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Do we really need thread Nazis right now?

This is a new phone with new users coming in here every day. I've seen he same one or two people here not answer a single question, they just say wrong forum or hey let me google that for you.
Way to foster a growing community.

I think everyone that replies should encourage people to search for themselves and put things in the proper forums.
I know it falls on deaf ears as most people want to be spoon fed - it is just to much work to read 30 pages of a thread to understand how something works - they just want the short answer. Then they complain when they miss a step and break something.

I agree. It seems like they just started recently. Ive had my phone since launch and it hasnt been like this. It does get annoying to see dumb questions but most on here its our first android phone ( backflip and aria didnt really cut it).
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

I have just decided if you are a thread Nazi I will block you. I have 2 on my ignore list right now.

gunnyman said:
I have just decided if you are a thread Nazi I will block you. I have 2 on my ignore list right now.
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If you don't know how to block people, let me know and and I'll google it for you ; )
J/k, don't block me.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

ashoooo said:
If you don't know how to block people, let me know and and I'll google it for you ; )
J/k, don't block me.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App
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LOL 10chars

gunnyman said:
This is a new phone with new users coming in here every day. I've seen he same one or two people here not answer a single question, they just say wrong forum or hey let me google that for you.
Way to foster a growing community.
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Click to collapse
I do notice the large amount of people that seem to ask questions that have already been covered or start cloned threads that do not need repeated. You could view it as overly eager people who want to jump into the community before getting to know it or as people to lazy to do a search and/or read some existing threads.
Either way, I always felt ignoring the post seems to be a better option than making a negative comment. I think you are correct in saying this does not "foster a growing community."
Do keep in mind that it is sometimes hard to search for the correct answer or how to word a question when you are new to a subject. Back in my first few weeks of XDA on my old tilt, I felt a bit bombarded by new terminology and confusing tutorials. More experienced members should be able to determine if an OP is partialy ignorant or just plain lazy. I say when in doubt, ignore it.

Good post, Shovelhead. I agree with your comments.
I think another factor is that just now many people are just being introduced to smart phones. And that in turn probably is causing many new forum users to come on board. I mean new to forums, period. So they may not know the methods, and protocols expected.
It's interesting that I see in many forums that some people will expend more effort griping or castigating someone than it would take to just answer the question, or ignore the post/thread if it is one that doesn't interest them.
I actually am not familiar with the ignore option. I presumed that would just ignore if they sent you PM messages.
Can someone Google that for me?

ewingr said:
Good post, Shovelhead. I agree with your comments.
I actually am not familiar with the ignore option. I presumed that would just ignore if they sent you PM messages.
Can someone Google that for me?
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In efforts to prevent confusion, I was referring to a personal ability to ignore. I have not used any ignore features through the forum. I am currently ignorant to these features.

Shovelhead84 said:
In efforts to prevent confusion, I was referring to a personal ability to ignore. I have not used any ignore features through the forum. I am currently ignorant to these features.
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I put them on ignore so I don't say something banworthy to them. It's the best form of self moderation for me.

I understand your point, but having the developement section tampered with unnecessary threads hampers its readability. And to many it is fundamental to keep up with multiple threads in there.
I'm not the kind of person that goes around bashing new users, but I did notice an increase in such threads lately, and although "thread nazis" can be just as annoying, don't forget there's no personal gain for them in it: they're just trying to keep the forum as clean and readable as possible.
I mean, there is a reason to have a Q&A section: using it would actually make it resourceful for newcomers while keeping developement clean.

I actually would say there haven't been many "thread nazis" in the Captivate forums. I read development for the most part and there are MANY questions (hell half of them start with [Q] that have NOTHING to do with development, people just want a question answered for them) that just belong in Q&A.
Most of the people (most, not all) tell people that they are in the wrong section but usually still provide the answer in hopes of letting the thread die. asking how a command works in adb does not count as captivate-specific android development.
it's important to remind people that the development section should be left for DEVELOPING android on the phone or TESTING new developments on the phone (or thinktanks and the occasional request for apps that would have to be dev'd to get functional)

Has anybody tried to use the search since the redesign? All my searches come up with a hundred pages of nothing remotely related to what I searched for, and that's using all combinations of the advanced search. At least for me it's useless now.
This stuff here makes mad:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=752670
Sent from my captivate

In my begginings in this forum I'm ashamed to admit that I acted like one too. But now what I do is when I see an out of place thread I reply very succinctly almost bordering on a terse response and then I suggest the Q&A section.
I then proceed to answer as many questions as I can for 5 min in an effort to make the Q&A section the best it can be and not clutter the rest of the sections.

boborone said:
Has anybody tried to use the search since the redesign? All my searches come up with a hundred pages of nothing remotely related to what I searched for, and that's using all combinations of the advanced search. At least for me it's useless now.
This stuff here makes mad:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=752670
Sent from my captivate
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I find the search function works very well.
As for not liking references to google - I don't see the problem - OK, maybe you were looking for more specific information, but like all things, likes of forums is suggestive. So why not use google, search for Android forums, then pick the ones you like.
So many questions are answered by using google but no one tries that, so unless someone says "I have tried google, and only find X - but I want Y" then a response that says "try Google" is not out of line.

My $0.02 has always been this ...
We were all noobs once. When I was a noob I had enough sense to spend time and effort rooting around XDA to learn about my new (at the time) device before I started to ask questions.
Whether it's here, or on any other message board in cyberspace, that is the standard level of expectation that the senior members of the forum have. Experienced members want to help people and often spend a lot of time adding their experience to the forum, but they also want the new members to try to help themselves first. When they see someone ask a question that's answered in a 'sticky' at the top of the page or one or two posts below on the first page, it can be amazingly frustrating, and as others have said, it unnecessarily clutters up the forum.
So yes, sometimes people are harsh. Personally, if it at least looks like someone has tried to find and answer but can't figure something out, I'm always happy to help. Those who make their very first XDA post a question that has been asked and answered many times will get a 'search is a beautiful thing' response from me with a link to the post where the answer is. It's a subtle jab, yes, but at the same time the poster gets an answer. It's not meant to be a 'Thread Nazi'.
Hopefully that nudges them down the path of looking first and not expecting to be spoon fed everything, and to the realization that the forum doesn't exist simply to be a place to pop in and ask a question and go. Every time I pick up a new device and move to a new forum I see a ton of this ... one hit wonders that you never see again.

