Simple reason for that, Jay. I read the manual before posting any thread, and evidence in my post that I either cannot find an answer or cannot make something work the way it says it should in the manual in any question I pose. I had read the manual fully before the device arrived.

Besides which there's a world of difference between "The answer you're looking for is ... and can be found on page x of the manual" and "RTFM, n00b". All the responses I have recieved have been much nearer to the former than the latter.

I think my point is that to write off the whole forum on the basis of how it responds to a small minority of posters is inaccurate.

Posters who arrive with courtesy and a willingness to learn are welcomed with open arms, regardless of how ignorant they may be (myself being a case in point)

Posters who arrive with courtesy, and a few basic questions for which they can't find answers are usually politely directed to where their answers may be. (Again, there is a difference between "The answer is in this thread or this page of the wiki, for which we recommend in furture you use you search ((and links supplied))" and "Read the f***ing manual/wiki/search, n00b" - of which polite posters will see very little). It should be said that the approach of directing people to where the answers are, rather than reposting the answers is the response championed by Qgil - I heard him say so with my own ears.

Posters who arrive with basic questions but no willingness to attempt to find answers for themselves tend to be dealt with rather more bluntly. But if you ask a question that was asked last week, you'll get a gentler response than if you ask a question for which the answer is staring you in the face in the title of another thread on the same page.

Posters who present well-thought-out opinions about Maemo devices are again welcomed, and debated with. Even when those opinions are predominately negative.

Posters who start their posting life here with threads full of unsupported negativity are likely to get rather short shrift. (Though in other places I've been, they'd get their accounts locked by the third post). It is these posters who are finding it most difficult to get along here.

Take Mr Box, originator of this debate: his first few posts were extremely negative. He riled a lot of people up. He gave the impression (rightly or wrongly) that his posts were made purely for the purpose of annoying people. This is an activity known as 'trolling'. Unfortunately, not everyone can see the difference between a someone who makes an occasional trolling post and A Troll. Personally, I think Mr Box has fallen into this trap: his early posts appeared to be trolling: now he is stuck with the tag of 'troll' in some people's minds, which impacts on the way they respond to his posts, however good (or otherwise) they may be.

This, sadly, is human nature as much on the internet as anywhere else. First impressions stick. Mr Box (and one or two other new posters who spring to mind) are having to overcome a great deal of prejudice caused by their having made a very bad impression in their initial input to the community.

Perhaps somewhere in the sign-up/registration process there should be some sort of requirement to read not only forum rules but a little treatise on ettiquette to enable new posters to avoid this sort of communication error.

Oh, and Happy Christmas to you, too Jaysire.