Peter Poelman
24-12-2003, 12:24 AM
This message is meant to provide you with some basic tips for posting to XDAdevelopers sucessfully. The guidelines below aren't rules, enforced by some force-from-above. Instead they are hints to help ensure you don't waste too much of your own reputation and other people's time.
1. Check if something hasn't been asked before
Some questions just keep popping up over and over. Please use the 'search' function in the menu above each and every page in the forum. Try entering a few keywords to see if your question has been asked before. If it has, please read the topics and see if you can figure it our from there.
(We acknowledge that part of the problem is that we never created a well-organized system of FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) documents. But then we're doing lots of cutting-edge stuff, and we'd rather build cool tools than work on perfecting FAQs.)
2. Use a clear subject
So you're going to post a message, and need to think of a subject. Try to keep in mind that many people actually use that subject to determine whether they will even look at your message. If you really, really need help, the subject "I REALLY NEED HELP" is the worst possible choice, because many people will not read it. A subject like "I upgraded to 4.00.16 and now I can't downgrade anymore" is much better: it will get the attention of other people that have solved the same problem, and you are much, much more likely to get a reply.
3. Please try to write your message so that other people understand
This board is in English. We know English isn't everyone's native tongue, and we certainly do not nitpick about spelling and grammar. But please try to be somewhat articulate about what you want to say or ask. A long message is likely to be more readable if it has a few commas or at least a period every now and then. TRY NOT TO USE SENTENCES MADE OF ONLY CAPITAL LETTERS, as this is annoying to read. When you are done, read your message again, and try to see if someone else would understand what you just wrote.
The use of online translation services to translate a message from your own language to English before posting it is discouraged. Please use this as a last resort only.
4. Everyone here is a volunteer
Be polite when you ask something. "I need RSU 4.21 now!" is less polite than "Does anyone have RSU 4.21 for me?". If you ask a question and there is no answer, it may be that nobody knows the answer, or that everyone reading your message knows the question has been answered a few times already and that the simplest search would find the answer.
You're welcome to reply to your own message with a small reminder after a few days have passed, so that it goes to the top of the list again. But please do so only once, and do not keep nagging. It may be that nobody knows, and you truly can't expect people to answer "I don't know" to all questions they can't answer.
5. Post a message only once
This place has multiple message fora, and you will have to select which one is most appropriate. If two fora are equally appropriate, pick one but don't post in both. Lots of people read their messages using the 'view posts since last visit' button, so they see your message no matter what forum you post it in.
6. Fill out the details in 'Profile'
If you click 'Profile' in the menu above every page, you'll get to a page which allows you to edit what the system knows about you. Make sure the correct device type, ROM versions and GSM provider are filled in. It really helps people help you if they don't have to ask these things first.
7. Post in the forum about your device if appropriate
There's special forums for the specific HTC phones this site deals with. If you know your message only applies to one model, please post it in the appropriate forum. The general groups grow too large if everybody posts everything there.
8. Stay cool
Think of this as a on-line temple. A sacred place, dedicated to collaboration, learning and collective wisdom. Don't shout and try not to get angry. Maybe the world should adhere more to the basic filosofy of Internet protocol design: "Be strict about what you send, and liberal about what you receive". This forum has people from all countries, cultures and levels of mental maturity. This means that no matter what you're like, you'll have to adjust to people that are most definitely not like you. But on the other hand, try to be gentle with people, even in the event they're not gentle with you. It will gain you many reputation points if you help to keep the peace.
9. Help others if you can
OK, you can post that message now. If you see posts from others where you can help out, please do. This place exists because people are helping eachother, and even if you are relatively new to the matter, there's probably already quite a few people newer than you that would benefit from what you've learned. Don't be shy.
10. Donate (optional)
This site doesn't have (many) ads, pop-ups or 'special offers', and we don't sell your address to spammers. But we do need just a little inflow of cash to keep it going. So if you can spare a little bit of your money, please check out the XDA-developer donations system. Check out the donations page (http://forum.xda-developers.com/donations.php) for details.)
11. Don't get us all in trouble
Don't post copyrighted materials or do other things that will obviously lead to legal trouble. If you wouldn't do it on your own homepage, you probably don't want to do it here either. This does in no way mean we agree with everything Hollywood, the record companies and the software piracy lobby try to impose on us, it simply means you cannot break any laws here since otherwise we'll end up dealing with your legal hassle. Please use common sense: respect the forum, its users, and those that write great code.
