Related
And now, a word from your friendly neighbourhood moderators!
As you may know some of our Android device forums are a bit "messy", with your help, let's see if we can keep the i9000 forums clean! This is a bit of an experiment, to see if posts like these help at all. Most of the following is simple common sense, and for most of you it will hopefully bring nothing new.
Moderators
The official i9000 forums moderator is Sirphunkee. I, Chainfire will also be hanging around here quite a bit.
Rules
Please consult the forum rules before posting, they can be found here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/announcement.php?f=263#post81
Additions
The rules should be clear enough, however I will repeat some points for emphasis and post some additions here as well.
Use the search
This speaks for itself, though many still don't use it.
Check the i9000 FAQ before posting
It can be found here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=723596
Don't post in the android development section ...
... unless you are absolutely sure it belongs there! The developers / hackers are trying to work, don't bother them with things that do not belong there.
When in doubt, post in the general section. If it's a question, post in the Q&A section
If you're not sure, it probably should NOT go into the android development section.
Treat eachother with respect
No flaming, no personal attacks, be nice, behave, show respect. While you may be responding to somebody who has asked a question you might find dumb, or he didn't use the search, or whatever reason you think you may have, it is never ever warranted to be flaming anyone, and it simply will not be tolerated.
Ignore flames, personal attacks, etc
If these should occur, do not respond to them! Especially when they are directed at you, this is hard to do and you want to defend yourself. Suppres this urge! Responding to these is "feeding the troll", and only serves to bring a thread further off-topic and make it much harder for us moderators to clean up the mess. Responding to these posts makes you part of the problem, and doesn't help anyone. See below for how to report these to have a moderator look at it, and if needed, remove it. Don't let the trolls win!
Saying thank you
This forum does not come with a "thank you" button like some other forums do. While for example if you post a question and others help you out, saying "thank you" is nice, in many development threads saying thank you only serves to clutter to thread. Please do not post a comment saying nothing more than "thank you" in these threads - instead perhaps consider giving the developer a small donation to show your appreciation, give the thread a 5-star rating, or help out in some other way (like assisting others with their problems).
Helping out
There are many of you, and only a few of us moderators. Like you, we are mere humans, we are not paid for being here, and our time is limited - we cannot read every post of every thread. The first few things you can do to help out is behave, assist others, follow the rules, and make sure you are not the (negative) reason that we need to look at a thread or post. But there's more you can do to be of assistance:
Reporting posts
Each post has a "report" button associated with it, found at the top-right of the post. It a triangle with an exclamation mark inside of it, and hard to miss. Clicking it will give you a box you can use to add a comment, and then the post in question will be brought to the attention of the moderators. Be short and precise when writing the comment. While your biography is undoubtedly an interesting thing to read, it has no place in that comment box Please verify that the post is actually against the rules of XDA (see link at the top of this post) before reporting a post. The additions I have posted here, unless they are also present in the XDA rules, are not enforced by other moderators.
Posts in the wrong section
I see a lot of comments on threads that they are in the wrong section. Please handle these threads in the following way:
Check that nobody else has already posted that the thread is in the wrong section. Do not clutter the thread with notices about how the thread starter is in the wrong place, one notice is enough!
If you're the first, post that the thread should have been (for example) in the general or Q&A section instead of the android development section, in a kind and respectful way, and ...
report the post, putting something like "not development, please move to general" in the comment box.
Flames, personal attacks, (severe) disrespect
Even though these are against the rules, they will still happen. As stated above, it is generally not a good idea to respond to them. However, depending on how offensive they are, you might wish to report them for moderator attention. Do so in the following way:
Check that nobody else has already posted that he reported the post. Do not clutter the thread with notices, responses to a flame, etc. One notice is enough!
If you appear to be the first, you might want to post that you have reported said post (without quoting it!), and ...
check if others have quoted the flame, personal attack, etc in their replies, and ...
report the post, putting something like "flame, has been quoted / responded to by others". This makes our job faster to do!
Violations of other rules
These will happen. Again, check if others have already (kindly and respectfully) notified the poster that his behaviour is against the rules. You might want to report such a violation, but please take a moment to think about it, and do not go on a "reporting spree". Is the violation really so severe that it needs to be "handled" by moderators ? Does a moderator really need to warn this user about his behaviour ? Does the post really need to be modified by a moderator ? For example, for some light verbal abuse / explicit language, you might just want to (kindly) ask the user to tone his language down a bit and/or edit his own post, instead of turning to a moderator.
