[Xoom General] Psychokitty:
Either you didn't read my post our you're incredibly ignorant. Stating a ratio of "hundreds" of proper rooting threads to "the 1 or 2" bad ones I'm siting certainly smacks of the latter.

Having a history of hacking phones since the Motorola V3m, -purely as an end user, as well as helping to port Canon cameras, I can say with certainty that there's often a tremendous difference in what a developer feels is a comprehensive set of instructions he's written for the layman, and how the layman often perceives those "simple" instructions.

Notice, I do state "often" on both the authoring side as well as the reading side of this communication. I am taking into account that some guides are definitely well written, as will as the fact that some readers have less difficulty following them than others for a variety of reasons.

I'm not talking about how much research one should do first, or how many choose to do none at all. I'm rather OCD about researching everything, both before making a purchase, as well as installing kernels or ROMS. I believe everyone should be. But even at that first (what most of us consider the most important) stage of someones education and introduction to rooting, there is no "Start Here!" on ANY of these forums that offers a crash course written solely for the complete newb.

Furthermore, newb questions (the answers to which are not found in "hundreds" of threads] are too often met with criticism for the poster not having searched when the member then explains that he had indeed searched and was unable to find a single comprehensive answer which he could trust. Other times such questions are simply ignored. If the member persists he's met with snide comments.

I see this **** all the time. It's not a problem for those in the know; perhaps a minor nuisance, if anything. It's a big problem for those wishing too get the most out of their tablets by rooting, especially if they are looking for functionality more than further exploitation of their device just for entertainment, and obviously ten fold for those unfamiliar with hacking anything at all.

What the hell is a "boot image"?

Yes, that basic. Explaining the concept first to those unfamiliar with any of it would get people up to speed more quickly, eliminate redundant questions, and demonstrate to about 20% of the knowledgeable membership that those asking these questions shouldn't necessarily be treated like they're imbeciles.

Too often a member's knowledge of these things is directly regarded by others as a measure of his intelligence (-or lack there of), and subsequently they are treated with a lack of respect.

I myself have few questions these days on the basics of rooting, but I remember how difficult it was when I needed help. Though I no longer have a stake in this conversation personally, I do see the advantage of having as many Android devices rooted and "better user-equipped" as possible. I now view rooting and Android customization by the user as a movement of sorts which can impact the industry, help set standards, and help differentiate users who are complacent enough to have the likes of Corporate delegates like Steve Jobs dictate what they need and want, and others, like ourselves, who want to dictate our own necessities and entertainment needs in our tech devices.

My iteration may be a bit romantic for some, but I'll hazard a guess that most here will agree that it would be in all of our best interest as a whole for as many people to be rooted as possible.