I I don't have a problem with that at all.
But what value does "hey you should have posted that somewhere else dumbass" provide. especially in "Dev"
I mean General is the catch all
Q&A is kind of basic
Themes and Apps are self explanatory.
I see dev section as the "hey I wanna break stuff" department. If the answer to a question could break stuff I say it's a dev question.

I agree with most remarks on here. I know i have been too harsh with post on here. But mainly after i read the same post in different threads. I agree that there are alot of newer members now that are lost in the threads lol. So im glad this thread was made and cast new light for me. Guess i need to be nice and more helpfull.

smokestack76 said:
I agree with most remarks on here. I know i have been too harsh with post on here. But mainly after i read the same post in different threads. I agree that there are alot of newer members now that are lost in the threads lol. So im glad this thread was made and cast new light for me. Guess i need to be nice and more helpfull.
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Well well Smoke seems like once again we are on the same device lol. Ill be working in this forum more closely cleaning things up and trying to help point new users in the right direction.

zelendel said:
Well well Smoke seems like once again we are on the same device lol. Ill be working in this forum more closely cleaning things up and trying to help point new users in the right direction.
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Yes this rocks!!! I guess my talks with a few people worked Glad to see ya here
Yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

i thought this site was to help each other out

so i thought this was to help each other out and for the guys making the roms to gets some beer hahaha J/k you guys are doing a great job but i see a lot of people *****ing about gps come up dude buy a freaking tom tom or something and people being mean to newbies not everyone knows what you know so why not be cool and help and a lot of people do i know they have helped me but for the % that don't man ya'll should think
about how you act everyone is human no one here is a android well maybe D.G. (Keep them roms coming bro you are killing it) anyways i'm just saying it doesn't hurt to be nice

Dfuse06, period. Period, dfuse06.
Now that you're acquainted, I suggest you use him.

dfuse06 said:
so i thought this was to help each other out and for the guys making the roms to gets some beer hahaha J/k you guys are doing a great job but i see a lot of people *****ing about gps come up dude buy a freaking tom tom or something and people being mean to newbies not everyone knows what you know so why not be cool and help and a lot of people do i know they have helped me but for the % that don't man ya'll should thing about how you act everyone is human no one here is a android well maybe D.G. (Keep them roms coming bro you are killing it) anyways i'm just saying it doesn't hurt to be nice
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Just remember that "help" is different from "handout". People that ask for help that have actually tried to do something and are having problems - get help.
People that come here and ask "tell me how" without trying first or even using the search tools - they want a handout. it is hard to be nice to the people with the paper cups and their hands out - work a little bit like the rest of us.
Most people achieve by learning, not by hand outs.

alphadog00 said:
Just remember that "help" is different from "handout". People that ask for help that have actually tried to do something and are having problems - get help.
People that come here and ask "tell me how" without trying first or even using the search tools - they want a handout. it is hard to be nice to the people with the paper cups and their hands out - work a little bit like the rest of us.
Most people achieve by learning, not by hand outs.
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Although I agree to a point you have to wonder how much less [email protected]$&ing, complaining, and angry posts you'd see in threads if one person would simply answer a person's question fully. As it is now if a person asks a question chances are you'll then see 4-7 posts of other users yelling at them to use the search feature, or to read back 500 pages, etc.
I think what it comes down to is you have two types of people. Type 1 does the research and then asks questions (which still tend to get nasty replies) to clarify. Then Type 2 people that are either incapable of doing proper searching due to language barriers or inexperience or that are too lazy. Type 2 people don't get the answer they need after the 4-7 nasty posts so end up asking again getting another 4-7 nasty posts and in the end didn't learn anything anyways.
I seriously think our threads in this community would be much shorter and cleaner if people stopped posting the complaints and cryptic "Go back 500 pages and read the 3rd post newb" and just simply answered the questions that they're obviously able to.
I mean you're (nobody in particular) taking the time to post a nasty message anyhow, so why not change it from a nasty message that spawns more messages and ugly debate and simply give a good answer?
The upside to that philosophy? Threads would contain less useless information, questions and their answers would be easier to find, so less questions would end up being asked.
That's my opinion anyhow. And I know it's pretty much impossible to expect such utopian behavior when it comes to online forums where everyone wants to express what they're thinking whether it helps a situation or not. But wouldn't it be nice?

@sschrupp
I agree with you, but how many times do people say "I don't want to read 10 pages of posts, just tell me how"?
The truth is, that those 10 pages have more info then one person can respond to with a quick "tell me how" answer. All the pitfalls, bricks, and other known issues are usually in those 10 pages. If the lazy actually read the full thread, we would eliminate the other 15 subsequent posts they make when they screw up or run into known issues.
XDA used to represent the people that really liked to hack and had the skills and desire to figure out how things worked. Now it is home to every noob with a smartphone. I was noob once too, but before posting, i read everything i could to try and figure things out. Then i would ask for details about something i didn't understand.
Anyway, must my opinion. I so appreciate stickies like the "Captivate bible" but no one reads it. how many posts do we see on "how do i get back to stock?" More peeps looking for handouts.

