yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[About XDA developers] efthialex:
Make logcat submission compulsory

NOTE: IF THE MODERATORS FIND THIS POST IRRELEVANT PLEASE MOVE IT TO A MORE APPROPRIATE THREAD.

Hey everyone, as an android enthusiast, I spend a fare amount of time in the xda forum. What is bothering me lately is that there are a lot of users that do not comply with this forum rules. What I see is people filling threads, which are under the Android Development section, with "thank you" messages or with some bugs that a ROM/mod may come with, without submitting a logcat.

Because of that, it's really hard to find some useful information inside a thread that you may be interested in. One example is a [MENTION=270378]Cloudyfa[/MENTION] thread : [ROM][LP][Jun 25] -=- CloudyG2 3.2 -=- [All Variants] (I am sorry but I can't post links yet) which is under the Development section of the LG G2.

What you can see is that most of the users are submitting bugs without a logcat (although the Developer has asked about it multiple times), and some others that post thanks messages every time he releases a new version.

As a result, it's really difficult to keep track of the latest useful posts of the thread. Furthermore, the Dev got annoyed from the multiple notifications and asked the Moderators to close his thread.

I would like to propose a new way of submitting posts into threads that are under the Android Development section. When a user wants to submit a post, he should upload a logcat file.

Requirements

- The user won't be able to upload an empty file

- If the user uploads something that is not a logcat (random text), he will be banned from posting in the thread again

Last but not least, if you don't want to make this a rule across the whole forum you could simply give the ability to the Devs, to choose whether they want their threads to have a logcat submission compulsory. (Maybe a flag true or false when they are creating a new thread)

Users that want to thank a Developer, they should hit the thanks button or even better make a donation to him/them.
[About XDA developers] orangekid:
some developers like a very laid back ROM thread though, and don't want those kind of restrictions. For the developers that want it super clean, the moderators hover the thread and often "take out the trash"

If we impose those kinds of things we limit the discretion of the developer. We already have the 10 post minimum to post in any dev forum, and are always looking for ways to improve things in those threads.

Not all things require a logcat though too, such as code cleanup suggestions and various settings in the ROM itself. Dev discussions can happen without ALWAYS having a logcat.
[About XDA developers] efthialex:
I see your point. Then what about making a post more specific. For instance, you may give the user the opportunity to specify the nature of the post from a drop-down list, like

- bug report

- suggestions

- question

and when the user chooses to submit a bug report, only then the submission of a logcat would be necessary.

And as I said earlier, this doesn't have to be a rule across the whole forum. You could simply give this option to the Devs, to choose whether they want their threads to have a logcat submission compulsory.

Just some ideas to keep some serious threads clean, and at the same time offload the moderators from the task of cleaning up the mess.
[About XDA developers] orangekid:
I just think this is over-complicating something that really isn't much of an issue. I personally wouldn't want this to turn into like calling up your cable company and having to navigate through twelve menus before getting someone: "If this is about the ROM, press 1, if this is about the kernel press 2, if you've somehow borked your EFS without a backup, hang up and go hit yourself in the head repeatedly with a hammer" etc,

Cleaning up the mess is what our highly paid moderators are partly here for, you start removing work from and they may take it up with the Moderator Union and go on strike because we're taking away mod jobs and giving it to scripts, and those scripts work for more zeros than ones if you know what I mean....
[About XDA developers] efthialex:
I take your point. I see that there are some complications in implementing my ideas. Nevertheless, thanks orangekid for taking the time to respond.
[About XDA developers] orangekid:
it never hurts to ask, you just have to look at all the ramifications. We're always trying to improve the site for both developers and end-users.
[About XDA developers] sensboston:
It's a very hard to find a feature request/suggestion duplicates here (too many posts in the thread). Just an idea: maybe, xda should try more professional way, kinda a dedicated bug tracker with ability to add feature requests?
[About XDA developers] ham5:
yes I agree with above post... I came here from your contact/ page..

