I have a Traeger wood pellet grill smoker and think it is great. Easier to use than a big green egg I think.

Smoked salmon is very good, especially with a brief brine.

A thermometer is helpful for monitoring temps.

Practice on ribs. They are forgiving and it is hard to smoke them too long but easy to go too short. The advice to wrap them up in foils and towels is good. I wrap them in foil, put them in a paper grocery bag, and the hold them in the oven at 160 degrees until ready to eat. If you use sauce, sauce them for 20-30 minutes on the smoker before wrapping.

Something I love, but I never see anyone else do, is smoking chuck eye steaks, ~1.5-2 inches thick, with a chile powder/salt/brown sugar based rub. It does not take long for the fat to render and then it is like a hige ribeye. Serve with some home made bbq sauce and it is great.

BTW, the Traeger is and excellent baked potato grill. Rub the taters with olive oil, kosher salt and pepper and put on high for 1 hour. Perfect.

The Traeger's are now made in China. My friend has one and although it works well, he has basically rebuilt it a couple of times under warranty because it keeps breakng down. Were I to buy another, I would get an American made Memphis grill or similar. They get a higher max temp. They can be used as smoker, oven, or grill which is very convenient. You can use a variety of wood from mesquite, to fruit woods, to hickory.