[Fascinate General] jawman27:
Lean Kernel - Created by imoseyon, this voodoo kernel is known for its simplicity and stability. He intentionally leaves out a lot of the "bells and whistles" to keep the experience simple, smooth, and fast. Imoseyon works with several phones, so it is imperative that you have the correct version of Lean Kernel, the one appropriate for your phone. It works with TouchWiz ROMs such as SC3 and TSM Res.

Linaro - This is a team of software engineers developing open source software for numerous platforms, particularly as it relates to getting maximum bang for the buck from systems with memory and hardware limitations. For our purposes, many Linaro modifications are making their way into our custom ROMs, promising increased speed and responsiveness.

Logcat - This is a log of all of the processing activity your phone did over a certain period of time. This is useful for bug reporting, as devs can examine logcats and attempt to determine the source of the error(s). Many threads in the development forum request logcats to go alongside any bug reports. A logcat can be generated through adb, and there are also some apps that will do it for you. Random complaints aren't terribly useful for devs, but logcats generally are. This classic cartoon illustrates how many devs feel about disorderly complaints about their work, even though most are far too polite to say anything.

Milestone - Devs are always trying to incorporate the latest and greatest features into their ROMs. The add-ons are incorporated as parts of new releases, or "builds." This is what makes development exciting, but it also leads to bugs. Milestone builds occur when the devs sit back, roll up their sleeves, and work the bugs out of all the awesome features they've crammed into their work. The milestones are considered the relatively safe and stable builds. When installed correctly, they rarely experience major bugs.

MIUI - This term is a transliteration of a Chinese name for a special customization of Android actually developed in China. MIUI ROMs can be installed on the Fascinate. They change the look and feel of the Android system, moving it closer to something resembling iOS, the iPhone's operating system. A lot of custom development has been done with the software code from the MIUI system. Many devs will integrate bits and pieces of MIUI into their own ROMs. For example, the TSM Resurrection ROM allows you to use the MIUI battery indicator, which looks completely different from the standard battery indicator.

MTD - This is a technical term used by devs to describe the software organization in your phone, as it relates to things called partitions. The bottom line is that the stock organizational system, called BML, is somewhat fixed and limited, whereas MTD offers devs a great deal of flexibility. Heavily customized ROMs like those from CyanogenMod or anything MIUI rely on MTD file organization. All of our ICS and JB ROMs use MTD. MTD ROMs, generally speaking, experience very little lag, as compared to BML ROMs. When returning to a normal BML ROM from an MTD ROM, special precautions need to be taken.

Nandroid - This is a backup of your entire phone as it stands at that moment in time (ROM, kernel, text messages, your Angry Birds	progress, etc.). It is stored on your sd card, which is somewhat immune to your tinkering. A Nandroid backup is a good failsafe for the times when you might want to try out that new experimental kernel your favorite dev has been working on. The files can also be saved on a home computer/flash drive/etc. for safe keeping. Nandroid backups are created using a recovery program like Clockworkmod Recovery. CWM can also use old Nandroids to restore a phone to its previous condition.

Nightly - Nightlies - Some rooted users like the idea of having the most stable, tested, and reliable ROMs available. Others prefer the excitement of being on the cutting edge. Nightlies are the untested regular releases of whatever a certain dev happens to be working on at the time. They package them up, post them online, and let the discussions ensue. These are not for the faint of heart. They are for people who are comfortable addressing freezes, boot loops, and force closes. Having said that, the current nightlies from CM10 are actually quite stable.

Noob - If you have to ask what this means, this is what you are. It's a derivation of "newbie" or "newb," someone who's new to the activity at hand. In many ways, the noob is defined by his actions rather than by the amount of time he's spent rooting phones or posting on xda. Here are a few standard behaviors that will immediately brand someone as a noob:

-Posting new threads to ask questions that have been answered dozens of times. (Hint: It's best to search before posting)

-Posting ROM complaints (without logcat), beginner questions, and other non-development topics in the development forums (It has been theorized that this will ultimately be the end of xda)

-Diving in and flashing away without reading and then posting about your problems (Everyone needs to read the Guide.)

NSTools - This is an app that requires superuser permissions. It can be used to control a variety of the phone's features that are unlocked when running a custom kernel. It can enable fast charge, BLN, overclocking, and undervolting. It often comes pre-installed with ICS ROMs. Most JB ROMs have no use for it.