My problem with this site is it's 'notifications'... Even if I go directly to the page the notification is about the notification still remains... I must click the link IN the notifications for the notification to clear out - this seems wrong to me...

thanks and good day to you all. Really enjoy the Xperia ZL threads here :)
[About XDA developers] v7:
I see that there isn't a thread for APP Ideas or Suggestions for developers.I really think there should be a sticky thread in the App Development Section.Just a humble request :)

Edit:I made a thread myself :D
[About XDA developers] NOSTALGIA:
im not seing any chatroom here. i have seen a different forum where there is a chatroom open for some. im not asking it to be implemented but i think its a good idea
[About XDA developers] :
It would be extremely useful in some cases for sure! :)

However, as a Moderator who's part of a small team on a site with 6 million plus members.... I can see that would likely be a nightmare to keep clean and constructive. If not impossible. ;)
[About XDA developers] NOSTALGIA:
indeed. its really useful.

i know what you mean. but there are always ways.. who knows...
[About XDA developers] alray:
Some threads not accessible when using xda 2013 theme

It looks like that (in some rare cases) some specific threads can't be accessed if using the xda 2013 theme. When trying to access these threads, i'm redirected to the xda 404 error page:

But if using the xda 2015 them, I can access the thread without any problem.

This thread for example its causing this issue: http://xdaforums.com/htc-one/help/doube-obb-folders-t3160555

If i'm trying to access the thread (still with xda 2013 theme) by visiting the member profile --> statistics --> find all posts by member X, instead of the 404 error page, I get an other error page saying:

It would be nice to get this message when trying to access the thread normally (from the forum queue) instead of a 404 error page, I always thought these threads were not accessible because they were deleted by a moderator for example.

What features make a thread incompatbile with xda 2013 theme?

Thanks :good:

Sorry if this already was discussed before.
[About XDA developers] NOSTALGIA:
also noticed this.. i thought these threads where deleted.. but they were not..
[About XDA developers] webworker01:
An appropriate error message has been added for those types of threads, thanks for the reports! :good:
[About XDA developers] zelendel:
Glad this was taken care of. Hope it is fixed soon so this won't happen to those that refuse to use the 2015 theme.
[About XDA developers] Hannah Stern:
List of Thanked Posts

Hello.

How can i view the list of Posts from others, that i thanked?

I know, how to view the list of my posts, that others thanked, but i don't know, how to view a list of posts from others, that i thanked.

Is there any way?
[About XDA developers] Primokorn:
Not possible even on PC AFAIK.
[About XDA developers] Primokorn:
2015 themes:

When I hit the Notifications button at the top right of the screen I'm redirected to Home.

Using Chromium on Linux.
[About XDA developers] simonbigwave:
Suggest perhaps make the "Donate to XDA" more "visible"? Perhaps add new icon "DonateXDA" in between the "Security" and "Swappa" icons, on the second headline row? Just an idea.
[About XDA developers] Praveen125:
Post Search will be improved in xda app...
[About XDA developers] Primokorn:
A new app is under development: http://xdaforums.com/general/about-xda/alpha-official-xda-one-forum-app-t2899329
[About XDA developers] Fallen Spartan:
Any updates on app? :p

"he didn't just ask for an update..... Did he?"

...........................

You can lead a fool to wisdom but you can't make him think! XDA, mobile wisdom, not a n00b feeding ground!!
[About XDA developers] TheSkinnyDrummer:
Three words.

Conan frigging Troutman.

-Older than I look, younger than I feel.-
[About XDA developers] Fallen Spartan:
Tbh, I agree with this. There shouldn't be more than one OT thread in each device forum. If there is, report it to the forum moderator so they can sort it out and copy this post in on it so they'll see I approved it

...........................

You can lead a fool to wisdom but you can't make him think! XDA, mobile wisdom, not a n00b feeding ground!!
[About XDA developers] Prawesome:
Wouldn't there be inconsistencies?

There are like, idk.. 65-100?

Some of you guys need to realise that this a Development site, not a military training ground

And I do agree with the argument that one(and only one as FS said) OT thread should be made in each device forum..Otherwise the more specific OT type threads like the 'You know you are rooted when..' are going to pop up..

"Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense." -Gertrude Stein

---------- Post added at 05:05 PM ---------- Previous post was at 04:55 PM ----------

Not trying to be a smartass or anything, but here goes..

He was suggesting ways which he thought would improve the portal.

Why do you even have a "Feedbacks and Recommendations" thread if that's the attitude?..

You do say its your own opinion, but this is a recommendations thread, common..

"Everybody gets so much information all day long that they lose their common sense." -Gertrude Stein
[About XDA developers] reinbeau:
I think with the new mod organization and team corroboration centers you will see more consistency, at least within the device families as they've been divided up now. All of this takes time, you can spin a speedboat around on a dime, you can't do the same with the Queen XDA ;)
[About XDA developers] undercover:
Any news on uo/down voting being introduced elsewhere? AFAIK its currently only in gnex forum. NATF did mention it was planned to be rolled out before the end of 2012 (they were hoping is more correct iirc)
[About XDA developers] Fallen Spartan:
This is still being looked at with no final agreement atm
[About XDA developers] Woody:
With all due respect, we (the Samsung GSM Mod team) inherited the "Bacon" thread as it was moved from the Inspire section to the Note II section by a mod from outside the Samsung GSM team because the OP Chris switched devices.