Don't go on a reporting spree
As stated above, think hard about reporting a post before you do it. For example, don't go to android development section and report threads from page 3 to be in the wrong area. The thread is likely already dead, and requesting to have it moved is a waste of both your and our time. Use common sense!
Other
The "star rating" system is not useless
You can rate a thread with up to 5 stars. Please use this ability, it makes it easy to spot high quality and low quality threads for others browsing these forums.
Don't PM myself or Sirphunkee unless you really have to
We get enough PM's as it is. Most things can be resolved without sending us a PM personally. For example by reporting a post, or posting in this thread here.
Need more empty posts at the top of your thread ?
It is not uncommon that you have ran out of space in the first post of your thread (especially with "release" threads). Feel free to request additional "first posts" for your thread by posting in this thread here.
Do you really think a certain thread should (or should no longer) be a sticky ?
Again, feel free to post that here in this thread. Obviously, do not request your own threads to be stickied. If it is worthy, others will request it for you.
Anything you would like to add or request ?
Feel free to post it in here, but please remain on-topic.
The end!
Hopefully this will have a positive effect and is generally helpful, if not, I'll just remove this thread again.
I will try to keep up with the posts in here !
Thank you! I appreciate you putting time into keep our little patch of XDA in shape.
Thanks for your time!
it was about time we got some one official in here
Thank you moderators, for sacrificing your personal time to make this forum more enjoyable.
This is an excellent thread and it was about time to put things in order!
My congratulations guys!
Since there is an option for requests here..I would like to request consideration for this petition:
[Q] Proposal to merge all Galaxy S family into 1 neat and big sub forum
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=764084
Аnd there are already 270+ members up for merging.
Will moderators consider it?
That's an admin decision, not a moderator decision.
Oh, ok, sorry
Did the admins take final decision whether to merge or not?
And are they aware of the situation?
jam3sjam3s said:
Oh, ok, sorry
Did the admins take final decision whether to merge or not?
And are they aware of the situation?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, the discussion about this is ongoing at the moment. The admins and mods are discussing the best way to handle the organizing of all the Galaxy forum sections, and will likely come to some decision shortly. We're looking at the proposal in AllGamer's poll (see the sticky at the top of this section) as a possible solution, and I'm sure we'll post whatever the final decision is somewhere in each of the current sections (this one included) to make sure all members who need to know are aware.
sirphunkee , thank you for your reply and your work
All Galaxy S owners are looking forward to solving this problem
Modified the first post a bit to reference Q&A section. Q&A has been here for a while but I was on vacation
I see lots of great work from moderation lately!
This forum felt little 'undermoderated' until now, but your effort in past hours to keep this place up just cant be missed!
Thank you!
Thanks guys for all you do, got my SGS 9 days ago; was fearful of rooting; found one click lag fix, dove right in; you guys are awesome!!!! thank you!! thank you!!! thank you!!!
Well, not replying to anything in particular and nothing really special enough to warrant a new topic and since this is the most "general" Galaxy S topic I thought I'd share it here.
Swiping my Galaxy S along the the left side of the laptop (keyboard) area puts my Macbook Pro to sleep (around the FN key). Only when the Galaxy S is unlocked and screen, just a weird occurrence I thought I'd share. Tried it on a few other Macbook Pros, same result. Looked around a bit, apparently magnet does this but I'm thinking something else. Interesting nonetheless.
useful topic
Indeed usefull topic!
Sent from my GT-I9000 using Tapatalk
hi
hi you all i am new here
Noted with the rules...
okej good to know
After reading the threads last few days,more and more people started to hurt each others feelings.everyone is scared of asking questions as they call it (noob) questions.everyone on this forum trying to learn something from each other.No member has right to tell other member off.
There is lots of intelligent members are here,i am sure they can easily share their ideas and findings with the other members.
This is best forum there is, so everyone is interested of becoming member.so lets try to live and respect each other.
Please try to avoid asking off-topic questions on the SD/RAM/NAND threads, because it only makes unnecessary traffic and makes harder for the other members to follow the thread.And also make a search on the forum and google before you post anything.
