Rezzer's How To Guide: Installing Addons

Mods. Addons. Whatever you want to call 'em works for me. Either way, I love these little things to death. A mod is a little folder that can be downloaded to change the way the game works, looks, or feels to you. For example, you can download Auctioneer to scan the auction house for deals. You can even download a threat meter like Omen to warn you if you're about to take aggro from your tank. All of these mods make the game a little bit more fun while sharpening your skills as a gamer.

But, what good is a mod if you don't know how to install it?

Here is a little run down of how to install a mod and activate it. I hope you're ready, because your gaming experience will be changed forever if you give mods a shot. Let's go!

First, you want to find something to download. Reputable sources are Curse and WoWInterface. All three of these sites are updated regularly with the most popular mods. WARNING: Always scan these files for viruses. Never install something with an .exe file. NEVER. You've been warned.

Go ahead and download the file. It should arrive in a .zip format. Unzip it with your favorite program and keep the folder handy.
Now you want to go into your Applications folder. Scroll down until you see the World of Warcraft folder. Go ahead and open it.
(Please note that I have Ventrilo installed. Cool people have Ventrilo installed. Are you cool?)

Now that you're inside the World of Warcraft folder, you want to search for a folder labeled Interface. This folder should look like this...
Click on that Interface folder and you'll get the one folder that were going to be working with. Ah yes... the AddOns folder! Go ahead and open it up. It looks a bit like this...
Now, grab the file that you just downloaded and drop it into the AddOns folder.

All done! You've just installed your first mod. Go ahead and close up your Applications folder and fire up the game. I know you want to. Just do it.

Once the game has loaded, you want to make sure that the mod is turned on. At the character selection screen is a little button labeled AddOns. It's located at the bottom left corner of the screen. Click it.

That will bring up the AddOn List that you see below. Click on Enable All to turn on your shiny new mod.
There you have it! Welcome to the land of the mods. I hope this helps a little bit as we talk about some mods in the future. Have fun in Azeroth!