedDrake at [Curse].
Currency
For those of you who do not use an LDB bar, TitanPanel or other bar mod, Currency provides an alternative to common currency addons that appear in LDB formats. Currency's simple task is to show you in a quick list from your minimap of your current currency amounts. The addon shows you, in a simple list, how many emblems, honor points and other currencies that you have. Currency is a simple, light addon that provides a quick look at your currency without the two-click solution to get to the currency tab. Seriously, two clicks? That's so 2004.
Download Currency at [Curse].
HatTrick
Tekkub is one of my favorite addon authors, and it's no surprise that he has come up with this seamlessly integrated and awesome addon that is exactly what I needed. HatTrick moves the toggles for your helm and cloak graphics to the player paperdoll frame instead of deep in the display options. The addon disables the ability to use the display option checkboxes, but really, when they've been moved to the paperdoll, you'll never look back.
How can you not love this addon? On-the-fly checkbox selection of your helm and cloak. I love it, and I want Tekkub to have my LUA babies.
Download HatTrick at [WoWInterface].
Addon Mailbag time! Woooo!
Hello hello,
I've been raiding a while with my guild, and while I really like everyone and have had numerous conversations with many guildies in chat, I have a really hard time recognizing voices over Vent! I play on a little laptop, and while everyone tells me I should play in windowed mode so I can see the Vent window, I just can't stand how cluttered and small everything is when I do. I have been made fun of (and probably hurt the feelings of my guildmates) when someone calls out an Innervate or a command and I have to say, "... who, exactly?" I'm like this in real life, too -- I'm a big advocate of name tags! My question is, is there an addon that exists where the names of who is talking in Vent show up in game? That would be so helpful!
-- Mrs. Hompa
Thanks for the email, Mrs. Hompa. There are a few solutions for seeing who is talking on Vent that I know of. First, while it's not the most economic solution, you could get one of those nifty G15 keyboards from Logitech. The G15 has a small LCD screen that has a Ventrilo plugin built in that can show you who is transmitting at the time. It was cool back when we used Vent. The other option is enabling the Ventrilo overlay, but to be completely honest, I tried it once and it never worked, and just like Lot, I never looked back.
My other suggestion is Mumble. I cannot give more praise to Mumble, not only because the sound quality is better and the software features voice normalization (everyone is brought to a common sound level no matter how loud they output), but because of the awesome overlay that just works out of the box. The overlay lives anywhere you want on the screen, has tons of options and can light up the people who are currently talking in your Mumble chat. It's rough to get everyone to switch over, but oh man, is it awesome.
Hi Mathew,
Quick question: What are some low-CPU and -memory add-ons? I play on an older laptop, I currently use Skada, Grid, Decursive, DBM, Flototem Bar and Auctioneer.
I think you already answered this in one of your mailbags, but I can't remember which one. If I am right, feel free to point me in the right direction.
Thanks. =) I love your articles.
Malozing
Thanks for the email, Malozing. Your best bet for low CPU and memory usage addons are any addons that have individual modules that you can turn off. Skada is a great example of an addon that works well with modules, as you can turn off the specific types of data that are displayed and parsed for you. Of the addons you've listed, I don't see anything that screams "CPU destroyer." Rather, stay away from addons that are graphics-intensive or just plain huge. Carbonite is a good example of a addon that can kill your performance. Stay away from the bloated guys, and you'll find most addons won't give you too many problems.
See you all next week!
Addons are what we do on Addon Spotlight. If you're new to mods, Addons 101 will walk you through the basics; see what other players are doing at Reader UI of the Week. If there's a mod you think Addon Spotlight should take a look at, email mat@wow.com.