Please ask your questions regarding hd2 phones here,so we can help each other.
I hope everyone will join and help.
I don't think this is fair. I can understand creating your own posts on those forums, but why prevent people who can add insight to problems or have a solution no be able to post a reply to any dev post? I'm sorry, I think is not fair.
so instead of writing 10 meaningful posts you decide to ***** instead? its fair! you know why its fair? because people come on this forum and dont know how to use the search button and then they post irrelevant stuff in places that it doesnt belong to--like the dev setion. say this person wants to root their device. a typical nooob will just scan the first page of the forum and if they dont see what they want there, guess what they'll do? they will post a question. if there were no limit then 90% of those posts would end up in the dev section. obviously 10 posts is not enough. i mean just look in the section for urself. Majority of the irrelevant posts have ben cleaned up but still! idk how many times i have seen "how do i root?" in that section. I am not saying every new poster is like this, but majority of them are. look how bad it is now with a minimum, imagine if there weren't a minimum! 10 posts is fair. it should be 20!
</rant>
For me its a Catch 22. I've had plenty of times where I might have something meaningful to say in a dev thread, but then I hit this and go try and find threads in the regular forum that I can add to. Usually I don't find any that I can actually add anything new and give up after 5 minutes, as I have real work to do.
Oh well...
so.... can we post 10x here instead?
salacc said:
so.... can we post 10x here instead?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good question
I think the limit should be 25 posts before they can make a thread in the Dev section. The limitation on requiring 10 posts to reply to the dev section threads don't make sense as they might have a question. But yeah, newbies to the forums should be limited in making new threads in the dev section so stuff like "How do I root" doesn't push all the useful threads into the second page.
frosty5689 said:
I think the limit should be 25 posts before they can make a thread in the Dev section. The limitation on requiring 10 posts to reply to the dev section threads don't make sense as they might have a question. But yeah, newbies to the forums should be limited in making new threads in the dev section so stuff like "How do I root" doesn't push all the useful threads into the second page.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree with 25 to start a new thread in the DEV sections.
Also shouldn't be any limitation to reply as that's just silly.
frosty5689 said:
I think the limit should be 25 posts before they can make a thread in the Dev section. The limitation on requiring 10 posts to reply to the dev section threads don't make sense as they might have a question. But yeah, newbies to the forums should be limited in making new threads in the dev section so stuff like "How do I root" doesn't push all the useful threads into the second page.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I like this idea too! Yes replying is ok but making a post is a different story.
Sent from my ADR6400L using Tapatalk
lots of stuff in the dev posts require reading and comprehending, if you cant do a simple thing like that you probably shouldnt be trying to root your device or chilling in the dev section.....i mean jeez people post guides in the dev section for a reason....
i kinda understand the 10 post thing, but to me too, it's rather troubling, as they might be something that i wanna ask on the dev forum too at times, but notice i cant cos of my post counts
I don't like it either but it's the rules.
As a N00b - I understand
I'm really new to XDA and I've run into this to...
On the up side the 10 post rule has saved me from getting flamed for saying something stupid.
As a noob I have been lurking and reading posts for months learning to root and flash my HD2 and transformer. It takes ages to get your head around all the terminology and start to have constructive things to add!
I will bide my time until i have the skills to contribute to the community in a meaningful way - til then the best i can do is click the donate button for the Devs.
Any suggestions on good threads to use to level up my droid skills always appreciated!
FYI-the 10 post min was implemented for spammers.
Unfortunately, there are cases where it's a hassle for users with knowledge
FYI AGAIN- You do realize you posted in the wrong forum
This should be in XDA-General or pff-topic
I totally understand and agree with the 10 post requirement.
Too many times I've seen replies like this...
"Sorry if this has been answered before but I haven't read all 50 pages" and then they ask something that of course has been answered a hundred times.
There are also a lot of times that I wanted to help someone in the dev forum but I didn't have 10 posts, but that's ok, because chances are someone else can help soon because threads are usually very active, which is why a noob doesn't want to read it in the first place.
Anyone who wants to help out on the forum can easily find a way to get 10 posts without spamming and actually join the community.
In my opinion, the 10 posts does a lot to help keep the boards clean, as least, cleaner than it would be without it.