I have been lurking these forums for about a year (mainly HTC Kaiser...now Captivate). I find most of my answers by searching and reading. I understand why it might get frustrating when people ask the same question over and over when they are answered in stickies or previous posts, but at the same time I am just curious as what one needs to do to prove that they have done this. I search every problem I have...but what if I can't find an answer. Is "I have searched the forums and have been unable to find the answer" enough? What can one do to safely ask a question without being ridiculed for it's seemingly obvious answer?

jfsouthward said:
I have been lurking these forums for about a year (mainly HTC Kaiser...now Captivate). I find most of my answers by searching and reading. I understand why it might get frustrating when people ask the same question over and over when they are answered in stickies or previous posts, but at the same time I am just curious as what one needs to do to prove that they have done this. I search every problem I have...but what if I can't find an answer. Is "I have searched the forums and have been unable to find the answer" enough? What can one do to safely ask a question without being ridiculed for it's seemingly obvious answer?
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Click to collapse
What I'll do is tell what search terms I used. Google is great, if you know what to search for. Also, I use the 3 day rule. Give it three days, if I haven't found it by then, then ask. Plus thread jacking is ok to ask a quick question. But I don't put a simple question in general. I use q&a or off topic. Those are just my own rules for myself.
From a phone

jfsouthward said:
I have been lurking these forums for about a year (mainly HTC Kaiser...now Captivate). I find most of my answers by searching and reading. I understand why it might get frustrating when people ask the same question over and over when they are answered in stickies or previous posts, but at the same time I am just curious as what one needs to do to prove that they have done this. I search every problem I have...but what if I can't find an answer. Is "I have searched the forums and have been unable to find the answer" enough? What can one do to safely ask a question without being ridiculed for it's seemingly obvious answer?
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I can't offer any right answer, but people should stop taking offense when they are ridiculed.
If someone can show you the answer (or point you in the right direction) and then give you hard time because they found it using the site search tools, then don't feel bad.
Too many people get bent of shape and whine because someone called them a name or gave them a hard time. People don't refuse to help; but they may chastise for not doing your own work.

I was just curious. I never get bent out of shape when it comes to online interaction. It is what it is...faceless and nameless, which just makes it easier to be a prick. Getting miffed is an effort in futility.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I897 using XDA App

If people think these forums are bad, join some automotive forums.
From a phone

I've been trying to figure things out for my Captivate as well. I read and search before I post yet people are still reluctant to help. I'm like all on my own when it comes to the problems or questions I have.

geokilla said:
I've been trying to figure things out for my Captivate as well. I read and search before I post yet people are still reluctant to help. I'm like all on my own when it comes to the problems or questions I have.
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Perhaps they just don't have the answer to your questions. Or it could be that the answers have been posted numerous times prior to your asking.

geokilla said:
I've been trying to figure things out for my Captivate as well. I read and search before I post yet people are still reluctant to help. I'm like all on my own when it comes to the problems or questions I have.
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Why do you say people are reluctant to help? It looks like you have replies to your posts.

jfsouthward said:
I have been lurking these forums for about a year (mainly HTC Kaiser...now Captivate). I find most of my answers by searching and reading. I understand why it might get frustrating when people ask the same question over and over when they are answered in stickies or previous posts, but at the same time I am just curious as what one needs to do to prove that they have done this. I search every problem I have...but what if I can't find an answer. Is "I have searched the forums and have been unable to find the answer" enough? What can one do to safely ask a question without being ridiculed for it's seemingly obvious answer?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can't offer any right answer, but people should stop taking offense when they are ridiculed.
If someone can show you the answer (or point you in the right direction) and then give you hard time because they found it using the site search tools, then don't feel bad.
Too many people get bent of shape and whine because someone called them a name or gave them a hard time. People don't refuse to help; but they may chastise for not doing your own work.

Dude, seriously, I read your questions and posted the links to prove the point that you aren't searching as you claim you are. Stop whining and complaining when there are dozens of thread slready posted with the answers to your questions. Don't take it personally when you are called out for not searching. I've been called out for it when I missed an obvious answer to a question, I spend a lot of time on here following threads and I have a life and work full time and have a family so it really unerves me when anyone says oh I don't have time to read 100+ pages, so you basically do it for me. I am not saying you did this but a lot have and then they eff up their phones and then need help, could've saved us all a lot of reading and shorten threads by everyone reading the threads before asking questions.

We all know where this is going.
Thread Closed

Disappointed in the rudeness I am reading :(

Hey guys I was meandering through the forum reading up on the root progress, and I read about a member's idea and work on an automated root, I just want to say that from a dedicated member to the inc forum I am disappointed in the flaming and garbage that all you "experienced" devs are throwing at the people who haven't used adb before... Come on guys if you can't be kind why say something, you know? They won't learn if somebody is discouraging them from even trying... So just a thought, be kind because discouragement is not what these forums are about guys.
Peace to all you silly android fans out there and happy rooting!

People will make those sort of comments unfortunately.
And people will make these sort of posts about it.
Just another day on almost every community forums.

engagedtosmile said:
People will make those sort of comments unfortunately.
And people will make these sort of posts about it.
Just another day on almost every community forums.
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Just saying man, coming from the inc forum where we actually help eachother... Its no way to talk to somebody who could actually turn into a decent dev, its happened tons of times

It has nothing to do with being rude or polite... The root process is very crude at the moment, recovery is not fully functional and You really can't back up if you fubar your phone... There is a very strong possibility of making a paper weight with the current method ... Just be patient I hear unrEVOked is working on root which won't come out until a solid recovery is running
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App

Here is a link for anyone needing adb help. i made a post in a thread with links to help users learn adb and understand it. i understand the being new and needing help. the link in the post are the links i used to learn adb and everything with it.
Will go directly to my post with links:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=12255365&postcount=27

I agree with the OP...it was just the attitude of some of them that was the issue. Very rude and condescending. I do agree that right now it's a crude root method and that without a solid working recovery it's not advisable for anyone but the experienced. BUT that is no reason to denigrate those that want a one click solution down the line when things are solid.

