Addon Spotlight: 2 addons by Shackleford

Each week, WoW Insider brings you a fresh look at reader-submitted UIs as well as Addon Spotlight, which 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: Shackleford.

Sometimes when I am out looking for new addons for the Spotlight, I find an author rather than any one addon. Many addon authors are not one-timers -- they've got a few addons under their belts because they either love the work or just can't get enough out of punishing themselves. Suffice to say, we are very appreciative of their work, and really, where would we be without them?

Today's Addon Spotlight focuses on two cool utilities from Shackleford, addon author to the stars (maybe). I am a big fan of little utilities, since most of these little wonders sit idly by, performing their functions with nary a whisper or whimper. Things just happen. If you don't already know them, may I introduce CalendarHUD and WeaponUP.

CalendarHUD

CalendarHUD is a very simple tool that places little numbers next to the calendar icon on your minimap. The top number shows how many activities you've got for that given day, while the left and right numbers represent the number of available guild sign-up events and the number of pending invitations you have, respectively. You've also got a new, more visible 15-minute alarm before any events are going to take place.

The WoW calendar is one of those user interface features that I was never big on until late Wrath. Over time, the in-game calendar transformed into an amazing tool, one that makes raiding easier, permits inviting without an external program, and allows tracking of an otherwise unwieldy amount of people. WoW's calendar is a piece of the UI that needs to make its way into the nomenclature of the MMO genre in a bigger way.

That's why CalendarHUD is a nice touch to the built-in calendar -- a couple of simple tweaks makes the calendar even better. Pending invites is huge for me, since I rarely pop in and out of the calendar, just peeking in to see what new items have been added. At a glance, I already know how many new things to look for.

Download CalendarHUD at [Curse] or [WoWInterface].

WeaponUp

Have I talked about WeaponUP in the past? I'm not entirely sure. However, I can tell you something that I do almost on a regular, daily basis. Do you go into random heroics, dungeons, combat, PvP, or any other gear-dependent in-game experience wielding a fishing pole or some other roleplaying item that really wouldn't put a dent in even the freshest level 1? It happens all the time to me. Oh, and what happens when you're attacked while you're fishing, your hands fumbling around the keyboard for your equipment swap macro or rifling through your bags for the weapon that you totally forgot what the items looks like?

WeaponUp is your safety net. The addon equips your weapons from whatever gear set that you configure using the in-game equipment manager. I'm a personal fan of the in-game equipment manager, so this addon fits nicely right along side it. When you enter combat without a suitable weapon, WeaponUp swings (ha-ha) into action. The addon even supports quickly equipping your weapon if you are attacked during fishing escapades, equipping or dequipping (new word) your Argent lance if you are still punishing yourself by jousting for some reason.

The addon does require you to be using the in-game equipment manager, and you'll first have to let the addon know what set you want it to use. All you have to do is type /wu setname, where setname is, well, the set you want to use.

I am more than a fan of WeaponUp -- I'm a convert.

Download WeaponUp at [Curse] or [WoWInterface].

Shackleford, thank you for these awesome little tools. Check out Shackleford's pages on Curse or WoWInterface. Do drop him a line and let him know that you like his work.

Speaking of letting people know that you like their work, I am really liking this whole "spotlight an addon author" deal. If you have any addon author that you would like to see as part of Addon Spotlight, drop me an email and we can see about making that happen. The addon community works hard, and we should show them a little bit of love. Send your recommendation emails to mat@wowinsider.com.

Mailbag!

Thanks for the email, Bacchus. There are plenty of addons out there that will do the bottom black bar for you. I am a fan of making one yourself with kgPanels, and I've outlined how to do a simple black bar in my kgPanels Addon Spotlight. There's also Sunn - Viewport Art, a very popular addon that allows you to change the size of the rendered screen and put textures or artwork in the new empty space. Commenters will be lauding their favorites too, I am sure.

The type of addon you use will also be dependent on whether you want to change the resolution of your game window with a view port addon or just add the black bar. If you're just going in to add the bar and keep the resolution the same, I'd go with a simple kgPanels solution.

There is a one-word answer to this question, but I'm not going to give you the easy answer. Instead, I will allow the point to languish a bit while you settle into your chair for a nice, long discussion about alt addons and how it would be a wonderful thing to be able to see all of your alt's items, banks and inventories and get a quick handle on his skills, reputations, bag usage and even equipment.

Wouldn't that all be so amazing to have in one simple addon?

Altaholic.

See you guys next week -- and if you're at PAX East, I'm probably seeing you tomorrow.

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@wowinsider.com.