Questions tagged [faq]
These posts are your quick guide to the what, how, where, and when of the Stack Exchange network.
157
questions
60
votes
1
answer
3k
views
How can I report bugs with or request features for the Stack Exchange mobile apps?
I'm using the official Stack Exchange mobile app for iOS or Android, and
My app crashed!
It doesn't look good on my new smartphone.
It won't run after I updated my device.
I noticed another bug.
I ...
-78
votes
1
answer
3k
views
When will CMs or moderators remove the [featured] tag from actively featured meta questions?
Elected Moderators generally control the Meta content that is featured on their sites (with the exception of Meta Stack Exchange, due to the network-wide reach of posts featured there) through the ...
8
votes
1
answer
290
views
Where can I find site community blogs?
At one point, all sites had blogs, although this was later discontinued for the majority of sites. I've also heard that some stacks still run their own blogs!
Where can I find these site blogs?
Return ...
97
votes
4
answers
18k
views
What does the Code of Conduct say about pronouns?
Please leave any feedback or questions about this FAQ on this other post.
Two weeks ago, we updated The Code of Conduct to directly address concerns over pronoun usage. We tried to anticipate likely ...
- 102k
109
votes
2
answers
5k
views
Why isn't it required to provide comments/feedback for downvotes, and why are proposals suggesting this so negatively received?
Sometimes my post receives downvotes with no explanation on what I've done wrong. Even worse, sometimes I just get snarky comments!
It seems like this is especially bad for new users, who are made to ...
60
votes
2
answers
1k
views
What events trigger an inbox notification?
The global inbox was once introduced because it became hard "to keep track of all your questions, answers, and comments across every site you participated on".
The small red number tells ...
22
votes
2
answers
1k
views
What can I do to lift or reduce a suspension?
I understand what it means to have an account temporarily suspended, but what happens if I think the suspension was too harsh or unjust?
If I am a new contributor and unfamiliar with how things work ...
155
votes
3
answers
10k
views
A guide to moderating chat
Chat is an offshoot of the main site, and using it is a privilege users earn early on during their time here. Chat is our place for:
Real-time collaboration
Meeting fellow members of the ...
106
votes
1
answer
3k
views
The Real Essential Questions of Every Beta
The blog post Seven Essential Meta Questions of Every Beta gets linked to prominently from every beta's meta. However, this blog post is somewhat inaccurate and misdirects new users. In almost every ...
61
votes
1
answer
5k
views
What is a tag wiki? How do I write a good one?
As the title says:
What are tag wikis, and how do I write a good one?
Return to FAQ index
365
votes
1
answer
89k
views
Why do I need 50 reputation to comment? What can I do instead?
Users with less than 50 reputation points cannot write comments on questions and answers that they don't own.
Why does this limit exist?
But I want to contribute now. What should I do instead?
But I ...
101
votes
1
answer
3k
views
When are moderator flags automatically dismissed as "aged away" by the system?
Moderator flags can be dismissed as aged away.
What does this dismiss reason mean?
What causes flags to be dismissed with this reason?
Do aged away flags affect my daily flag amount?
Can I cast a ...
451
votes
1
answer
24k
views
A site (or scraper) is copying content from Stack Exchange. What should I do?
Since day one of Stack Overflow, all content posted on Stack Exchange sites by their users (i.e. you wonderful people) has been provided to the whole universe under the CC BY-SA license. For my fellow ...
61
votes
2
answers
7k
views
Where can I ask a question about finding general software that meets certain requirements?
I have a list of requirements for a program, but I don't know what program meets these criteria. That's about general-purpose software, for example, not a programming IDE or statistical workbench, ...
108
votes
2
answers
6k
views
How do I properly use the "Not an Answer" flag?
What is the "Not an Answer" flag and what is its purpose?
When should I use this flag?
When should I not use this flag?
But I'm still not sure if I'm using the flag correctly...
An answer is ...
113
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Why does the Community user approve and reject edits?
Why does the Community user sometimes approve or reject edits?
How does a machine know if my edit is valid?
What does it mean if my edit was rejected by Community?