When the Inc first was rooted, I remember the same types of posts about not knowing adb = shouldn't root.
It's just part of the territory. Also it leads to the same hand-holding through the process 50x a day.
It'll pass, just like it did with the Inc
Sent from my HTC Incredible using Tapatalk

The above post is correct. Don't let anyone discourage you. We were all new to this at one point, and I don't think there is a single one of us that did not get an impolite comment directed towards a valid question at some point during the learning process.
Sent from my Thunderbolt using Tapatalk

People are just rude in general. If you say something someone doesn't agree with, they make damn sure you know they disapprove. I took my leave from the INC forums after the iPhone 4 debacle that happened in the general forum. That and someone told me my ROM list was stupid and worthless in a PM...
I concur, I can ADB like I'm typing a paper (I have extensive command line experience) but my gf, who bought her first android phone recently, can hardly turn a computer on.
Long story short, some people don't want to risk breaking their brand spanking new phone just to have more functionality. If an easy, tried and true method presents itself, people will not only flock to it, but they will gladly give money for it (I know I would). Calling someone a noob or making fun of them is counter-productive and will deter all future forward progress here. No one wants to dev for a bunch of ingrates and jerks.
+1 to the OP.

necosino said:
When the Inc first was rooted, I remember the same types of posts about not knowing adb = shouldn't root.
It's just part of the territory. Also it leads to the same hand-holding through the process 50x a day.
It'll pass, just like it did with the Inc
Ditto- I know what I don't know. And I don't know adb.
Sent from my HTC Incredible using Tapatalk
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Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App

I agree 100%. Too many jerks here for this forum to be a useful resouce atm. Maybe one day down the line....

magneticzero said:
I agree 100%. Too many jerks here for this forum to be a useful resouce atm. Maybe one day down the line....
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I would, respectfully, disagree w/that statement.
IMHO what happens is people get tired of listening to the same questions over and over and over - this is why we have a search button and why google kicks ass too. I think people get snippy after seeing the 8 millionth person come in and ask "what's root" or "what's a ROM".
I'm not sure of the rudeness the OP was mentioning as I haven't seen it in regards to NOOB developers, but from my own personal experience around here I've found this place to be very helpful. I learned all I could about rooting my Eris via google and on another one of the android forums, ultimately a google search landed me here and I took the plunge and rooted and started w/the Kaos ROMS before trying many, many others.
People shouldn't just come in and start asking Q's - they should look around first and when they don't, that's why trouble starts (not here, on ANY forum).
As far as the OP here goes, I haven't read the posts he was talking about, but I can understand why -if somebody was looking for legitimate "how to" info on development and that person was met w/a bunch of crap - they would be frustrated.
I love it here

If you find any rude people pm me about them, I have a hammer
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk

Captainkrtek said:
If you find any rude people pm me about them, I have a hammer
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk
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We also have a chicken and a kraken (sp??) ....

As one of the newer users here, I understand where both sides are coming from. The amount of content here is kind of intimidating for some people, and those who are looking for a "do everything" solution such as one-click root are going to be dissappointed. And then some people are so impatient to root that they'll be pestering people, asking any question that helps them out immediately, not checking for already posted questions, and that's the hand-holding that is being criticized/attacked here.
But I do see where they are coming from. There is a lot of information here that is important, but with the volume of posts, it gets lost, and there seems to be no direct go-to thread or threads for people to ask questions like that in this forum. Unfortunately, not everyone is going to read all the threads here, nor will many set foot in the general Android forums here I think, so they don't know where to start, and many will ask their own questions in their own thread(s).
If anything, some of the most important information that needs to be more accessible IMO is the links to the driver/tweaking the driver for the device to be picked up with adb.

Russ36363 said:
There is a lot of information here that is important, but with the volume of posts, it gets lost, and there seems to be no direct go-to thread or threads for people to ask questions like that in this forum. Unfortunately, not everyone is going to read all the threads here, nor will many set foot in the general Android forums here I think, so they don't know where to start, and many will ask their own questions in their own thread(s).
Click to expand...
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We all have our moments. I tend to answer the questions first, then include something like if you have to ask this, you're probably not ready to do it on your own yet, or here's your answer, but a simple search would have revealed it.
Google and search are our friends. Most of the "old timers" just get annoyed when people ask something that could have easily been found with either a Google search (set site to xda if only interested in xda responses) or with a forum search (search from main area that covers all subsections, use "show posts" and skim through the results), because the same question has been/asked answered dozens of times already.
All that said, the sub-forum structure across devices is inconsistent, the protocols of where to ask/post isn't consistent, and the search feature in xda absolutely SUCKS. I've always considered myself a pretty good query builder to find what I want quickly, but even I have to run through multiple searches to find what I'm looking for. The 30 second delay between being able to start a new query can be very frustrating, if xda dropped that to 10 seconds or so, it would probably encourage more multiple searches before asking. It's no wonder newer members get frustrated, though many are just too lazy or desperate to take the time to look...

Captainkrtek said:
If you find any rude people pm me about them, I have a hammer
Sent from my SCH-I500 using Tapatalk
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Alright good to know, thank you
Sent from my bad ass mini thunderbolt

Russ36363 said:
There is a lot of information here that is important, but with the volume of posts, it gets lost, and there seems to be no direct go-to thread or threads for people to ask questions like that in this forum.
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Click to collapse
A Q&A sub-forum would help with this. It helped the Fascinate forum out a lot with the very same issues described in this thread.
Sent from my ADR6400L using XDA App

Garrett07 said:
Just saying man, coming from the inc forum where we actually help eachother... Its no way to talk to somebody who could actually turn into a decent dev, its happened tons of times
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I just want to say that until last night I HAD no idea how to use adb. One of those devs that you are complaining is so rude, got me the help I needed, to the point that they were on RDP with me and handheld me thru it, even straight did some sections.
In ither words I'm finding nothing but help from the dev community.

qwirked said:
I just want to say that until last night I HAD no idea how to use adb. One of those devs that you are complaining is so rude, got me the help I needed, to the point that they were on RDP with me and handheld me thru it, even straight did some sections.
In ither words I'm finding nothing but help from the dev community.
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I never said they aren't helping, I'm saying that rudeness is not what forum communities need to be based on, its not right that people have to have attitude online, nor in general, people come to forums for help and communication they don't want to get on a thread and see that somebody has posted a reply being rude to their work and or statement, its just something I'd like to see change but it never will