So then it was reported

and before we could even action it

, the crusade was brought here. Everyone wanted consistency in the forums, so we split up the Mods into device specific teams to hopefully get that. Users have to let us get to know each other a bit more and then as time progresses the consistency will develop into a more across the board ideal. But User have to let us work it out without turning everything into a huge ordeal. Growing pains man. I never knew the "Bacon" thread ever existed until the report came in the day after it was moved to our section. Did anyone outside the Inspire section know it existed? Doubt it and now it is being used as spearhead for an airing of grievances. Collateral damage I guess.

Same with the Note II "stock" ROM issue. There was a report and being that we (Mods) are a team, we had to look into what was actually the problem as we all have a different skill-set. We even got outside feedback to figure out where the issue was and what kind of resolution we needed in place.

But again before we could action it

, it got blown up into "Mods don't have a clue. There are inconsistencies across this whole dang site." This issue has way more implications than a OT Bacon thread. This could potentially brick devices, so yes we will do our research before we do anything to it.

It is no secret that this is a hobby for all of us and we have outside lives that do not involve XDA (no matter what my wife says), but we also have a pride in what we are trying to accomplish here. For that reason, we (the GSM team) have an open dialog with each other on many topics that surprisingly do not involve the ATT Note II and we accomplish more than most will ever know about. This is not only just the Samsung GSM team, but all the new teams. Everyone wanted something better to happen. Well it did and the new scheme is working. But Users have to let us work out the little bugs too. Baby steps. If something doesn't seem to fit with what the site means to you the Developer/User (see I put Developer first there?), then by all means bring it here. But this is not a place/thread to throw an entire team under the bus and make that indicative of what the entire site is/should be. Maybe a more generalized viewpoint is needed.
[About XDA developers] garyd9:
Again, someone is taking my post out of context. Both were EXAMPLES of the inconsistencies. I wouldn't waste space in this thread to complain about specific threads. (Well, I would if I didn't already know that FS would delete the whining.)

I could have picked any number of other examples, but those two were the ones that came off the top of my head (mostly because each could be used by any user to defend any number of other irresponsible threads.)

Also, in both of those cases, a FSM had either participated in the thread (which implies an endorsement of its existence) or made a judgement call that the thread was okay as-is. Of course those calls are subject to further review (and in the latter case, the mod told me that it would be left up for more review), but with no notice given that the thread is pending review, the message to the user-base is simply: This is OKAY - keep posting these types of threads. As well, I've yet to see any followup from those reviews. (When you close a report with sending a comment to the reporter, it's as-if the report falls in a black hole.)

This is NOT an attack against any specific moderator or group of moderators.

It's FEEDBACK to the admin team (and a suggestion) that the forum rules should be clearer both for the users and the moderators - and that the enforcement of the rules should be more consistent.

The end result should be that when any reasonably intelligent user starts a new thread, that they should have at least a 90% chance of being able to predict if the thread is going to get locked/deleted BEFORE they submit the post. (Sadly, there's nothing that can be done to make users reasonably intelligent or to make them use whatever intelligence they have.)

Currently, because the rules don't quite mesh with the precedence given by the moderators, AND because any given moderator might interpret the rules differently, it's a gamble what might and what might not get locked/deleted. Not only does that frustrate the users, it also ends up creating even MORE work for the moderation team.

Take care

Gary
[About XDA developers] Woody:
Well no, I am not taking out of context. I am only trying to offer a bit of defense before everyone gathers their pitchforks and torches since it was my team that was used for both examples.

^^ Lulz on the intelligence comment.

But seriously, this is a great example of how the new Team format is supposed to work. Before, many Mods would lock (almost never should be deleted) a thread that was an easily answered question with a simple Google Search [many time if we can find the answer or a more relevant thread, we will post a link and almost always we put an explanation as to why it was locked in the final post]. It does go back to the reasonable intelligence idea. I mean if the exact same question was just answered 5 thread down, there is no reason that topic should even have been started.