See also:
Who is the ...
614
votes
1
answer
123k
views
What is syntax highlighting and how does it work?
I noticed that sometimes my code gets highlighted in different colors when rendered.
What is syntax highlighting?
How does it work?
Why isn't my code being highlighted correctly?
How do I report a ...
47
votes
1
answer
2k
views
What are these notices above my post?
My post has been marked with an informational notice in a box above it.
What should I do about this?
Who attaches notices to posts?
What kinds of notices are available?
What should I do if I think a ...
340
votes
1
answer
19k
views
The Complete Rate-Limiting Guide
I noticed that I can only perform certain actions such as commenting a finite number of times in a given period of time. Obviously, rate limiting is in place to prevent accidental misuse or ...
256
votes
1
answer
23k
views
What are the review queues, and how do they work?
I see a "review" link on the top of the page, which takes me to a few "review queues".
What is a "review queue"?
What are the various queues for?
What can I do in each queue?
Return to FAQ index
88
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Why are the moderators being so strict with quality related flags recently?
I recently flagged a question as "very low quality", just like I've flagged many questions in the past. However, my flag was found to be unhelpful this time. The same thing happened when I recently ...
108
votes
1
answer
7k
views
Users are calling me a plagiarist. What do I do?
Other users have been leaving me angry and hostile comments accusing me of plagiarism and saying that I'm a liar and I should stop stealing answers. But I have only been copying content from other ...
184
votes
1
answer
8k
views
What to do when plagiarism is discovered
How should I act if I discover a user plagiarizing fellow users' posts? What if I find someone plagiarizing external resources without attribution?
See also: Users are calling me a plagiarist. What ...
55
votes
1
answer
3k
views
What is a "merged" question?
Questions can be merged into other questions.
What is a merged question?
When should questions be merged?
Who can merge questions? How do I request it?
What happens to merged posts?
Anything else I ...
374
votes
1
answer
12k
views
What are review tests (audits) and how do they work?
I recently received this rather amusing message while reviewing a user's first post:
Congratulations!
This was only a test, designed to make sure you were paying attention. This post
has already been ...
194
votes
7
answers
8k
views
What are the guidelines for reviewing?
About reviewing
The review queues contain posts that possibly need further action from the community, like improvement, closure, or deletion. By presenting those posts for peer-review, the system aims ...
56
votes
1
answer
9k
views
Do Stack Overflow and other Stack Exchange sites have an app I can use?
I like using Stack Overflow (or any other Stack Exchange sites) and was wondering if there was an app I could install on my phone or other device that would allow me to use the site on-the-go or ...
87
votes
1
answer
2k
views
When should I create a new tag? How do I request a new tag if I don't have enough rep?
Can someone please create the tag foo on our site? We need to have it because
Foo is a recent/upcoming release / edition / model / episode of a popular, established OS / board game / bike brand /...
24
votes
1
answer
5k
views
What is considered a "real question"?
Note:
This close reason is old and only applies to old questions that were closed prior to the closing overhaul. This has been replaced by the reasons "unclear what you're asking" for unclear ...
716
votes
1
answer
69k
views
What is the association bonus, and how does it work?
I was just awarded +100 reputation on all of my Stack Exchange accounts.
What is this bonus for? It simply says "Association Bonus" on my reputation overview.
Also:
What privileges does the ...
39
votes
1
answer
2k
views
How do I read the history of my reputation?
When I visit the reputation tab of my profile, I see a lot of stuff. I can make out some of it, but not all.
What do all the event types mean?
Why do some events show an odd reputation gain or not ...
15
votes
1
answer
1k
views
How can I log in to my Stack Exchange account if my current account provider is blocked?
I usually log in to a Stack Exchange site using another site (Google, Facebook, etc.) as my account provider. However, I'm currently in an environment where my login provider is blocked. Is there ...
168
votes
1
answer
8k
views
There's an election going on. What's happening and how does it work?
The community bulletin says that there is a moderator election occurring.
How does the election work and how can I get involved?
Return to FAQ index
57
votes
1
answer
2k
views
How can I get Stack Exchange to send me to a conference?
