You CAN help without resorting to nastyness

[cornelha]

I am putting this in this thread because this is where i see it happen most. As a community i find xda extremely helpfull, but more and more i see "senior" members ranting and going off at new users. Too often i see "Learn to use the search function" where a simple yet clear answer would have had the desired effect, keeping users ON this community instead of them having to look for help elsewhere.

I really wish ppl would stop being complete idiots and always ragging on new ppl . Not everyone is a tech geek, not everyone knows everything.. doesnt cost anything to try and help someone here !!

I have had my 2c worth .. and i am certain i am not the only one who hates reading through posts containing this kind of behaviour

[iandy1]

Thanks for your words Cornelha, by the way, WizFlo 2D was the first ROM I flashed

to my Wizard.

As you said, many are not tech geeks, just end users trying to improve the use

and functions of their devices, learning some new tech in the process.

I wish I can cook ROM's, port other devices aplications, hex edit, patch files or

program new aplications, but that really is not my field. Just try to help new

or any user with issues I may have already gone through.

Thanks again.

[Janis]

I've been on the fora/ums for a few years now, and not that it makes me an expert, but I've had lots of chances to see people go off on other people here.

You're right. People can be just as rude and mean here as any I've seen anywhere.

There's a gap of understanding on both sides. The oldies have forgetten how difficult it is to find ones way around these forums. It's not intuitive, you really do need to spend a fair amount of time figuring out how they work, who's where, how to find help and all that. It's big (and like a Massachusetts buidling that's been added on to, and nothing old has been torn down, so it's convoluted). Just because you know your way around doesn't mean someone else does. And there's no orientation. None.

It really makes sense to just turn around and ask your question to of the guy next to you, just like real life. Here's the kicker. This isn't like the being on the train. Newbies have no idea how much time, effort, space a "simple" question takes in a not-so-simple environment, and go firing off questions that totally don't fit the discussion. It's disruptive. It takes up a lot of server space INCLUDING THIS THREAD. If you are met with rudeness, it might behoove you to take a look at what it is you did to set off the rudeness. It probably isn't what you did, directly. Most of the time what you're doing would be fine in a usual environment, but no action is context-free.

My idea for immediate solution is for oldies (techies, whatever) to direct the newbies in the right direction. Don't answer the question or they'll keep asking in the wrong places. Don't be rude or angry at someone for being inexperienced, just make a point of giving them the tools/info they need so they get the experience. Links are fine, but it would probably be better to describe, politely, what to do/search for so they can get the hang of it themselves. It might also help to cushion it a bit, and say something like "getting around XDA is harder than it might seem at first. You'll need some patience."

Long term? I think the forum needs a format revamp, or at least some sort of front end for inexperienced users. Something that makes a search both not-a-choice, and easy, like so many support branches of websites force you to check the FAQ and knowledge bases before anyone will address your question directly.

So, nuf said.

MOD, please move this here (http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=263)

EDIT: This sounds a lot bitchier than I meant it to. My apologies. It takes a lot of growing up to have the patience required to maintain civility in the face of a gap, any gap, including this one.

Techie or Newbie, try to remember that an Orchestra playing a ballet is no reason to get up and start dancing: check your context before you act. Think before you type.