Every now and then, I receive a very vague review stating that ThunderBrowse is “bad”. The reviewer never explains why it’s “bad” or what problems they were having. It’s just “bad”. I recently have received one of these reviews and felt like yelling at the person. But instead of doing that, I thought that maybe some people don’t understand how to review. Hopefully, this post will to shine some light on some new reviewing tips and what it’s like to be on the receiving end of such criticism.
Let’s pretend:
You are an artist who just painted what you call a masterpiece. You love it so much, that you decide to show it to the world by setting up a small stand in the local farmers market*. It’s a lovely day and you are so happy at all the people admiring your work.
But suddenly, someone jumps in front of your stand and yells “This art is crap!” Now people are starting to walk away because, hey, it’s a pretty awkward situation. How would you feel?
Probably pretty hurt and wanting to yell and/or hurt at this person, even if they have a point.
This is no different with any other work of labor. Truth is, people don’t like negative criticism, no matter how true it may be. But if a person is constantly improving their work, you, as a reviewer, should step back and look at how it’s improved. If you dislike the way it’s going, feel free to say so. But say so positively.
For example?
Here’s an example review that I would call bad: “Horrible. This software is bad.”
The problem with this review is that it doesn’t specify what exactly is bad with the software. Is it the installer? The UI? The graphics? The usability? No, this review tells you nothing. Nor does it state if the person had a problem and if they looked for help.
Here’s an example review that I would call good: “This application is pretty good but it really isn’t what I was looking for. I did have a couple of problems with some plugins, particularly Flash.”
This review doesn’t actually have any problems. Here’s why:
- They stated they had a problem with Flash content
- They complimented how the software was going (showing that they have at least used it longer than 15 seconds)
- Ended on a positive note.
What would be even better is to have an email address somewhere in the review (on AMO, you can choose to leave your email public [seriously, you practically do not get any spam if you do]). Or if you filed a bug report with an error log. The most important parts of reviewing is to be detailed and be positive.
But I don’t have enough time!
If “I don’t have enough time to list out some problems I had with this” is true for you, don’t write a review. All you are doing is invalidating yourself, because honestly, if you have enough time to comment on something, then you must have some time to state a couple problems you had. Besides, it makes you look good.
Some people might think you are a nitpicker, but guess what, at least you value public knowledge and respect the author enough to care about their success. By being more detailed, you allow others to know about problems that could/can/will be experienced when using this software.
What if I can’t find help or my review sounds like a support request?
If it’s more of a support request, find the developer’s contact info and send them a message. File a bug report if possible.
But if none of those things are available, then you should state your problems in a review. And on top of that, leave an email address (in your profile, review, whatever) so that the developer can contact you. That way, they can help you with the problem and you can work it out together.
This makes both parties feel good and understanding of the issues presented. And it gives you a higher chance of the software being fixed, and thus you can enjoy it again.
And most importantly, remember to stay positive!
*Here in Washington, we have these open air markets [like in Mexico and Spain] where you can sell fresh food and paintings and stuff. These markets are called Farmer’s Markets. Just a heads up.