Hi,
I've recently got a Touch Diamond and have found certain aspects of this forum helpful however I can't help but feel that this place has an appauling forum layout.
Are you afraid of creating some sub-sections or something? I mean seriously, what's the point of all the square bracket tags on the start of topic titles?
They don't make it easier to find because the topics are still jumbled up with all the others anyway and a good topic title should let you know what it is related to in the first place. I thought that maybe at least a search for a certain tag would reveal all of those topics but alas no, the search gave me no results at all even though I can see them on the screen in the forum listing it still doesn't find them.
Take the Diamond themes, apps & s/w section for example...
Why not simply create a sub-section for related topics such as Themes and hence have all theme topics together and do away with the need for tagging the titles.
Sorry to criticise your forum but I just don't see the logic in the current system as it makes things very difficult to find, especially when the search tells me there are no results containing [THM] or 1.93 etc. :lol:
Thanks for the reply regarding the search, hopefully I'll be able to find a little more of what I'm looking for now.
I've come across plenty of forums that don't allow searches for less than 4 characters but surely [THM] is 5 characters
Anyway, that's not my main point, I just think that the forum ingeneral would be friendlier to browse and need less searching if it was better organised to begin with.
Thanks again for the reply and nice little site overview
I agree that a good forum is run in a manner that keeps the members happy though it should also be as user friendly as possible. There are always people who prefer to avoid change but they will quickly get used to changes if they are for the better.
I'm a forum SuperModerator myself and my advise is that a clear layout helps a lot with finding info, where to post questions and also getting replies for those questions as topics don't get swapmed like they do in one large general section.
As for mods being unloved I would say that depends on how much of a presence they have in the forum, invisible mods are unloved because they are unknown with no personality but if your mods are active forum members they will be known and more respected as well as being someone people can go to if problems arise.
lol, sorry I didn't meant to launch into a forum moderation tutorial there
Why not just create a "Developer" forum usergroup for all the Android/Winmo developers who create ROMs/Mods/Themes and use that rank to filter out who is allowed to create new threads in the respective "Dev" forums of each phone? It's maddening to see so many [Q]'s among all the ROM titles and would REALLY clean things up, not to mention push all the other Q/A and help traffic into the forum sections they actually belong in, resulting in greater topic exposure, and by extension, potentially expedited help in dealing with problems.
Have a simple process of a message appearing when a non-dev clicks on the new thread button in the Dev section, and have it say "Sorry, you are not a recognized developer. Android/WinMo developers are the only ones allowed to post here, all questions and other discussion belong in the Q/A forum of this phone (Link here). To apply, simply PM (some moderator), tell that moderator you are a Dev, and you will be able to post.
You're not going to have to ask for proof from Devs who want to post, because since the majority of help threads created in the Dev sections are made by people who simply don't know better, are new, or don't understand the difference between forum sections. There won't really be censorship, because no user who needs help with xyz gps issue is going to go through the trouble of trying to fill out a Dev rank request forum when they suddenly realize they are posting in the wrong forum, and will move to the correct one.
It won't even be difficult to implement, just look through the dev forums and start granting people who are already android/WinMo developers the Developer usergroup. It's not even like they need extra permissions, the only extra permission they'd have is being able to post in their Development and Hacking forum.
Love XDA, Cheers!
+1 to this idea.
It won't be hard to implement, but it will be a constantly time consuming job for the Administrators to monitor the boards to appoint certain users to such a 'Rank'.
Along with this idea... why not a 'Community Assistance' rank for those who don't necessarily develop, but rather help users with issues they may have: answering questions, providing tutorials for help, sharing resources, etc..
I'll get straight to the point....
Despite stickys and forum announcements most of us are still finding ourselves becoming terribly, terribly vexed at the amount of [Q]'s cluttering the dev section...
Therefore, from now on, if you do not follow the rules outlined below, you will be infracted. Break them again and you may find yourself unable to post anything at all on any forum!!
[Q]Surely thats a bit harsh aint it??
[A]Not really....
We've tried to be nice about it but that clearly doesnt work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you cannot read and abide by the simple rules in this sticky then I dont know how you're going to manage to hack your device without running into trouble.