People who aren't willing to read and find 10 threads to reply to, and attempt to be part of the community, may not even stick around past asking their question that has been answered before.
Because the majority of the time the same question has been asked over and over again and new forum members are often too stupid to use the search function.
Could you imagine the FLOOD of posts that would be added without the 10 post rule? It's hard enough to find anything *DEVELOPMENT* related in the development forums even with the 10 post rule. Already 85% is about HOWTO not about bugs, development, etc...
Not complaining, hey were all human (not quite androids yet), just saying that I wouldn't want to have to wade through an additional 40 posts a day from people who haven't bothered reading at all...
I'm sorry ,but it seems many of you read the question that I wrote and assumed something completely different.
1) I asked why can't I reply to a post on the Dev forums. You did not hear me state why can't I create a post in the Dev forums. Those are completely different statements and they are not one and the same.
2) As to the fact that a lot of newbs ask the same question a zillion other newbs have asked in these forums. The fact is if you don't know how to read the rules in the first sticky post on any forum then yes you are stupid for not seen the search tools above the page. Furthermore is for this exact reason why I asked the question. Why do I want to spam these forums with useless posts about things I can get from other posts or just Google it? Like many Devs state while rooting your device, you need a couple of things, patience and a little gray matter. So sure I'll go ahead and be the stupid newb that creates idiotic posts just so that he can reach the 10 mark and then post or comment on something useful for a change.
3) Rules are rules and sometimes when people ask if they could be bent they can't and sometimes they can. That is the point of asking the question. If you consider me a troll, a newb, a dweeb or any other lame names then sure have your fun at my expense. I'm certainly more adult then you for asking the question instead of s this and f that. You didn't see that in my post.
4) mike1022, since you are a moderator and know more about what should be posted where I will next time try to post in the appropriate forum. I have a TF101 that I have rooted with the help of many great Devs in the Devs forum and since this was the general posting forum for TF owners I thought it was the appropriate place. My apologies if I made a mistake.
To the few of you who provided constructive criticism, I thank you for for taking the time and effort.
I understand
I understand the need to post 10 times before being to reply in some forums, I'm sure this cuts down on a lot of unnecessary posts. I would really like to help out, but I will attempt to follow the rules and post 10 times so i can post in there
For example, I saw someone post a unix script in the fre3vo thread for Sensation. Then someone asked what about windows. I had already copied his script and converted it to a .bat and tested it on my phone. I would love to post there for them to use, however, I need to get my 10 posts out of the way first.
Here's the zip I would like to post in that thread (contains both unix and windows script). I can script the fre3vo temp root steps in front of it too.
For windows, set up the temp root using the fre3vo steps then run script.bat
EDIT1: grrr, apparently it only works for a few minutes, and simply rerunning it doesn't fix it again. Also, the .bat file i put in there could use some cleaning up...
EDIT2: And before anyone says anything, yes, I am a newb to android, last Saturday was the first time I even touched an android device. Feel free to flame me.
EDIT3: I just noticed this is in the Eee Pad forum, I just did a search for "10 posts before reply." Sorry for posting in the wrong area.
megatron-g1 said:
And before anyone says anything, yes, I am a newb to android, last Saturday was the first time I even touched an android device. Feel free to flame me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Welcome but remember google & the search function are your friends.
I have found that you can always send a personal message instead, does not help the group but at least you get a reply
Hello everyone,
I'm sure many of you have been frustrated with having to answer the same questions 39 times in any given ROM/Kernel thread, or at least have had to read through people asking & answering the same questions over and over.
Or maybe you've had to read the past 85 posts in a thread, b/c you missed 2-3 days of action b/c you were busy, just to keep up, so you could save face, and not ask a question that was already answered.
Or maybe you just like helping out, and keeping threads clean.
Well, I'm trying to get some momentum requesting that the Devs enable the in-thread Wiki post. It's a post that shows up after the OP that allows anyone to edit/update content. Better than an external Wiki...b/c it's RIGHT after the OP & our MODs won't have to waste time updating their OPs over and over...we can do it for them, AND we can save everyone time.
If you like this idea, please respond to my post here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=21592127#post21592127
Just trying to save some headache and trim down the post count in some of our eternally long and monotonous threads.
Ciao-time
how do we know that xdas forum code is able to include this?