OC - Overclocking - Computer processors operate at a variety of speeds. When a manufacturer sells a product (like a phone) to the general public, they strictly limit the speed at which the built in processor can operate, even though the processor may be capable of more. This is to promote stability and reliability. Rooted users can overclock their phone's processor, raising the maximum speed at which it can operate. This can be done through various apps, including Voltage Control and NS Tools. Some ROMs even have the controls built into their settings. There are limits, though. Running a processor at too high a speed can cause overheating and/or glitches.

Odin - This is a program of seemingly mysterious origins that allows your home computer to communicate with your phone. You download it to your home computer. Good communication with your phone requires the installation of Samsung drivers on your computer as well as the use of the USB cable that came with your phone. Among other things, Odin can be used to root your phone, install CWM Recovery, install custom ROMs and kernels, and return your phone to stock after you've screwed it up.

*NEVER touch the "Phone" button on Odin. It should be labeled "Destroy your Phone"

OP - Original Post - This refers to the first post in any given thread, the one that started the thread in a discussion forum. A common noob mistake is to hop into a thread on page 27, read for 30 seconds, and then chime in with a question. He is often directed to the OP, which contains the answer to his question.

OTA - Over the Air - These are the official firmware upgrades that Verizon has released over the life of this phone. They were either pushed out to our phones in the middle of the night or offered up for us to download at our convenience. The latest one, EH03, came in December of 2011. Generally speaking, rooted users do not receive OTA updates. Also generally speaking, this doesn't really matter. The updates can be found on xda, and it is unlikely that the Fascinate will ever receive another OTA update.

Patch - This generally refers to a zip file that can be flashed using CWM. The file usually contains updates or small modifications to an existing ROM or kernel. A great example is the patch that reprograms the phone dialer's voicemail button to open Google Voice instead of the standard voicemail or Visual Voice Mail.

PDA Button - This is the button you will want to use when using the Odin program. You should always avoid the "Phone" button.

Pit file - This is a type of file used with Odin when returning your phone to stock. There is a "Pit" button on Odin you can push to enter the pit file you wish to use. An example of a pit file that you will probably use is Atlas_v2.2.pit. To return to stock, you would use a pit file along with a stock ROM, putting both into Odin at the same time. Droidstyle's guide provides detailed instructions.

Project Butter - This is a Google initiative, launched with Jelly Bean, aimed at reducing phone lag, both real and perceived. It involves research into human visual perception, the pairing of GPU and CPU, graphics buffering, and so on. It's purpose is to make your Android phone run "like buttah."

PWGB - Powerwashed Gingerbread - This is a custom ROM created by ccampos784 (with other credits given). Its name implies what it is, a cleaner version of Gingerbread. In its day, it was widely regarded as a well-debloated reliable ROM.

Radio - a.k.a. Modem - This generally refers to the software that manages the phone's connection to the outside world, not the physical device itself. Verizon would release new versions of this software from time to time in their OTA updates. The two most popular ones are currently EH03 (the latest) and EC09. Both of these work with Android 2.3 and the various Android 4.0 ROMs. The choice of radio can determine your 3g download speeds. It's difficult to say that one is better than another. Different users find good results with each one. Both radios are available as zip files that can be flashed in CWM.

Recovery - Your phone comes with a recovery program. You have to choose to boot it up as an alternative to booting up your phone's normal touchscreen interface. An ordinary phone user would probably never even see this program. It's not pretty. It's just functional. It is basically a list of commands and technical terms that you can navigate using the phone's softkeys, volume up & down buttons, and the power button (to select). *Note, the touchscreen is being used more and more in newer recovery programs* Essential to rooting are the special recovery programs such as CWM Recovery. A special recovery program, which is flashed via Odin, will replace the stock recovery program for a rooted user.

Re-Partition - This is one of the check boxes in Odin. This box should be checked only when returning your phone to stock. Of Odin's various check boxes, this is the only one for which widespread agreement of its use exists.

ROM - This is one of the two main components (kernel being the other) of the software running on an android phone. It generally determines the overall appearance of your phone, including which apps are installed by default. The ROM that comes installed on your phone right out of the box is known as the stock ROM. Created by devs, there are numerous custom ROMs available for the Fascinate. Popular Gingerbread ROMs a newly rooted user might try are Superclean3, PWGB, and GeeWiz. The current favorites of the Fascinate community are CM10, AOKP Jelly Bean, and ParanoidAndroid Jelly Bean. The process of flashing a custom ROM to your phone will, generally speaking, erase everything on your phone.