The Dev section is NOT for asking questions.....
The Dev section is NOT for general topics..........
All threads posted MUST be prefixed with a description of the thread, [ROM] / [Kernel] etc etc.....*
*(Not planning on being particuarly strict on this. You guys (the devs), know how to title a thread.... just a pointer for new devs.)
Basically, unless your thread is to actually release something or discuss something of a very technical and n00b unfriendly nature, it doesnt belong here!
Pretty simple really.....
If you see something that shouldnt be here then PM me....
I will try to check in as reguarly as I can but I have a few sections to keep an eye on and believe it or not, a life outside XDA
Yes thats right, there is life outside XDA
Post What Where:
General - general technical discussion items, news, anything else that does not fit into the other fora categories.
Accessories - any items to do with components and/or accessories relating to your device.
Rom Development - only meant for very advanced technical discussion directly related to ROM development activity and the delivery of actual ROMs and ROM components ONLY. Nothing else goes in here.
Themes & Apps - anything to do directly with the development of themes and/or applications. Nothing else goes in here.
MOD EDIT: BEFORE POSTING ANY THREAD IN THE DEVELOPMENT SECTION, PLEASE READ THE FOLLOWING:
If you have developed a ROM, or are working with others to do so, the development forum is somewhere to discuss and share ideas, post useful feedback and logs or crash dumps, and to discuss a common goal developers are trying to achieve.
It is NOT the place to post your question because it gets higher traffic, or because more experienced users frequent it. Doing this just annoys those who are working on the device, and drives them away. Developers don't want to wade through 20 threads of "Help me urgently" to find their threads for porting and fixing camera issues etc. Similarly, if a thread is designated as discussion for developers say, porting a camera fix, please do not post in there asking "When will it be ready?", "Can I flash this yet?" etc. This is both completely disrespectful to those working on the project (you evidently haven't read the important posts in the thread), and also is making it harder for developers to find comments from other developers or testers when required.
Similarly, don't make loads of "Thanks for your work here" posts in an active development thread. It's just as annoying to developers as asking when something will be ready. If a ROM is complete, then go ahead and thank the developer if you wish, but don't go into threads for devs only, and interrupt it to post "thanks". It's basically spamming, and is treated as such.
If you are posting in development, you should have read every sticky and notice there, and should be actively developing or helping in the development of something. Developing isn't installing a ROM, or using a tweak, it's creating a ROM or other hack or tweak. If you haven't read for several days before starting out on XDA, you are likely about to ask something already solved. I registered on XDA when I first wanted to post, and that was to join in a discussion on something. Sure, join up and ask a question, but read the information available in General and Q&A first, as your question will have been asked before. Search is your friend here, become familiar with it.
Regarding when to post in development if you are not actually developing something, there is one occasion where it's acceptable. If you find a leak of a new ROM, which isn't already posted, and you verify it's legitimacy via either running it, or based on the source you obtained it from, then this is assisting in development, and should be posted in development. If you want to ask when a leak will be available use search first, then if not already in discussion, open a thread in general or Q&A.
If you have a problem flashing a ROM, this is NOT related to development. It's up to you to determine if it is specific to a particular ROM, and post useful information in that developer's existing thread for the ROM. If it happens on more than one ROM, and isn't a known issue (remember you should read several times more words than you post), then find out what you are doing wrong. Check guides written by others, try to repeat the problem and see if it happens every time. Something needs to be reproducible to be fixed effectively.
Once you have identified what you need help with go to the device Q&A forum (general if device lacks one), and make a clear, informative thread that explains the issue, and what you have tried doing to fix it. Did you re-download the ROM? Did you ask a friend to flash it for you, to reduce chance of user error? What steps (exactly) did you follow? What errors did you see (exact wording)? Did you double check all the steps? Did you do a wipe or hard reset?
If you make a clear, concise, yet detailed post, you will find help forthcoming, and should get the problem sorted very quickly. If someone suggests you try something, report back on what happened, did it work etc. Then, next time someone has this issue and searches, they will find this and have a verified and tested solution.
