So, how are you using SimpleDesk? How does it fit into your site?

[Gruffen]

That's something I want to explore a little: I know how I think people interact with SimpleDesk, both as users and staff, but I may be a million miles off the mark, so I'm curious how you guys as site admins find it to work with, how it fits into your site structure, as part of your service delivery and so on.

Feedback from your staff and users about how they find it would be really appreciated too.


We've just started using SimpleDesk on a project site I run, though it's not exactly being used as a helpdesk per se. We've migrated to SD from Project Tools (0.3, for reasons I won't go into, that site was still running 2.0 RC1.2 until about 13 hours ago)

It's a private site, the consequences of which are that for the most part privacy is a non issue. For what we're doing, SD is slightly better looking (at least, it fits with ModernDark32 better out of the box) but the one feature we've moved to SD for in preference to PT is ticket relationships (which is already done in 1.1)

So, yeah, on the one site we're actively using it on, we're not using it as a helpdesk as such. Migration from PT wasn't so hard because we didn't use most of the features, and the ones that we did use (categories, bug/feature status) should be able to be emulated through SD's custom fields when that gets finished.

[royalduke]

Arantor, why do I think that your private site has to do with games, is it a game server support forum or something?

Anyways, running this baby in http://smfsupport.info It looks pretty good with the DzinerStudio theme. I was planning on running this on my hosting service but then I realized that most people just Email me for support if needed.

[tfs]

I'm holding off on running live because I plan to use it as an actual help desk only site  for the company I work for, and one of our requirements will be email notifications and custom fields.  That won't happen until 1.1 is finished.  My plan is that visitors to the site will not be able to tell it's running under SMF except for the SMF copyright at the bottom. 

[Gruffen]

Arantor, why do I think that your private site has to do with games, is it a game server support forum or something?

Because it is, as it happens. The discussion forum where we're building an RPG (STILL, yes, but fortunately some progress is being made, which is now mostly why I'm on hiatus here). We're using the forum for discussions about how the game works, and using SD as the project tracker.

Anyways, running this baby in http://smfsupport.info It looks pretty good with the DzinerStudio theme. I was planning on running this on my hosting service but then I realized that most people just Email me for support if needed.

We don't have any screenshots with DS themes, care to share any? (Of course editing out real details ) I did a bunch of screenies from free themes, plus Bloc's themes.


@tfs: Email notifications is definitely the next component to be worked on. Custom fields will come after that.

[~DS~]

To be honest...I have no idea how SD will be used on my site and how it fits in just yet because I am trying to find its purpose and benefits for my users, my forum is a social forum, not business so I am having trouble seeing how it benefit my site. Right now it's only enabled to a Charter group, staffs group and had always since the beginning. I am trying to figure a way to make helpdesk more useful into something.


As for pushing for 1.1, I am debating whether I should open to public and have beta tester to test to speed up on SD report and their feedback on helpdesk on how it should fit my site. 

[JBlaze]

I use SD on my development site (http://www.jblaze.net/) as a priority support helpdesk for subscribed members.

[royalduke]

We don't have any screenshots with DS themes, care to share any? (Of course editing out real details ) I did a bunch of screenies from free themes, plus Bloc's themes.

I hope you still need one from a DS theme, anyways here ya go:

I attached some eye candy

EDIT: this is only for the theme Silentwave.

[Gruffen]

Awesome, thanks I'll take a proper look in a minute, am very curious to see how it turns out; I know just how it looks in Bloc's themes and that it works better in some than others.

[royalduke]

Awesome, thanks I'll take a proper look in a minute, am very curious to see how it turns out; I know just how it looks in Bloc's themes and that it works better in some than others.

I could get you more if you want... With probably all the DS themes.

[Gruffen]

If you have access to the full set, I'd really appreciate a full set of screenshots, if only to ensure that it works as intended on those themes, and so that I can tweak it as necessary.

[royalduke]

If you have access to the full set, I'd really appreciate a full set of screenshots, if only to ensure that it works as intended on those themes, and so that I can tweak it as necessary.

No problem, I will get multiple screenshots of each

[royalduke]

Here you go: Attached and I also organized the names and stuff. Let me know what you think so I can delete the .zip from here. Anyways, there is no 'help' and 'search' becuase my friend removed them from his site. I noticed that 'Helpdesk' menu button doesn't show in themes that have custom menus but that's understandable

[Gruffen]

You can delete the zip if you really want to, but there's no problem with leaving it as is to be honest (at least, none that I'm aware of)

Thanks again Time to go browsing properly to see how it works out.

[royalduke]

No problem, as long as you got the images I took three screenies with each of the themes and three different actions such as "Creating ticket", "Admin Area of SD" and "Helpdesk page".

Knock yourself out

[Gruffen]

Generally it holds up pretty well in the various themes, but to be fair that was mostly what I expected, much as I encountered with Bloc's themes.

And yeah, if there's a totally custom menu, isn't much we can do about that without coding in theme specific support (which I really don't think we should do if we can help it)