Help make Thunderbolt section better

Hello everyone, I'm writing this because lately there has been a lot of turmoil in this section. People are leaving, upset with xda, posting off topic like crazy and showing hostility like I've never seen here before. I really wanna help make this section better as this is my main device and hate seeing it like this. I try and do what I can, delete off topic/flaming posts, move threads to the proper sections and so on but would love some input from the users here to make this section better for everyone. Granted I'm not the only mod here but this will benefit all of us so here's what I'm asking. If you see something you think we can improve on post it here. If a user is rude, flaming and going off topic pm me or another mod here or report it. I will do my best to address anything posted here. Granted I can't do anything about xda rules as they are in place for a reason but I can always bring up suggestions to the other mods and the admins. I really wanna work with everyone here so please suggest away. Off topic posts, flaming, rude comments will not be tolerated in this thread.
Thanks,
Ryan

Ryanmo5 said:
Hello everyone, I'm writing this because lately there has been a lot of turmoil in this section. People are leaving, upset with xda, posting off topic like crazy and showing hostility like I've never seen here before. I really wanna help make this section better as this is my main device and hate seeing it like this. I try and do what I can, delete off topic/flaming posts, move threads to the proper sections and so on but would love some input from the users here to make this section better for everyone. Granted I'm not the only mod here but this will benefit all of us so here's what I'm asking. If you see something you think we can improve on post it here. If a user is rude, flaming and going off topic pm me or another mod here or report it. I will do my best to address anything posted here. Granted I can't do anything about xda rules as they are in place for a reason but I can always bring up suggestions to the other mods and the admins. I really wanna work with everyone here so please suggest away. Off topic posts, flaming, rude comments will not be tolerated in this thread.
Thanks,
Ryan
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I commend you. I could imagine your task at hand is like trying to clean up the streets of St Louis by yourself. It has become anarchy here, just people running their mouth with no consequence. You deleted one of my posts because it became off topic, I was actually happy, because it was deserved.
My only suggestion is consequence. I know it's hard to really "punish" someone over the internet, but any kind of action should be taken to breaking the rules.
Thanks for taking your time just to read post over post, just to see if people are following rules.

Thanks for taking the time to respond! Believe me there will be consequences if people break forum rules and I'm making a personal commitment to be extremely active here and do everything I can to make it better for everyone.

Ryanmo5 said:
Thanks for taking the time to respond! Believe me there will be consequences if people break forum rules and I'm making a personal commitment to be extremely active here and do everything I can to make it better for everyone.
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You're welcome. See you around

I think one of the problems that has gotten worse lately is the way new members are treated. Please see here from today:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1166265
I understand about searching, etc, and repetitive threads, but there is a right way and a wrong way to handle things and too many members here have started acting unacceptably to new members imo. It sets a tone and then the new members act the same way and the problem snowballs on itself and we end up with a forum of everyone being rude to one another.
anyway just my opinion and thanks for your efforts in cleaning things up

One of the biggest problems I have seen around Tbolt forums, is the fact that developers bust their asses for us and MANY people act as if it's a Dev's privilege for us to be using their Roms and what ever else. People should be thankful we get all these nice Roms and themes and what ever else for FREE. The other big problem I see is people not searching I've asked quite a few questions but MANY more have been answered just by using the search feature.
I know we have stickys but I think a big Noob sticky would help cut out some of the mess/easily answered questions.

Old MuckenMire said:
I think one of the problems that has gotten worse lately is the way new members are treated. Please see here from today:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1166265
I understand about searching, etc, and repetitive threads, but there is a right way and a wrong way to handle things and too many members here have started acting unacceptably to new members imo. It sets a tone and then the new members act the same way and the problem snowballs on itself and we end up with a forum of everyone being rude to one another.
anyway just my opinion and thanks for your efforts in cleaning things up
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VERY unacceptable, thanks for pointing out thread it has been cleaned and closed. We were all newbies at one point and those replies are the exact thing I'm trying to rid xda of. Thanks for the help!

ScoobarSTI said:
One of the biggest problems I have seen around Tbolt forums, is the fact that developers bust their asses for us and MANY people act as if it's a Dev's privilege for us to be using their Roms and what ever else. People should be thankful we get all these nice Roms and themes and what ever else for FREE. The other big problem I see is people not searching I've asked quite a few questions but MANY more have been answered just by using the search feature.
I know we have stickys but I think a big Noob sticky would help cut out some of the mess/easily answered questions.
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Sadly that's the way it has always been, there are always those users who are on here to simply tear people down and complain. Maybe its boredom but its something that has always bothered me as well. Not sure there's much anyone can do about it however, unless they are flaming and posting rude comments that's when the mods can do their thing. If enough complaints are reported about certain users then action is also justified so don't be afraid to let us know.
I'm gonna improve the sticky I put up in the dev section to include more info for noobs and see if that helps.

Ryanmo5 said:
VERY unacceptable, thanks for pointing out thread it has been cleaned and closed. We were all newbies at one point and those replies are the exact thing I'm trying to rid xda of. Thanks for the help!
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No problem man, and I'm not trying to rat people out either. I just wanted to show an example of what has been going on. A lot of members here(even me included at times I'm sure) have been acting like this is our forum instead of us all acting like guests here and treating others as guests as well.

It's so hard to clean things up and police them, what one person feels should be asked in a thread for a specific ROM another person feels should be in the "general" or Q&A section.
If I'm having a "general" (ie battery, GPS, etc.) issue after I flash a ROM I'm going to look to that ROM's thread for answers - I find that if I post something in the 'general' forum about a specific ROM I get all kinds of answers from folks running different ROMs or that are not rooted and, while I appreciate the help, I don't think that somebody is as able to help unless they are on that particular s/ware. Isn't battery life and/or GPS a development issue if a lot of people are having that problem? Spin off to a new thread, reduce clutter, and post a link to the thread in the OP. (then you can at least chastise somebody if the info is in the first post which should ALWAYS be read in its entirety).
I think it would be nice if a developer would put in the OP a couple links to specific threads that have been started that are talking about specific issues w/a specific ROM. Right now the CM7 development thread has spawned a couple different troubleshooting threads, but there is no link in the OP to those.
On one of my previous ROMs the OP had all kinds of links to help threads and FAQ, etc.
I also think that the old "if you can't say something nice...." saying should be rule #1 - it would save a LOT of issues when somebody chimes in and says "how do I.....?" and somebody else responds with "why don't you try reading/searching, etc." - why can't they just take the same amount of energy they used typing that snide comment and instead point in a helpful direction?
I understand the frustration, I too get tired of the same Q's being asked over and over again but I've also failed at the "search" on the site and had to have people guide me, especially when it's something I'm new to, like Netflix, etc.
Now I'm just rambling......