So remember... before you start a thread in development, ask yourself what you are developing. If you can't answer, then stop, step away from the post button, and think about where you are posting. Would it be better in General or Q&A, or is some more time with your best friend, search, required?
Hopefully this brings some change to the forum, this site is a great place to learn and develop for everyone no matter what stage of the game your in. There are quite a few people here that really put forth the effort to help others no matter how fundamental the question is and it would be a shame to see XDA take a turn like other forums have in the past.
To: conantroutman
You are my Freakin Hero, Thank You!!! LOL
The annoying thing is, people are STILL not following the rules -_-
GazaIan said:
The annoying thing is, people are STILL not following the rules -_-
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They probably never will but at least now they are being punished so that they either learn from their mistakes or leave...
Sent From My Fingers To Your Face.....
I understand where you are coming from but...yes a bit harsh, so many people come he now and then etc, Just my thoughts. I will post what I deem necessary in what I think the proper thread is. Obviously not going to ask how to flash rom, (which is in developers section) Maybe you should move those topics out to faq or general, it only draws more attention to the dev. section
---------- Post added at 09:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:35 PM ----------
conantroutman said:
They probably never will but at least now they are being punished so that they either learn from their mistakes or leave...
Sent From My Fingers To Your Face.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This will only drive people away, ban me and I surely will look for another forum and recomend it to my friends, thats the mentallity, because what you have on these forums is also on 3 others, please dont tick off ppl. I personally dont think this is the right approach. Educate people first. I have been admin for several forums, very hostile ones at that, please take some advice.
As was announced last week, Operation:Iron Fist is in full effect. Read about it here.
With that being said, the following will begin to happen:
1. All non-development threads started in the Development section will be moved to the appropriate section and/or closed and the "responsible" poster (in quotes because the fact they posted in the wrong section clearly brings into question whether or not they are responsible) will be infracted.
2. Any abusive posts directed at any user will be deleted and the abuser will be infracted and/or given a temporary vacation. Multiple instances will result in a longer leave-of-absence, and if it continues you will be removed from XDA. You, and your behavior, are not welcome at XDA.
3. Any off-topic posts in the Development section threads will be deleted. These are non-helpful, and certainly not development posts. This includes the following:
"OMG THIS IS SO GREAT!"
"WOW! YOU ROCK AND I WANT TO HAVE YOUR BABIES!"
"THIS IS THE BEST THING EVER!"
"THANKS FOR THIS!"
If you want to thank someone for their work, do so by clicking the "THANKS" button on their post.
4. Any post, in any section, that is done to further post count will be deleted and you will face possible infraction.
5. Anything else that goes against the XDA Forum Rules and XDA Mantra will be dealt with firmly, but fairly.
[Q] "Request new forum rules" sticky or "Request new forum" forum?
Reading through all forum request posts and threads throughout this "About xda-developers.com" forum and "(requests) From the Users to the Mods & Admins" thread I wondered whether it's time to create:
a sticky with "Request new forum rules" (ie. a sticky that explains what needs to be achieved before a new forum request is honored, like amount of requestees, anount custom ROMs built, first hacks, rooting, modding, etc. done)
a "Request new forum" forum, so admins and ops can easily spot new forum requests without having to cleanout and check existing Q&A forums like this one...
Regards,
Nika.
Especially Android is a very fast-growing OS with new great devices nearly every week and many not-so-mainstream phones and tablets besides HTC and Samsung and the rest that really should get some attention.
But I would never be completely satisfied with a product w/o root or Custom ROMs simply because I know that the manufacturer won't support it as long as the community would or I can't use essential stuff like Backups.
However I'm not quite talented with all the hacking and development stuff, so xda is my prime source for that.
After a little bit more than 3 years passive reading I had a first request but found quite a mess.
It seems like nobody knows where to request new forums and even the Mods say different things where to post. The only thing they say in common is that these posts are in the wrong section and are therefore being ignored.
In short words: a central, easy to find (been trying to find the 'right section' for quite some time) place for these kind of requests would be great! Thanks for your efforts
btw: I don't mean to criticise the Mods/Admins or the forum itself. I just want to share what I experienced as a not so noobish and not so active user
The new thread is here:
[Requests] Ask for new forums here