Not only that but the people that repost the same questions over and over are the people that don't read the OP anyways... imo it might cut down on a couple dumb/repetitive posts, but not many...
Sent from my SPH-D700 using Tapatalk
Firstly this guide is the brainchild of mf2112 in collaboration with other Recognized Contributors in our forum to hopefully give you (the new member) a good reference point.
We all felt it's useful to re-iterate this in the individual device forums as well as the XDA General forum (original here) as the device forum will be most users entry into XDA when they search for information on their new device.
-----------------------------------------------------
This guide is intended to be a starting point for new users to teach you how to start out on XDA and have a good experience and become good XDA netizens. Any input is welcomed.
To all new users, XDA is a great place where you can learn a lot about how to make your phone better, have fun talking to other smart people about your phone and the Android OS, and maybe be recognized for your efforts. But first there are few things you need to know about XDA to be a good netizen. I suggest bookmarking any of the links below which might seem helpful since chances are in the future it will be helpful to you or to someone else and you will have it bookmarked.
Getting Started
First, please start here by moderators (mods) who enforce the rules when necessary.
Here is the short version. Please:
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
"lightbox_error": "The requested content cannot be loaded. Please try again later.",
"lightbox_start_slideshow": "Start slideshow",
"lightbox_stop_slideshow": "Stop slideshow",
"lightbox_full_screen": "Full screen",
"lightbox_thumbnails": "Thumbnails",
"lightbox_download": "Download",
"lightbox_share": "Share",
"lightbox_zoom": "Zoom",
"lightbox_new_window": "New window",
"lightbox_toggle_sidebar": "Toggle sidebar"
}
Here is the longer version. XDA Rules
Searching
When you have a question you don't know the answer to, don't post a new thread when you could post a question in a relevant open thread, and don't post a question when a few minutes reading and searching will not only give you an answer, but a feeling of accomplishment that you were able to find it yourself, and the confidence to remember and repeat the answer with the link to the thread or post with that answer when you see someone else post that question.
Consider the question you are going to post, pick out the keywords and type them into the search box. Try a few different searches with slightly different words.
New Members Guide-Get the most out of XDA!!
Search guide video
If you aren't sure what a term or acronym means, check this Excellent term definition Glossary by benjamingwynn.
Giving Thanks
Giving thanks is important. It lets people know that their work or answer is appreciated. It is a faster method of feedback than posting a reply like "Thanks for your answer!" You must have one post to give thanks, so here is a good place you can do that without running afoul of the mods for posting no content posts.
The "Say Hi" thread.
You get 8 thanks per day, and they renew after 24 hours or so. Each thanks is independent of the others, so if you give someone a thanks at 3, and then another at 4, those will renew at 3 and 4 the next day. If you run out of thanks, then bookmark that page or open it in a new tab and give thanks later when you have one available.
If you use them all every day you are doing it correctly.
Getting Thanks
You will see that everyone here has a Thanks Meter above their avatar. Here are the thanks counts needed to get to the next bar.
1st bar - 26
2nd bar - 51
3rd bar - 101
4th bar - 201
bug here, never gets to 5 bars, probably 501 if fixed.
6th bar - 1001
7th bar - 2001
8th bar - 5001
9th bar - 8001
Maxed! - 10000
Not that thanks are an indication of a user's status or stature on XDA. Some of the most important people here have a lot fewer thanks than you might guess.
User Titles
As you go around XDA and encounter people, you may notice that they have different titles under their avatar. Speaking of which, click here to upload a picture.
Here are the user titles explained by one of our mods.
0 to 29 posts - Junior Member
30 to 99 posts - Member
100 + posts - Senior Member
juzz86 said:
I'll sum it up for you (or try, anyway!)
There are Junior Members, Members, Senior Members first. These make up the vast majority of XDAs userbase.
Recognised Contributors are nominated by other users and/or Mods/Developers. They are recognised for their contributions which are not specifically Development, such as detailed guides, one-click utilities and other tools/mods.
Recognised Themers are also nominated by users/Mods/Developers, for their work themeing custom ROMs and providing standalone themes for flashing.
Recognised Developers are nominated and approved by the Developer Committee, for their work in Development whether it be ROMs, Root methods, bootloader unlocks etc.