ScoobarSTI said:
I know we have stickys but I think a big Noob sticky would help cut out some of the mess/easily answered questions.
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I really doubt it will.

I can see what everyone is saying. I've been involved with Android phones since day one and have been active on several boards for many years now.
I was with T-Mobile for over 15 years and am a Pillar on their boards, so I've spent alot of time there.
I've used XDA for some time now with the G1, G2, Cliq, MyTouch, etc.
When I got the Thunderbolt, I came to this forum and I noticed a very different "air" about this forum as others had pointed out. I found it kinda odd since the phone was so new.
One thing that I did notice was that "moderation" (and I know everyone is busy around here) is not as, for lack of a better word..."swift" around here. On most other boards I am on (and also ran), rules violations were not tolerated and handled very quickly with "Time outs" being given out to minor offenders and outright bans given to major offenders.
That being said, as other have said, unless there is a consequence for an action, the behavior will continue.
Not sure what can be done to help monitor this board better, since I do not know how all of it is handled internally, but I think if there was more of a moderator presence (as in jumping into a thread and posting about staying on topic or watching language, etc). Maybe the "bad boys" will just get tired of not being able to "terroize" anyone anymore and just leave.
Just my two cents.

2 issue's that see on this board (and others) -
1. Anyone that ask a question already posted is immediately called a N00b and slammed on.
2. Just cause someone has low post count they are called N00b (yep happens to me on this one)
It seems that there is no patience by many user's on answering questions (if you don't have kids wait till you do, you will be answering them many times over) why get so flustered cause people ask questions, whether or not they have been answered. Not everyone is a N00b because of low post count (I know I'm not and can hold my own anytime) I also don't act like I know everything either. Some people can't let things go either.. if you don't like it why respond? just ignore it. A little common courtesy goes a long way folks. Also folks asking for things to be fixed ASAP on newly released Roms and refuse to use them until they are or they ***** and complain over and over about the issue. Just a question, do you act like this at home or deal with things like this at home with programs you use? All software has issue's if you think they don't or your the perfect programmer, you don't belong doing this. Even major software and telecom companies have bugs that happen that are not always caught on release. Its normal and if you can do better and want everything perfect, then start programming!

I'm actually planning on creating an introductory FAQ/howto for new users. I've written documentation for new users to Linux in the past and many of the questions parallel. I'm more than happy to help in any way I can
sent from my rooted Thunderbolt with das BAMF 3.0 rc4

admiralspark said:
I'm actually planning on creating an introductory FAQ/howto for new users. I've written documentation for new users to Linux in the past and many of the questions parallel. I'm more than happy to help in any way I can
sent from my rooted Thunderbolt with das BAMF 3.0 rc4
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Feel free to add to it!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1168433

i commend you for this ryan but it's gonna take more than just you to make xda a better place to be. the issue is instead of people just answering questions, they always say "search" .....what a waste.
the other issue is this site seems to be run by the members and not the devs, nobodies hardly on here anymore it seems. it also takes forever for a mod to show up when you report something. now don't get me wrong i love xda for the freedom i have to an extent, i also do not want a police state like android central is. there has got to be a medium somehow.
i wish we could of talked about this earlier, i hate the fact soo many devs have left the tbolt section.

I'm glad to see an effort is being made, it's going to take work from everyone.

Perhaps we could have a subforum for unrooted users? There's a lot of questions where one assumes the person is rooted (because they don't bother to say) or users that aren't rooted are looking at the wrong topics to figure out what is wrong. There's also a lot of flaming between those that root and haven't rooted on the Thunderbolt forums it seems.
For example:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1169292
As a rooted user, this post would just be a waste of space and pretty offtopic. For an unrooted user, you're going to get the obligatory "ORLY???" type posts from rooted users because to those that rooted, this is old news (either because they already got the update ages ago or they changed their boot animation to something custom).

yareally said:
Perhaps we could have a subforum for unrooted users? There's a lot of questions where one assumes the person is rooted (because they don't bother to say) or users that aren't rooted are looking at the wrong topics to figure out what is wrong. There's also a lot of flaming between those that root and haven't rooted on the Thunderbolt forums it seems.
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i dunno if id support that move, the forums can be cluttered enough as it is. if your not rooted at all i have no idea why some of you are on here? this place is for custom rom, mods and themes for rooted users mostly. no offense of course but most users come here too root.

fixxxer2008 said:
i dunno if id support that move, the forums can be cluttered enough as it is. if your not rooted at all i have no idea why some of you are on here? this place is for custom rom, mods and themes for rooted users mostly. no offense of course but most users come here too root.
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I'd say probably 20% that come here don't root. I have no idea why either when they could go to more general forums for android out there that aren't so development/rooting focused. I really don't have much empathy for them when they complain about things being broke/not having fancy new features, but eh, each to their own. They would be better off complaining to the source (verizon) than complaining on here cluttering up the forum, since most of their issues cannot be fixed without doing what the refuse to do.
With that being said, a seperate forum would let them figure stuff out without getting in the way of those that did root.

What about an SGS 4G Facebook page?

