[All XDA Members] Feedback/Recommendations for XDA

After reading a few threads and comments from our members I thought it may be worthwhile to create a Feedback, Recommendations or Idea's thread for XDA. We want to improve our forum for developers and the normal users.

So, rather than sending a PM to a Moderator, please feel free to leave any feedback or idea's you may have to improve XDA, so we can discuss them properly, openly, with the plan to hopefully implement the ideas which are good.

It's sole purpose is to improve XDA and collect your thoughts and idea's.

We will all be monitoring this thread, and someone will hopefully reply without much delay.

Thanks

Rick
Moderator/Developer Committee

Edits done by Clark Joseph Kent to better support XDA.

XDA-Developers needs to be more about developers

While I see that time and users have made XDA less about development and more about user support, I think XDA has gone too far in that direction.

Developers need a place to DISCUSS development.

The "General" subforums are too overwhelmed with threads like "Post pictures of your phone", "list of threads linked from other places" and other random "general user" stuff.

The "Q&A" subforums are now a place where moderators chase newbies to. The most technical question you might find in the Q&A section these days is "I just bricked my phone, what do I do?" (Usually, the answers are either making fun of the OP or telling him/her to search.)

The "Development" subforums, which seems like a logical place to discuss development, is now reserved for people to post finish products only and beg for donations - It's the XDA version of the "app store." There's no actual "development" discussion allowed.

Here's what we don't have anymore (but desperately need):

A place where a kernel developer could start a thread discussing the pitfalls of turning off processor cores on a particular device when the device is idle. That would likely lead into a discussion on possible ways to optimize the IN/OUT code for the cores, which would actually *gasp* promote development.

A place where a person might post a "HOW TO" document describing how to modify a stock firmware for a specific device to override carrier controlled lock downs. (For example, editing the CSC for a samsung device.)

A place for development related DISCUSSION - not just a subform for "I cobbled together mods I copied from other people into a so-called ROM and will now beg you to donate to me and press my "thanks" button."

XDA promotes itself as a DEVELOPERS FORUM. The definition of "forum" is "A meeting or medium where ideas and views on a particular issue can be exchanged." Doesn't that seem to indicate that development related discussion would be encouraged here?

(continued...)

---------- Post added at 11:07 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:51 AM ----------

So, the obvious question about my post above is how do you moderate a "developers discussion" subforum?

I honestly don't see a problem with that. You make posting access to that subforum by request only. The access should be granted pretty freely but with a note reminding the user that any non-development discussions will result in loss of access to those subforums. Plain and simple. Any RD's or ERD's would automatically be given access without the need to post a request.

Only developers should moderate those subforums, as the fact is that XDA has some moderators that have no clue whatsoever what "development" is.

I'd even go so far as to suggest that XDA's ERDs would be given final say in moderating those subforums. Actually, it might be a good idea to give ERDs final say in moderating all the development related forums - including the existing so-called "development" and "original development" subforums.

...

I'll have one more post to discuss the current vagueness of the rules and the random enforcement of them...

Seriously tempted to just ban the next person who talks about the 10 post rule in here. Obviously they don't read the OP and don't care. They just want to complain. Well maybe I don't care about their accounts any more and will just delete them.

I don't read this thread for over a day and all hell breaks loose.

Unfortunately, the last few pages is not the way I intended this thread to go. Instead of being suggestings to improve XDA, it has been steered down the road of "should we have OT threads in device forums or not"

Can we try and steer away from this for a second and get back to the threads purpose with sensible suggestions. Now with all suggestions, discussion needs to take place so we can decide if the proposal is worthwhile or not. This is not us (mods & admin) ruling out your suggestions, it is us discussing your suggestion to see whether or not it would work with XDA.

I personally value all suggestions, unfortunately we can not implement them all, but we (XDA) will do our best to listen, communicate with you and move forward with suggestions which will work

Thanks

I think every overlooks one thing - if they try to spam OT, it's easy to find and remove, and reset their accounts. Our FSMs will spot it in device forums.

I think in general we catch spammers faster in OT than elsewhere... So surely that helps, given it keeps OT clean..

Regards to OT, I think the perceived problem is one of maturity. I know most of those involved claim to be adults, but some of the pointless threads about banana and llama are frankly a waste of space... OT used to be about mature debate and humour, but now it seems dominated by a highly insular group who spend inordinate amounts of time there, which would be more productively spent getting a job, or constructively posting to help people having problems..