[Motorola Droid 3] jjhiza:
Extras

Rooting

Benefits to rooting your device is explained here

Basic Android terminology can be found here

How to root your Droid 3-- A big thanks to psouza4 for developing this simple root method found here

XDA thread link here

SBF/Fastboot

If you're phone is bricked, or if you need to return to unrooted stock for a warranty replacement (for hardware failure reasons only of course ;) ), you can swing by the2dcour's thread, and get what you need...right here :D

V6 Supercharger

zepplinrox's scripts are epic! They free up tons of memory, and keep your phone lag free at all times. I fully suggest reading through the entire OP; The worst thing you can do is just take someone's word that something is great, and go with it, without knowing what it's designed to do. His OP is lengthy, but you'll come away with a better understanding of how Android memory management works. In the end, you'll only need three files though; the current V6 version, the wraithdu ICS installer, and the Busybox installer. Any other files are optional (eg. 3G Turbocharger or the patched services.jar). Check his thread here

ROM Toolbox

ROM Toolbox is a great all-in-one tool, that lets you change the values for nearly everything on your device. I fully suggest spending a little coin, and getting the Pro version, as it has additional features unlocked. The tweaks I use in ROM testing are as follows:

Kernel Tweaks

Min Free KBytes: 4096

Dirty Ratio: 90

Dirty Background Ratio: 70

VFS Cache Pressure: 30

SD Boost

Value: 4096

*Additional tweaks, such as VM Heap are optional. When I finally settle on a ROM I like best, I'll be setting my VM Heap to a value between 90 and 100 (76 is the standard).

Overclocking

**I use the "old" Script Manager method, but I'm having trouble finding the original thread. If anyone knows where to find it, please let me know, so I can add a link, otherwise, I'll upload the files, along with instructions sometime next week. Thanks guys. :)

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Helpful Hints for Root Users

First and foremost, I would highly suggest downloading 7zip for your specific computer platform. This will allow you to easily extract, modify, and test .zip files (which all ROMs are). Running a simple file test before flashing a ROM, will tell you if the file has any errors or not, and will prevent you from asking the ever-annoying question, "Why won't this work on my device??". Bad downloads happen...I had one when testing the MIUI ROM I reviewed here...but if you test your files prior to flashing, you won't give yourself or anyone else as many headaches.

Secondly, if you like custom icons, and want to try tinkering with them a bit (but don't want to drop money on PhotoShop), I suggest downloading Gimp. It's super simple to use, and it's free, so it's a win-win. It can handle PSDs, and will give you the freedom to create things you like, versus always asking others to make icons for you. ;)

Also, search the Play Store for a good root file explorer; Root Explorer is my personal favorite, but there are plenty of free alternatives available. One of the benefits of rooting is complete access to your device, and being rooted without having a root browser is like running a marathon with no legs.

Download Safestrap!! Hashcode has been kind enough to provide us with a safe and effective recovery, that allows for dual booting (meaning you can have two ROMs available to you at any time); I rooted my phone, left the original, stock-rooted system in tact, and then flashed my ROMs to the Safe System. Having the ability to leave your original firmware in tact, gives you a built-in safety net in case something goes wrong with your flashing. It's my experience that, if you follow the directions given by the devs, it's nearly impossible to truly brick your phone, and Safestrap gives you an extra layer of protection....so I recommend taking advantage of it. It may take an extra second or two to boot up, but the peace of mind it gives you is priceless in my opinion.

Lastly, I suggest staying away from ROM Manager; there's nothing wrong with the app, but most devs don't publish their Droid 3 work there, so it makes having the app a bit redundant. Also, while it's nice to have an automated system for downloading and flashing ROMs, you're cheating yourself out of knowledge in the end...learning how to flash things manually, and knowing how to navigate the recovery menu, can really save your bacon if you run into problems at any point. In my honest opinion, the dangers associated with rooting are and have been overstated...it's people who don't read, don't follow instructions, and rely solely on one-click solutions, that run into serious problems, and it's people like that who clutter up development threads with ridiculous questions and rants against devs. Knowledge is your friend, and

if you can't take a couple hours out of your calendar year to learn about the root process, then you simply shouldn't root.

I've tried to provide links for (and will continue to add) all relevant information on the topic of rooting, so there's really no excuse for anyone who's new to the scene, to not have read them. I'm putting a ton of my personal time into creating this thread, and turning it into a repository for all things D3 root related, but I have no patience for people asking questions who's answers are easily found here, on the first page. Enjoy the thread, and hopefully everyone will come away a little bit smarter than they already were. :)