User Feedback Requested - Updating Help Content

Hi! I think you provide extraordinary service to buyers and providers and I can say that from both sides of the equation!

I'd like to see some specifics addressed in the 'help'

A) Defining the %'s on tests! This in my opinion is huge for buyers and providers - the %'s shown in our profiles is not what it looks like!

B) For providers: Importance of good cover letter (not examples just stress this!!)

C) For Buyers: hiring people with 0 oDesk hours - asking for prior experience (and for providers how to equate/show prior experience)

For now those are the things that come immediately to mind. I can think of a billion things for Affiliates (setting up new) that I wish I had thought of before I did mine .

Thanks again for offering the best service and help available anywhere!

Doreen

Anyone have any suggestions that aren't about the percentile issue?

And change your primary help desk search engine to Google.

Users linking to the documents from other related documents will over time enable Google to provide relevant search results.

You could also form a similar system yourself by using private links (or DB relations) in documents to other related documents and indexing the links yourself and calculating the weight of documents on specific topics by the number of documents linking to them that contain the search term or match by query expansion.

The search results right now are completely useless. They seem to be only pages that are MATCH()ed AGAINST(your search) and in no particular order.

Wow! You've done great work! Congratulations!

I found one issue, and I believe that it is along the help pages. I cannot access the help system on some information about a workaround for buyers who have active provider assignments in oDesk.

Here how I encountered it:

1. I got into My oDesk, then clicked Create New Team.
2. On the entry How do you plan to use this team? I selected as Provider Company
3. I clicked on the Create New Team. I get the error "sorry there were problems with your input". I hope you can see this screenshot: https://url.odesk.com/0foxp
4. I was hoping to see the "workaround" link that is provided, but instead I get the message, "This page is no longer available". The page has this permalink http://www.odesk.com/help/help/permalink/337

I was wondering what is contained in that workaround. Thanks!

Gem

I understand you have tests here both as a way of helping buyers choose qualified applicants and as a way for applicants to sell themselves.  But I have to say, the whole test taking experience ought to have an eye toward not just taking a snap-shot of what you know at that moment.  Rather you should shift the focus a bit toward helping people identify where they are weak on some things, and what they can do to get better.

 Having a section of the PHP or Java test called something ambiguous like "Fundamentals" is no help if there is nothing on this site that defines what "Fundamentals" is, in the context of the test the person just took.  

Soooooo....  how about re-tooling the tests so that not only do you have questions, and answers, but you also have standard reference materials listed and what section the question came from?  It would be so much more meaningful to someone trying to pass the tests.... and would also help them prepare better for the tests.  Wouldn't you rather have more people, who are well prepared, getting higher scores on the tests?

 It seems to me, you would.

Ed

Hi, I have windows vista (home premium) on my system. I have downloaded the oDesk setup file and am trying to run/install it but am not successful.

error it prompts is that its a invalid win32 application.

pls guide....thanks

Hi,

I initially had a odesk installation problem on my computer and had posted a comment on 6/13/08. Fortunately I could sort the problem myself but I did not get any assistance on the same from odesk.

I am still exploring odesk software i.e.its functions as a provider.

I think it would be helpful to force rank the top FAQ's each week that are submitted by volume. Also, segment out overall FAQ's by area of concentration. Such as billing, project issues, etc.

I am newly registered to oDesk as provider. I wanted to know about the terms of agreement. It states that we have to pay to oDesk for maintenance of site. Well, I wanted to know whether we have to pay only after we are getting paid for our assignments  and how much will be the payment (will it be per assignment or its on a regular basis) ??