This forum is a community of users of Nokia products and services from around the world who share their experiences and help people to solve problems. I've been using this forum for a couple of years now, I originally joined because I work in telecomms and I was looking for answers to a few issues that I was experiencing, and like many of the regular members, I've been coming here ever since. There is a really good crowd here, and it is often fun to read the boards as well as informative.
If you have a problem, if nobody else can help, and if you can find us (it's not hard, Discussions all over Google whenever you search for something Nokia-related), then maybe you can hire: The D Team!
The community
This is a peer-to-peer community, you are usually dealing with people who have an interest in mobile technology, albeit with a particular preference to Nokia, who can help on a wide range of questions - the advantage that we have as a community is that many users have experience of a range of devices and accessories, so you can often get help here about issues concerning Nokia products being used with products from other companies that even Nokia itself cannot offer. There has also recently been a presence of Nokia staff (their usernames are shown in green) who are also helping users on the forum in their own time.
Unlike many forums that we all use regularly, this is an official forum owned and run by Nokia, not the creation of amateur enthusiasts like you and I, so they are much more strict about behaviour than other forums, and the moderators will remove anything that is offensive or disrespectful to other users, or which may cause offence to users of a sensitive nature. Basically, you should treat other users the way you could treat another member of the public in a public place - too many people take advantage of the anonymity offered by the internet to behave in a way that they would not normally do.
This forum is not a source of official support from Nokia, for that you have to call or e-mail from the "Contact us" link. Most of us are just normal consumers like you, therefore we don't have information on when products, services, software updates etc. will be available so it's futile to ask. Nokia doesn't even publish this information in most cases, so even the Nokia employee members probably wouldn't be able to answer these sorts of questions even if they do have the information.
Tips for getting your question answered:
(1) Search first
Somebody else may already have posted the same question, so you can save yourself time by checking first if the answer you need is already published on the forum.
(2) Choose the right board
People are online at different times, we may be taking a break from our work, relaxing at home after a meal, flicking back to the forum whilst doing other surfing on the 'net or anything else, and people will look in boards where they have a specific personal interest so, for example, if you have a problem playing a video on your N96 use the Imaging and videos board in the Ovi and Mobile Media section or if you have a problem installing themes or applications on your 6220 Classic, use the Phone Applications under Software. Posting these questions on the Nseries and S60 smartphones board might see them get lost amongst lots of technical questions about the phone itself, you have a better chance of getting an answer by choosing the right place to ask it.
(3) Write a clear title
Speaking for myself, I don't have time to read everything on the boards, so I look for topics that I might be able to answer; therefore don't just put the subject as a phone model number or the name of an application or users might just pass over your post without opening it to read. For example, a title like "Can't get GPS signal in 5800" is much more likely to catch the attention of an experienced GPS user or a 5800 user and get the question answered quicker.
(4) Explain your problem clearly
Phones and the software that we use in them and with them grow ever more complex, just saying "I can't send an SMS" or "Mr camera isn't working" does not give any information with which an experienced user can help you to troubleshoot. Whatever the case, explain exactly what you are trying to achieve, what you tried, and describe what happened, for example: did an application shut itelf down? Did the phone freeze? Was there an error message, and if so what was it? All of this will help other users to identify what is going wrong for you and the less questions they have to ask you back, the quicker they might help you.
Tips for making the right impression:
(5) Use normal text
WRITING ENTIRELY IN CAPITALS does not convey a sense of urgency, in internet communities it is perceived as shouting or other generally agressive behaviour, so it will not win the hearts and minds of the people whose help you need. Also, using large characters or bright colours may look nice to you, but too much text written in very large, bold or colourful letters can simply fill the screen unnecessarily and is not always any easier to read, so it can also put people off from helping you. Use these features when you need to highlight a particular point, not all of the time.
(6) Resize images
If you are embedding a picture in your post, resize it so that it fits into the frame of the normal page. A full screenshot of your PC or a megapixel+ picture will stretch the borders of the page so far that people have to scroll left and right repeatedly to read not only your post, but the entire page of the thread that it is on, and just as above, if you make it difficult for others to read the thread, they could miss some information or just pass over it altogether. If you want to share a large image, you can also add it as an attachment to the post so that people can view it when they choose without impacting on the display of the page for everybody.
(7) Pleeeeaaaaazzzzeeee don't do this
Far from making most users take pity on you and try to help you, this kind of thing can be just as bad as all capitals, especially is you make a word so long that it affects the display of the page like inserting large images does. You are also better off not using SMS shorthand and local slang in your posts, because users of the boards are from all over the world and might be speaking English as a second, third, etc. language, so the person who knows the exact solution to your question might not understand the way you have asked it.
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