I read Supporting Community Conferences, which states,
Depending on the circumstances and location, we can also sponsor community leaders to attend an event on behalf of their site. We will subsidize ...
114
votes
1
answer
3k
views
What should I do if a user posts sensitive information as part of a question or answer?
I've observed several incidents where users inadvertently posted detailed, sensitive information. For example, a Server Fault user who posted a question with working login credentials to his actual ...
86
votes
4
answers
4k
views
When should I vote?
I have seen a few questions here on Meta Stack Exchange that cover parts of this, but they are often too local, and none of them seem to cover all the relevant scenarios.
I will break it up ...
439
votes
1
answer
33k
views
Which computer science / programming Stack Exchange sites do I post on?
There seems to be more than a few computer science/programming Stack Exchange sites. Stack Overflow, being the first, has by far the most users, questions, and answers.
What is the reasoning for ...
571
votes
1
answer
30k
views
What is serial voting and how does it affect me?
I just noticed that I lost a bunch of points from my reputation score, and I used the "reputation" tab on my user profile page to try and track down the cause.
During my investigation, I noticed ...
86
votes
1
answer
6k
views
What is a historical lock, and what is it used for?
Historical locks are sometimes applied to questions.
What is a historical lock?
What is the purpose of a historical lock?
How are questions affected by historical locking?
When is it appropriate to ...
846
votes
1
answer
21k
views
What does "user was removed" mean and why did my reputation change because of it?
Message appearing when a user was removed.
It seems I lost 1765 reputation points on Stack Overflow yesterday. The reason given in my history is "removed", with the description of
User was ...
116
votes
2
answers
21k
views
Is it acceptable to write a thank you in a comment?
There have been a number of cases where I would like to thank someone for providing me with a thorough response and give them feedback beyond the vote up. Often I wish people would tell me why they ...
76
votes
1
answer
123k
views
My account has been temporarily suspended; what does that mean?
My account has been temporarily suspended, besides the following restrictions:
an account will be locked at 1 reputation
the user page will have a visual indication that the account is in timed ...
18
votes
1
answer
898
views
What is the weekly newsletter? Who composes them?
Each Stack Exchange site has a weekly email newsletter.
What is in the newsletter? Who composes them and selects what is included? How do I subscribe and unsubscribe to a newsletter?
Return to FAQ ...
153
votes
1
answer
10k
views
I've just been downvoted. How should I react?
I've posted a question or an answer, and I have received one or more downvotes. I am not really sure why I was down voted, or I think I know why, but I disagree.
Why did this happen, and what should ...
56
votes
5
answers
6k
views
Why can any user edit any other user's question or answer?
I see an "edit" link after each question and answer. So I was wondering: how come any user can change any other user's question or answer? I think the reason behind it is that each one can share their ...
82
votes
1
answer
7k
views
What is an acceptable answer?
I answered a question and my answer was: (pick one)
Deleted
Converted to a comment
Added to my question as an edit
Why was this? Why was my answer not acceptable?
What is the definition of an ...
138
votes
1
answer
7k
views
What shortened URLs are available through s.tk?
It was announced on the Stack Exchange Podcast episode #23 (at 1:05:26) that Stack Exchange has its own URL shortener, http://s.tk/.
Users can't create their own, they can only use the ones that are ...
106
votes
1
answer
2k
views
Why does flag marking as helpful/declined not always correlate with moderator action?
I flagged a post and (choose one)
my flag was marked as helpful, yet nothing was done
my flag was marked as declined, yet the post was deleted/edited/closed
Why?
Return to FAQ index
200
votes
1
answer
32k
views
Is it acceptable to add a duplicate answer to several questions?
Let's say there is a user who has found a satisfactory answer to a common question asked on Stack Overflow (or other Stack Exchange website). This answer may be a snippet of code, or an addon, or a ...
45
votes
1
answer
6k
views
How do I create a screenshot to illustrate a post?
How do I create screenshots?
How to: Windows
How to: Unix-based
How to: Mac
How to: iOS devices
How to: Android
How to: The GIMP
Additional tips
Return to FAQ index