Rule #1 Search

***************

There is no way that I can refute or sway everything that has been spoken of in the past 7 pages or so, so I am not even going to try. All I am asking is for a little time for us (all the Mods and not just my team) to get this new system down with each other and then we can work on making the rules even more clear. Isn't that why the new teams were created?
[About XDA developers] boborone:
Woodrube, I understand where you are coming from. But I have to say nobody was singling you or any team out. That was just used as an example for something that has been a long time problem. Way before the team setup. And if not brought up, how would it have gotten addressed? In my past lurking I see one commonality with FSMs. You guys take too much to heart. The SM/admin team have been around the block awhile. And alot of the FSMs can take a note from them. Not everything is something to get upset about. And take a lil time before acting. I think that's why I don't see SMs as much as I do FSMs. It's not they are lazy, they just don't see the need to respond to or maybe react is a better word, to all that they see. It's why when you see zelendel respond in the thread, it normally starts off with something like "well I've been watching the discussion for awhile and now I think I'll chime in". This is a feedback/recommendation thread and gary was just using it as such. Not calling anyone out, or dropping bombs on teams. Just speaking out about something that has been a problem for a while. Consistency.

It's also why when I have a question about the site, I go to a SM, not a FSM. They have pretty good consistency among them about the site and how it's run. FSMs on the other hand, have a different view and all pretty much see things differently, and act on those views differently. While SMs may have differing opinions, they each follow a set of rules on the site and at least from what I've seen, carry out the rules the same. The same can't be said for FSMs. Maybe that will change with the new team structure. Only time will tell.

But gary didn't single out anybody or any team. It's cool man. No offense needs to be taken. None was given.
[About XDA developers] Woody:
I'm not mad at all. Just pleading a defense like I said. Change happens and that is a good thing, just putting my thoughts out there. View attachment 1625384

ps: If I took everything that was said to/about me to heart, I would've deactivated my account long ago. No worries man.
[About XDA developers] boborone:
Cool man. I've just seen alot of FSMs get all panty bunch sand in vag when something gets mentioned that they are involved with. Just didn't want to see that happen.

and ps, that pic was funny :D
[About XDA developers] reinbeau:
Gary, it wasn't our bacon thread, woodrube never said it was. You have totally missed his point.

Now at this point I'm pissed. Let's all just stop and actually read what is being written.... And please remember there are women here, I'm really tired of one certain phrase in the post above Gary's being used freely around here.

Now, this 'inexperienced' FSM is going to stop now and cool off a little.
[About XDA developers] garyd9:
If ANYTHING I posted here was interpreted as an attack on the current team working the US/GSM Samsung devices, please accept my sincere apologies. It was NEVER intended as such. At this point, I regret that I used any particular forum or posts as examples. However, as an engineer, I know that specific examples are more useful than vague descriptions. I had really hoped that the wording of my post would have kept them from being seen as anything but examples.

Of course, I'll freely admit that my lack of social skills (yes, the stereotype is true) might lead me to expressing something in a manner that might seem to imply something other than my intent. (Are there enough disclaimers in that one sentence?)

On the positive side, however, at least my constant nagging in this thread has encouraged the site Admin to publicly dictate that there will be one "off topic" thread allowed in any given device's general section. This, at least from my perspective, is a step forward from what we had previously. I don't completely agree with having the OT threads, but I'm not going to fight that battle (as there are valid points to having the OT threads within limits.)

That's ALL I'm trying for here (right now): Define the guidelines so that users and moderators alike can enjoy the website without constant second-guessing what belongs where, what's on topic, what isn't, etc. I know that even that must be an ongoing process as the guidelines will change over time. That's fine too - as long as everyone understands what the changes are when they occur.

Take care

Gary
[About XDA developers] Dr.8820:
I would like to see a actual Nokia Lumia 810 section, I don't think the 820, 810, & 822 should be lumped together because they are not the same. Thank you.

Sent from my Nokia L810 using Board Express
[About XDA developers] AtoZ0to9:
I think during the night hours, it should take 15seconds to load a page instead of 10, over my 105mbps connection...
[About XDA developers] undercover:
Children *in a calm voice* Quiet *taps pointer on the desk*

I think both sides are overreacting, offending or defending bla bla bla. Sit back for a minute or two. Count to a few hundred. And realise that this is discussion over virtual things (that yes are quite important to us).

So far I've only seen mods on a defensive. Why? Gary simply brought up a valid issue. So why defend yourself instead of thinking that: "hey, he's got a point, let's talk among ourselves to find a uniform way of doing things", and notify Gary that you are going to do just that?

Sent from my fridge. Make:LG Model:N4