It seems that too many devs are leaving us due to repeated noobs question and generally flooded threads.
I thought to myself why not use an SGS 4G facebook page as a gate for all QA & General simple questions and leave development issues and logs for the xda forum? This way people will have the community they want and devs will get the order and work environment they want.
Please let me know what you think before it will become another one of those threads and be closed by moderator.
Thanks.
Sent from me

In theory it sounds great. However people will not post there for reason they dont post in proper sections here.
The real issue is this, the community is divided. I left the Optimus V because Virgins coverage sucks for me. I really wish I could have kept the phone and plan and the main reason is the community. At AC I swear the people there help everybody. Even if it is a question already asked. Somebody will pipe up and offer a link.
Im guilty as charged in attacking a n00b for being stupid. However witht eh cost of the Optimus V and the extremely cheap plan many people was buying the phone to tether and have cheap internet. And Most of those people were clueless as to what the hell they were doing. In most cases a friend told them about the phone and plan and how easy it was to root and start tethering. As a end user you dont want those people creating issues for your service. So if your rude and refuse to help they go away.
But right now I can point you to at the minimum of five threads where the community is helping the noobs and letting the devs do their thing. If a dev needs to address something they do. Otherwise the community answers questions. The biggest reason for this is changelogs, instructions, and all that stuff is never deleted just updated. Even if the rom has evolved to a new level. The old info is still posted so people can find out what changed in the various releases. Plus even after somebody asks the same question ten others have asked patience is exhibited and answers are given.
The community here needs to stop worrying with telling people to search and start offering help. Most people come here and ask because they dont know how. And quite honestly dont feel like reading thread after thread after thread of rules and guidelines.They are looking to get a answer for the problem at hand. Most of them will go away if pointed in the right direction. However when people start piling on flaming them for not searching properly it just creates more spam in the thread and drives them away. Then you have people that talk major **** about how xda is a bunch of arrogant f*cktards.

Plenty of people do help in my observations. Im new and signed up only to help people. Answered a 'noob' question before making this post, amd I was nice about it too.
Fortunately, most 'noob' questions have already been answered somewhere on here. I know this because every question I have ever had has been answered by searching for it, not by posting. Not by derailing dev threads either.
The dev threads are filled with simple questions with simple, searchable answers. I shake my head when I see the same question asked posts apart surrounding the answer in a non-Q&A forum. And then I see that person who is asking get mad, or cry 'search nazi!' because someone says to search for it. Give me a break.
If the answer to a simple and eady to answer question is out there and can be found by a search, and someone asks the question anyways after being told that is what they should do in yhe futurethat is laziness, not ignorance. And getting on their case is not arrogance, some of those asking questions have high enough post counts here, they should of learned how to make their own way by now.
I should also add that I have no programming experience, and have only been using a smartphone for 3 months. Yet I have never had to ask a question about how to install a rom or fix a brick. Because I searched for the answer, and everyone else should too.
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App

eollie said:
The community here needs to stop worrying with telling people to search and start offering help. Most people come here and ask because they dont know how. And quite honestly dont feel like reading thread after thread after thread of rules and guidelines.
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How do you think the "experts" learned? I only posted 3 threads in my first 3 months here at XDA. Do you know why that is? I searched and didn't find an answer to my questions and I decided to make threads. Turns out people didn't know the answers to those either. Go figure. Everything else that I wondered about I found a thread or guide for. It's really not that hard.
If you're not willing to do some reading to be able to understand how to follow a guide you shouldn't be flashing anything to your phone.

Holocene said:
Fortunately, most 'noob' questions have already been answered somewhere on here. I know this because every question I have ever had has been answered by searching for it, not by posting. Not by derailing dev threads either.
The dev threads are filled with simple questions with simple, searchable answers. I shake my head when I see the same question asked posts apart surrounding the answer in a non-Q&A forum. And then I see that person who is asking get mad, or cry 'search nazi!' because someone says to search for it. Give me a break.
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I agree people should use the search function. Have you ever thought they did search and ended up being directed here. I have seen stuff posted and a day later comeback searched the thread because it had grown five to six pages since I seen the post and dont know where the information is. Only to not be able to find the post in question. Yesterday I searched for something I had seen posted the search results..stated they were updated 10 minutes before I had searched. How is that even possible?
FBis251 said:
How do you think the "experts" learned? I only posted 3 threads in my first 3 months here at XDA. Do you know why that is? I searched and didn't find an answer to my questions and I decided to make threads. Turns out people didn't know the answers to those either. Go figure. Everything else that I wondered about I found a thread or guide for. It's really not that hard.
If you're not willing to do some reading to be able to understand how to follow a guide you shouldn't be flashing anything to your phone.
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Im not saying every single question should be answered with a simple heres the answer next time search response. But dont expect every person to read through every guide in fifteen threads to figure out where a wallpaper is located.
Not every person that comes here for answers is a dev or wants to be a dev.

@ eollie: I have a great idea... quit talking about it and writing these long unnecessary posts and start helping. Lead by example! Maybe others will follow suit since you seem to think people don't help others on here. I am not sure what you are trying to accomplish with these LONG posts?

eollie said:
I agree people should use the search function. Have you ever thought they did search and ended up being directed here. I have seen stuff posted and a day later comeback searched the thread because it had grown five to six pages since I seen the post and dont know where the information is. Only to not be able to find the post in question.
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I generally bookmark posts that contain information relevant to my interests that I may not be able to commit to memory at the time. Yes, some get changed but most are because the information is wrong or outdated. Another post nearby most likely holds updated info.
eollie said:
Im not saying every single question should be answered with a simple heres the answer next time search response. But dont expect every person to read through every guide in fifteen threads to figure out where a wallpaper is located.
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I just typed "where in an android rom is the default wallpaper located?" into Google. The first link is to an XDA post titled "Where is a Rom's default wallpaper stored?". The answer to that question is on the first page of the thread. It even has instructions on how to extract it.
Try it yourself. Searching works.
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App