Elite Recognised Developers are again assessed by the Developer Committee, and are deemed to have gone above-and-beyond in providing knowledge/hacks/tools/apps/ROMs for the XDA community.
Forum Moderators are appointed by the Moderator Committee, after submitting an application (see the 'sticky' at the top of this forum - currently applications are not open). They are the first-line of keeping the forums tidy, friendly and orderly.
Senior Moderators are the next step up the ladder, providing site-wide support for Forum Mods and looking after the nitty-gritty issues, as well as areas of XDA not policed by FSMs, such as the Marketplace.
Administrators are next. There are several Admins - each look after a specific part of XDA such as the Portal, the Members and the User Experience of XDA as a whole.
At the top is Mike Channon, who is overall Forum Administrator.
Other titles you may come across:
Moderator Committee - sits on the Mod Committee
Developer Committee - as above, but for Developer Committee
XDA Newswriter - publishes articles for the Portal (front page)
Retired xxxx - have since officially 'left' their XDA position
Hopefully that clears most of them up for you
Contrary to what a lot of people expect, the thanks-meter does not figure at all in determining a users tag.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Posting
Posting is something you may do a lot of here, but it is always important to remember to make your posts good ones. Don't post just to drive up your count, there is no special reward for the poster with the highest total and you won't catch the long timers here anyways.
You will find that there are some restrictions on your posting ability when you first start here. For starters, for your first 5 posts, there is a captcha prompt and a time limit in between posts. While this may seem burdensome, it does an excellent job of keeping spammers from posting garbage throughout every thread. There is a 2 minute limit between posting and editing your posts. This stops at 30 posts when you go from Junior Member to Member.
Always remember advice from the Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy:
Don't Panic!
Please post ALL relevant information. What ROM/Kernel, What you were doing when the problem surfaced, What is the actual problem (not my phone won't boot, help!!), Were the planets aligned,...
Simple information can go along way to diagnose the problem/issue and it also prevents the reciprocal post of "Need more info".
And we have all been there in Panic Mode where you freak out and just want to get some help. Noobs don't look at these devices as phones or tablets, but rather as an investment because well......that is what they are at $500-$800 a throw. I respect my device but that is because I know how to use and recover it but anyone new to all this may not. They see a bootloop and it is strikingly similar to the toilet swirling their money down the drain. That is when Panic Mode sets in.
Don't Panic....Don't be a noob.....Be a New User who is smart and reads a lot and knows where things are and how to find useful and timely information.
Why can't I post in the Dev thread I want to?
It seems like everyone wants to be able to post in the Dev threads since it is the cool place to hang out or more likely, just because the message comes up and says you can't post here. However, those forums are locked down and new users who joined after March 11th 2012 with less than 10 posts will not be able to post there. See 10 post count rule for Dev threads for reference. If you see someone with less than 10 posts in a dev thread, look at their join date and you will see why they were able to post.
This restriction is not meant to be cruel or mean to you, but to prevent inexperienced people from posting in forums which are meant for Development work. Posting "Thanks for a great ROM" might make you feel good, but consider what it adds to the conversation from a Development perspective. If the answer is Nothing, then please don't post it in a Dev thread. If it adds another post to an already long thread with zero value, please don't post it on a Dev thread or anywhere on XDA for that matter.
Also keep in mind that the mods are out there reading your posts, and if they believe you are posting simply to get to 10 posts to post some non-dev comment in a dev thread, you could find all your posts missing and your account temporarily disabled.
Please feel free to thank the dev several times instead of posting "Thanks for a great ROM". Rate the dev's thread with 5 stars using the rate dropdown button at the top of every page of the thread. If you feel that is not sufficient, most devs have a donate button with Paypal. I promise you that they will remember you and appreciate you far more for donating even a couple of dollars versus some post, however gushingly approving, on their dev thread.
Please do not send private messages to the devs saying "Thanks for a great ROM" instead of posting "Thanks for a great ROM". See above.
The best way to start is not by posting, it is by reading. Read, search, read, search. If you read an answer that looks helpful or answers a question you might have, bookmark it, and when you see someone else ask that question you will have the answer for them plus a supporting link.
You might be thinking, is there a place for new users? The answer is no, because the only non-noob areas are the Dev subforums. You can post into your devices General, Q&A, Accessories, and Themes and Apps subforums.