1. Check if something hasn't been asked before
Some questions just keep popping up over and over. Please use the 'search' function in the menu above each and every page in the forum. Try entering a few keywords to see if your question has been asked before. If it has, please read the topics and see if you can figure it our from there.
(We acknowledge that part of the problem is that we never created a well-organized system of FAQ (Frequently Asked Questions) documents. But then we're doing lots of cutting-edge stuff, and we'd rather build cool tools than work on perfecting FAQs.)
2. Use a clear subject
So you're going to post a message, and need to think of a subject. Try to keep in mind that many people actually use that subject to determine whether they will even look at your message. If you really, really need help, the subject "I REALLY NEED HELP" is the worst possible choice, because many people will not read it. A subject like "I upgraded to 4.00.16 and now I can't downgrade anymore" is much better: it will get the attention of other people that have solved the same problem, and you are much, much more likely to get a reply.
3. Please try to write your message so that other people understand
This board is in English. We know English isn't everyone's native tongue, and we certainly do not nitpick about spelling and grammar. But please try to be somewhat articulate about what you want to say or ask. A long message is likely to be more readable if it has a few commas or at least a period every now and then. TRY NOT TO USE SENTENCES MADE OF ONLY CAPITAL LETTERS, as this is annoying to read. When you are done, read your message again, and try to see if someone else would understand what you just wrote.
The use of online translation services to translate a message from your own language to English before posting it is discouraged. Please use this as a last resort only.
4. Everyone here is a volunteer
Be polite when you ask something. "I need RSU 4.21 now!" is less polite than "Does anyone have RSU 4.21 for me?". If you ask a question and there is no answer, it may be that nobody knows the answer, or that everyone reading your message knows the question has been answered a few times already and that the simplest search would find the answer.
You're welcome to reply to your own message with a small reminder after a few days have passed, so that it goes to the top of the list again. But please do so only once, and do not keep nagging. It may be that nobody knows, and you truly can't expect people to answer "I don't know" to all questions they can't answer.
5. Post a message only once
This place has multiple message fora, and you will have to select which one is most appropriate. If two fora are equally appropriate, pick one but don't post in both. Lots of people read their messages using the 'view posts since last visit' button, so they see your message no matter what forum you post it in.
6. Fill out the details in 'Profile'
If you click 'Profile' in the menu above every page, you'll get to a page which allows you to edit what the system knows about you. Make sure the correct device type, ROM versions and GSM provider are filled in. It really helps people help you if they don't have to ask these things first.
7. Post in the forum about your device if appropriate
There's special forums for the specific HTC phones this site deals with. If you know your message only applies to one model, please post it in the appropriate forum. The general groups grow too large if everybody posts everything there.
8. Stay cool
Think of this as a on-line temple. A sacred place, dedicated to collaboration, learning and collective wisdom. Don't shout and try not to get angry. Maybe the world should adhere more to the basic filosofy of Internet protocol design: "Be strict about what you send, and liberal about what you receive". This forum has people from all countries, cultures and levels of mental maturity. This means that no matter what you're like, you'll have to adjust to people that are most definitely not like you. But on the other hand, try to be gentle with people, even in the event they're not gentle with you. It will gain you many reputation points if you help to keep the peace.
9. Help others if you can
OK, you can post that message now. If you see posts from others where you can help out, please do. This place exists because people are helping eachother, and even if you are relatively new to the matter, there's probably already quite a few people newer than you that would benefit from what you've learned. Don't be shy.
10. Donate (optional)
This site doesn't have (many) ads, pop-ups or 'special offers', and we don't sell your address to spammers. But we do need just a little inflow of cash to keep it going. So if you can spare a little bit of your money, please check out the XDA-developer donations system. Check out the donations page (http://forum.xda-developers.com/donations.php) for details.)
11. Don't get us all in trouble
Don't post copyrighted materials or do other things that will obviously lead to legal trouble. If you wouldn't do it on your own homepage, you probably don't want to do it here either. This does in no way mean we agree with everything Hollywood, the record companies and the software piracy lobby try to impose on us, it simply means you cannot break any laws here since otherwise we'll end up dealing with your legal hassle. Please use common sense: respect the forum, its users, and those that write great code.