Holocene said:
I just typed "where in an android rom is the default wallpaper located?" into Google. The first link is to an XDA post titled "Where is a Rom's default wallpaper stored?". The answer to that question is on the first page of the thread. It even has instructions on how to extract it.
Try it yourself. Searching works.
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App
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I spent three hours tearing apart a rom to find a wallpaper used on the lockscreen. Im not a dev nor am I a themer but even doing a search for where lockscreen wallpaper is located kept directing me to widgetlocker and those types of apps. A week ago I would have just posted here in hopes somebody would point me in the proper direction. Instead I just sat in front of my computer for three hours because I didnt want to deal with the responses.
Your smartass response...well its not so smart.
@lumin30 dude seriously if you dont like my posts ignore them. Im sorry the community here is absolutely horrendous in helping people. Prime example is the post I have quoted above. Instead of taking what I was saying and using it logically he took it literally. I wasnt asking where I was using a simple example of what I have seen here. Then he even attempted to insult me with his last comment.
Im not here to make friends or enemies. Im here lookig for ways to better my android experience. When that experience is hampered because some tool wants to be a internet badass it pisses me off. Especially when in the process of berating somebody they prove how ignorant they really are. Most people that post here are human beings once in a while you will get a spam bot but 99% of the time you are dealing with a human. Some are old enough to be your grandparents others your teenage brother/sister.

POST REMOVED for sake of preventing a four paragraph response!

wow.....
i really could say something towards this thread for you guys to feed on, but i'll just shut my mouth and just say one more word.
wow.....
now what's the title of this thread again? sorry, but reading all this here made me forget. and sorry for yet another 4 paragraph response.
sent from within pure darkness

eollie made some ramblings against Raver in the Q&A section too.
eollie - I am sorry! Please do not attack me with four paragraphs for saying that.
MY RESPONSE: OK

lumin30 said:
eollie made some ramblings against Raver in the Q&A section too.
eollie - I am sorry! Please do not attack me with four paragraphs for saying that.
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And you just cant let it go can you? I apologized to him and he has accepted it. See adults work things out and accept mistakes and apologies. I guess a child like you just wants to keep the friction and tension high so you appear to be superior. Regarding my not following my own advise in ignoring people..I find your posts in response to me very amusing. You just can help yourself and not respond. Your like a woman arguing to get the last word in. You just cant help it. I would say Im look forward to your response but honestly its not fun anymore you are too predictable.
lumin will post within the next ten minutes rebuting me.

Your name calling, swearing, and the chauvanistic and defamatory comments you just made speak on your behalf. Noone on this board is picking on anyone as much as you are. Good luck getting any help or making friends with that attitude. Peace out dude.
@mods Im done with this, sorry about this being new and all. I couldn't continue watching his thread derailing and user bashing without saying anything.
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App

Holocene said:
Noone on this board is picking on anyone as much as you are. Good luck getting any help or making friends with that attitude. Peace out dude.
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Im glad you feel that way. I have seen it first hand tho. You even did it in your initial post to me. Tried to insult me via your last comment. Good god its like people cant see past their own nose. Im guilty as charged in smashing noobs with a bat. But Ive never claimed to not do it. I just think sometimes it is not necessary.
Holocene said:
@mods Im done with this, sorry about this being new and all. I couldn't continue watching his thread derailing and user bashing without saying anything.
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High road exit was before you posted to me initially. Getting back now will be a long process or winding mountainous roads. Dont forget to enjoy the view along the way tho. There is some awesome put out points to take pictures.

as much as i'd hate to say this, but i see this thread getting deleted before the weekend.
itzik2sh said:
It seems that too many devs are leaving us due to repeated noobs question and generally flooded threads.
I thought to myself why not use an SGS 4G facebook page as a gate for all QA & General simple questions and leave development issues and logs for the xda forum? This way people will have the community they want and devs will get the order and work environment they want.
Please let me know what you think before it will become another one of those threads and be closed by moderator.
Thanks.
Sent from me
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now to get back on topic. i personally think it might be a good idea, but unfortunately i don't see it working in this community. we're trying with our wiki page, but it seems that people just want to be spoon fed for this device. trust me, i've checked the mytouch 3g slide forums (my fiance's device) and the galaxy tab 10.1 forums (my next device) and have yet to see what goes on here on those forums. seems to me MOST people with this device are nothing but spoiled little teenagers that are spoon fed all the time. it's no wonder the devs are dropping like flies. if i was a dev, i would leave also. sorry for ranting on your thread itz, but felt this was the best place to put in my 2 cents worth.
sent from within pure darkness

droidmyst said:
now to get back on topic. i personally think it might be a good idea, but unfortunately i don't see it working in this community. we're trying with our wiki page, but it seems that people just want to be spoon fed for this device.
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I mentioned it before but a lot of people ignore wikis because they are typically out of date. In the beginning people will update them regularly and then just stop. However after some time looking around I can say the SGS4G wiki is just the opposite. Tons of info and for the most part easy to navigate. Which brings up another problem with wikis. The ability to navigate it easily and endless loops of redirects. Again the SGS4G doesnt appear to suffer from that.
Maybe instead of the sticky posts with thread links we could get a single thread with wiki links. That way info is updated and people are spending an hour navigating through search results within one thread. In my mind this makes sense just putting it in print is eluding me.

Idk about the Facebook page. Seems a little too personal lol, and not everyone uses it.
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App

vgcraze said:
Idk about the Facebook page. Seems a little too personal lol, and not everyone uses it.
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App
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The fact it is personal and exposes peoples real identity is what makes it awesome. Most of the people here wouldnt act the way they did if they were made to use real name and such. Being anonymous has so many advantages and disadvantages.

Can I just point out that I started a thread with a guide to flashing and is intended to help the devs buffer the questions to that thread
Sent from my Kindle Fire using the XDA premium app

itzik2sh said:
It seems that too many devs are leaving us due to repeated noobs question and generally flooded threads.
I thought to myself why not use an SGS 4G facebook page as a gate for all QA & General simple questions and leave development issues and logs for the xda forum?
Sent from me
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back on the actual topic, since it has once again been derailed by the self-appointed thread police....
Devs are not leaving us only for the reasons you stated. Some of that may be part of it, but it's not the sum total...
As for Facebook page... feel free to create one, and I wish you the best of luck.. as one of those 'weird' people who doesn't use Facebook, i won't be coming to visit it...