Posting Questions
OK, you got through all that and you have a question that you need that answer to. You have searched, and searched again, and searched again with different keywords, but you can't find the answer. The question is, where do you post it? The first and best place is to check your device's Q&A subforum for a thread posted there, either a general question thread, or a thread already posted there with a similar question. When you post into a thread, that thread is then listed at the top of the subforum it is in and the title turns Bold for everyone else. Someone else may see that thread and know the answer and post it.
Remember, give it some time before reposting. XDA members live around the world and are not going to be on your time zone and schedule. Wait a day and see if you get a response. If you want a notification of someone else posting into that thread, click on the Thread Tools button at the top of the thread and choose Subscribe.
Getting Flamed
At some point, you are going to get "flamed" by someone who feels that your post is stupid, off-topic, irrelevant, noobish, whatever, and they are going to post something like "You are an XXXXX who doesn't know something simple like YYYYY. Don't post here anymore." It is going to happen at some time here, but the important part is not to respond in kind. It will not help the situation, or make your e-peen any bigger, or make you any tougher. It might make you feel better temporarily, but what invariably happens is that the forum mod (or a senior mod) will come in and delete those comments and you might end up on the infraction list, or temporarily disabled, or banned. Just don't reply to it. First, consider the question or post you wrote from a different angle. There is no excuse for flaming someone, but in a multi-cultural environment things may be perceived very differently than what you intended. Second, if the flame is really over the line, click on the little triangle in the upper right hand corner of the post and type in a short explanation and let the mods handle it.
Signature
Making a signature is a very important thing to do since it can help to describe your phone, it's current software, and any modifications you have installed.
A signature should inform others about your phone when you post a question.
A good signature will include information helpful to others beyond the direct target of the question/reply.
A great signature will inform the community with important information and potentially answer questions which have not been asked yet, avoiding repetitive posts.
Please click here to make a signature (5-8 posts minimum) It's cool and you will get more help and respect from us.
Remember this isn't a competition for who has the biggest/longest signature so please remember people come here to read the posts not just your signatures so please be mindful of the size. Just as an example, some users' signatures and a one line post of theirs fills my screen (40" TV) and there's no need for that.
Make it colourful, make it artistic, make it stand out, just don't make it massive
Donations
Making a donation is neither expected or required,but always gratefully received and appreciated.
There are "Donate to me" icons above people's avatar,or in their signatures.
You can also donate to XDA by clicking HERE.
When you donate 10 EUROS to XDA,you get rewarded with a STAR
,which is displayed a little below your avatar.
If you buy 10 STARS ,you will be rewarded with a
.
Remember, always be respectful of other members here and considerate. Most people here are doing this for nothing more than the feeling of helping people as we have been helped by other people previously, and sometimes the occasional press of the thanks button. We aren't making money here and this isn't a job, so please don't tell people what to do or demand things of people such as mods or custom ROM configs to suit you and you will do just fine here.
This is an open guide, but please, in the spirit of what's been written above, please only post suggestions you feel will improve this guide. I hope this guide helps you and makes your experience on XDA a better one. I appreciate your thanks, but I will appreciate you even more if you take this guide to heart and really do it while you are here. Thank you for reading.
While I admire your efforts and the time to write this up, and as much as we want to stop those unnecessary posts and threads, we will never eradicate those unwanted posts. This has been said the umpteens times, but the situation will not change.
g00ndu said:
While I admire your efforts and the time to write this up, and as much as we want to stop those unnecessary posts and threads, we will never eradicate those unwanted posts. This has been said the umpteens times, but the situation will not change.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I truly hate to see you feel that way, but this is not just posted here. The master or template copy of this is posted in the Recognized Contributor Private Chat forum and was originally written by mf2112. He has given all RC's the expressed consent to copy and modify this as much or as little as they see fit. So this is being posted all over XDA in device forums and non device forums, it has already been posted in several forums and linked in a lot of the RC's signatures. So us RC's has taken this on as a group effort to do what we do best, contribute. Our hopes are that our combined efforts will make a difference here on XDA. It may work and it may not only time will tell, but one thing is for sure doing nothing or just saying it will not change does nothing to help the problem.
