[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] rice923:
Disclaimer: I am far from being a dev of any sort, so take this post with a large serving of information reading elsewhere. I am not responsible for anything that happens to you or your phone, good or bad.

**If this thread helped you, simply click the "thank you" button and leave a reply if you wish.**

I had a really hard time entering the rooting and ROMming scene when I first got the phone, but I am now relatively confident in my rooting and ROMming. One of the reasons I had a hard time at first was simply not knowing what anything was or meant. Even after a lot of reading, I still didn't feel like I knew what I was doing (I simply followed instructions and did things to my phone aimlessly). Nonetheless, everything I post here can likely be found in a sticky or in another thread, but probably in more technical terms; I simply want this thread to be informative to a new user.

With that being said, here are a few things to help the truly new-to-the-scene guys (and gals) here:

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Definitions:

Root: essentially gives you the ability to access every nook and cranny of your phone and customize lots of stuff.

ROM: kind of the like the operating system on computers; there are many different ones, but find the one suitable for your needs.

kernel: the link between your phones software and hardware; comparable to the nervous system of animals by relaying info between the mind and body

flash: basically like installing something on your computer; everything installed or flashed onto electronics has its dangers and risks (and benefits).

recovery: kind of like the "safe mode" on your PC. Incase SHTF, recoveries can be used to save your phone in most cases. It is worth noting that Android has it's own dedicated safe mode, which is not the recovery.

Android 4.0.x: ICS or Ice Cream Sandwich OS version

Android 4.1.x: JB or Jellybean OS version

Android 4.2.x: an incremental update to JB for more features and an extra serving of butter to make everything smoother

OTA: Over The Air; typically refers to the updates being pushed upon our phones wirelessly from the heavens... or wherever data comes from

CWM (ClockWorkMod Recovery): a custom recovery that must be flashed onto your phone to replace the stock recovery if you want to flash ROMs, backup or restore your phone.

TWRP: another custom recovery like CWM

takju: devices sold from the Play Store (pertains to US only I believe?)

yakju: devices sold by Google NOT in the US

yakjuxw: devices directly from Sammie

Maguro: GSM/HSPA+ variant

Toro: CDMA/LTE variant (Verizon)

Toro Plus: CDMA/LTE variant (Sprint)

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I have not developed anything for the phones, nor am I taking any credit for anything. Just wanted to put things in understandable terms for people who are not technically inclined.

Again, if this helped you, just click the "thank you" button or leave a reply. Also, go and let the devs know how much you appreciate their work and time by visiting their threads and thanking them with a reply or donating also. Otherwise, they'll stop providing us with fantastic software, and the whole purpose of being open-source would be pointless.