I think the lack of intuition in some of the tools is an imediment for new users, even long time users such as myself. For example, when you activate a tool (such as bend), its not immediately clear what you are supposed to do. Namely, I am referring to the bend tool. Its pretty ambiguous. Things such as choosing the center for the bend would be much easier if they were done in an interactive way that didnt require trial and error... The third step is particularly confusing (although it shouldn't be.) It requires you to choose the direction of the bend, but for the user who isn't familiar with normals, it makes things way more tedious than they should be.
The simple bend plugin is much more accessible for new users but it doesn't allow you to only bend certain parts of an object.
The simple bend plugin is much more accessible for new users but it doesn't allow you to only bend certain parts of an object.