Reguards
I just wanted to say how much I appreciate the people who went to the effort of rating this thread with 1 star. Your tireless resolve is sure to make XDA a much better place for years to come. 1's of people will surely applaud your every post which is obviously filled with posty goodness. Really, I cannot imagine how XDA could go on without you. Don't ever stop....
I feel a little better now....
Im new here, and i'll try to help in the many ways I could.
Very interesting post, thank you!
this is helpfull information..then hit thanks from noob like me
T-Macgnolia said:
I truly hate to see you feel that way, but this is not just posted here. The master or template copy of this is posted in the Recognized Contributor Private Chat forum and was originally written by mf2112. He has given all RC's the expressed consent to copy and modify this as much or as little as they see fit. So this is being posted all over XDA in device forums and non device forums, it has already been posted in several forums and linked in a lot of the RC's signatures. So us RC's has taken this on as a group effort to do what we do best, contribute. Our hopes are that our combined efforts will make a difference here on XDA. It may work and it may not only time will tell, but one thing is for sure doing nothing or just saying it will not change does nothing to help the problem.
Reguards
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't be mistaken, I am on your side. Just take a look at the various forum threads, Siyah kernel, CM9, etc etc. Those threads were filled with personal opinions, usual banal talks, etc. Some of those posts even ask questions without even bothering to find out the issues, and expected the developers to "help" them solve the problems.
I think the fundamental intention is often taken for granted by some of the users. Remember that this site exists BECAUSE people wants to make their phones better, trying to squeeze out every ounce of performance, trying to share what they have done, and hoping others can benefit from their mods. However, along the way, this intention is lost and people thought that it is within their rights to get the developers solve their problems.
I guess that a disclaimer should always be put up in the beginning of the post. That the users have a right not to use the mods, and the developers reserve the rights not to answer them if the problems are posted in the wrong section. If it is possible, the developers should open 2 threads, one in the development section and another in the general section.
If I may humbly suggest, let the OP has the administrator rights to their own thread only, or he can assign someone whom he trust to oversee the thread is kept clean and tidy. OP can also revoke this right if things doesn't work out. This way, it also relieves the duties of the moderators.
mf2112 said:
I just wanted to say how much I appreciate the people who went to the effort of rating this thread with 1 star. Your tireless resolve is sure to make XDA a much better place for years to come. 1's of people will surely applaud your every post which is obviously filled with posty goodness. Really, I cannot imagine how XDA could go on without you. Don't ever stop....
I feel a little better now....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Your designation speaks volume and this post demonstrated your contributions within xda-developers. Forget about the rating, and remember that there will always be some black sheep among the whole flock, when the flock numbers to more than 4 million members.
Pols-k said:
Im new here, and i'll try to help in the many ways I could.
Very interesting post, thank you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
viusyalis said:
this is helpfull information..then hit thanks from noob like me
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why is this thread not locked?
oinkylicious said:
Why is this thread not locked?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's been left open so that useful feedback can be given by members, ie improvements to the guide that will be beneficial to other new members. As with everything this will evolve with the member base.
It's good to see its being used and accepted but for anyone that doesn't agree with it or doesn't see the point should try refrain from posting here as is of no benefit to its purpose.
Sent from my GT-I9100
I'm not sure if you directed that at me, but I didn't question the validity of the thread. I asked a rational question considering the only posts here before mine have been ones questing the point, justifying the existence and spam.
There was no request for useful feedback in your post, nor a request not to debate the existence of it.
oinkylicious said:
I'm not sure if you directed that at me, but I didn't question the validity of the thread. I asked a rational question considering the only posts here before mine have been ones questing the point, justifying the existence and spam.
There was no request for useful feedback in your post, nor a request not to debate the existence of it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No sorry wasn't directed at you in that purpose, I was trying to bounce off your post (the way you intended it) so others would read it and only post useful feedback. The last paragraph says about suggestions to improve the guide.
Sorry for the confusion and thanks.
Sent from my GT-I9100
If I may humbly suggest, let the OP has the administrator rights to their own thread only, or he can assign someone whom he trust to oversee the thread is kept clean and tidy. OP can also revoke this right if things doesn't work out. This way, it also relieves the duties of the moderators.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Over on the RC forum, we asked for the exact same thing, and the idea did not get very far, the admin see the opertunity for this to get abused, so are not in favour of the idea. Although we asked for this to be implemnted for RC, RD and RT only.