I think it's a wonderful tool. Even if you like to "be in control," you can still use it to easily and efficiently generate instruction files...which, for me, is always a pain anyway. And it's highly useful for some hacks (especially mid-sized ones) that you need done quickly. I give it 10 thumbs up. :D

(Dropped a vote from NO and added to YES - nafae)

Anyway, I didn't know people don't like it that much. I guess I'll post hack files and txt files when I release new hacks.

I am swaying to the maybe now. I did a hack last night and I must say, I like the standard format of the text file layout. Makes it easier to read.

It's still an amazing hack Chen. You did a GREAT job in creating it.

Chris

Chen: I think some of the results have to do with what is, in my opinion, a poor description in the first post of this thread...with the YES/NO reasons. I don't agree...makes it sound like vBHacker is only for people who don't know PHP or don't care to. A little misleading, IMO.

that was the hole idea. to see who likes better the text files, or the actual hack. :)
keep on voting you do a great job.

The YES side is gaining terrain!! Keep on voting. Is important to see what people think.

is not misleading, in my oppinion. is mentioned there that vbHacker can do several functions. the question is if people like better a simple plain text file without the hassle of uploading the hack, or just to upload the hack and install it. when you do this, there is no control over your work, the hack does everything for you.. and that's exacly where me, personally i'm not comfortable with it. ;)
let me know what you think please.

It is most definitely misleading. Example:

This implies that, if you want to learn PHP and get more used to vB, and make better hacks, and help others, you have to vote for NO, but I want to (and I do) all those things, and I voted YES. Or how about these two?

Neither one of those applies to me. I'm not just here to download the coolest hacks, and I don't shy away from learning hard things (at least not always)...and yes these are the two reasons you give for voting YES. That's misleading. Why have explanations at all? Just let the poll speak for itself.

vbHacker was designed with ease of mind. for people that dont want to run complex mods etc. basically it makes your life easier while installing a hack. so what i said is true. people who use it, are easy going, in my oppinion. they prefer to simply run a file and is all done.

how can you learn PHP (even if you look at the text file after) if you didnt code it with your own hands?

It's not true because the world is not black and white. Not everyone who likes to save time with vBHacker is someone who doesn't like to learn hard things. I love PHP-oriented challenges. They thrill me. That doesn't mean I ALWAYS have to do things the hard way, though. Some of these hacks are simple...I could do them myself. I won't learn anything from installing them by hand. So why should I?

Fact of the matter is that you're linking using vBHacker with not knowing PHP, or with not wanting to learn more of it, or with being lazy...and that's not true. It is a timesaver...for both beginners and experts. I know my way, basically, around vB...and I use it. Your four reasons (two for YES, and two for NO) therefore do not apply to me...which means they're not accurate. I'll bet there are others they don't apply to, too.

FireFly may know more about vB than any of us, and he uses it...and not just because he made it either, IMO.

Two things:

1 - You can learn PHP without having to ALWAYS do everything the long way. I know PHP. But according to your voting guidelines, if I like to use vBHacker now and then, I don't really want to help people or learn more about vB.

2 - Not all hacks are something we can learn from. If anything, the experts are the ones who would use it more, because they're the ones who won't learn as much from installing them in the first place.

i personally think there is no long(or short) way in learning. but one more time, this is my oppinion. i will always code using the text file. no matter how long or short will be.

acording to my vote guidelines, if you say YES, you prefer to install, without seeing, a hack. you preffer not to bother analysing the code and understand the mechanism. no matter what you will do after, it will never be the same as you code it with your own hands. that's all.

any piece of php software was not written with aid, but with sweat and logic. that's why i preffer to use a text editor, my coffee and a good Dunhill to do things related to VB... ;)

cheers.

PS. i removed the guidelines, to let people comment on it. ;)