text:
How to ask a good question for Arduino Stack Exchange
How do I ask a good question about the Arduino?
We’d love to help you. To improve your chances of getting an answer, here are some tips:

Search and research
Have you thoroughly searched for an answer before asking your question? Sharing your research helps everyone. Tell us what you found and why it didn’t meet your needs. This demonstrates that you’ve taken the time to try to help yourself, it saves us from reiterating obvious answers, and above all, it helps you get a more specific and relevant answer!
If you ask something like how to connect neopixels to arduino and we know that Google has 77,000 hits for that question, we won't be very interested, unless you explain how your problem differs from the usual ones. Include a couple of links from pages that you have researched, to show that you have done some homework, and then describe your problem.

Be on topic
On topic:

Specific questions about Arduino boards, code, and the Arduino IDE. Feel free to ask about anything related to Arduino.
Questions about other IDEs, clones/counterfeits/derivatives, and other coding languages for Arduino. Feel free to ask about any language for coding Arduino.
Board recommendations. Make sure to include detailed information about the project you are doing and your requirements. If your question is too vague, it may be put on hold.
Library recommendations. Make sure to include detailed information about the requirements. If your question is too vague, it may be put on hold.
Code review: Use the tag project-critique for advice on how to improve your code/project.

Off topic:

General Coding: If your question is about coding not related to Arduino, try Stack Overflow

If the solution would be the same with or without Arduino, then it's usually a general coding question.

General Electronics: If your question is about making electronics or other electricity questions not related to Arduino, try Electrical Engineering.

If knowledge of Arduino would improve a question, it's on topic. Otherwise, it might not be a great fit for our site.

Make a meaningful title
Try to summarize your problem with a helpful and informative subject line. Helpful subjects draw in people who might know the answer. Unhelpful ones are likely to be skipped.
Examples of unhelpful subject lines:

Noob here, help needed
Help me, quickly!
Got error
Lost, help me
Problem with my circuit
No idea what I am doing

Good subject lines might be:

Problem interfacing 24LC256 EEPROM to Arduino Uno using I2C
LED flashes twice as quickly as expected
How can I work out how many Neopixels (WS2812 LEDs) are in a string?

Post in proper sentences
This is a forum you are using, not a mobile phone.
As a courtesy to the people you are hoping to have help you, type complete sentences. That is:

Start with a capital letter.
Spell words properly.
Finish with a period (full-stop). (Just the one, thanks!)
Break longer posts into paragraphs, and not have a "wall of text" hitting the reader.
Do not post in all caps. This is considered shouting and will annoy people reading your question.

Post your code, formatted correctly
Here is the "blink" sketch, copied and pasted into a post:

void setup() {
pinMode(13, OUTPUT);
}
void loop() {
digitalWrite(13, HIGH);   // turn the LED on (HIGH is the voltage level)
delay(1000);              // wait for a second
digitalWrite(13, LOW);    // turn the LED off by making the voltage LOW
delay(1000);              // wait for a second
}

Pretty hard to read, isn't it? Now just select all the code, and press Ctrl+K (think of the word "Kode"). That formats it nicely like this:
void setup() {
  pinMode(13, OUTPUT);
}
void loop() {
  digitalWrite(13, HIGH);   // turn the LED on (HIGH is the voltage level)
  delay(1000);              // wait for a second
  digitalWrite(13, LOW);    // turn the LED off by making the voltage LOW
  delay(1000);              // wait for a second
}

Basically all it has done is indent everything by 4 spaces.
You can force the syntax-colouring you see above by putting this before the code:
<!-- language: lang-c++ -->

Format your code in the IDE before posting
In the Arduino IDE (Integrated Development Environment) format your code by pressing Ctrl+T before posting it here. The auto-format indents code properly so you can see what code is under an if, for example.
Properly formatted code helps to work out logic errors, for example if you accidentally have an extra semicolon which shouldn't be there.
Do not post screen-shots or photos of your code
Do not take a screenshot of your code, or photograph it with your phone. Copy and paste the code as text and put it into your question as described above. A screenshot or photograph can't be copied and pasted into replies, nor can we copy and paste the code into the IDE and test it ourselves on your behalf.

Post a Minimal, Complete and Verifiable Example
To help us to reproduce the problem, post a Minimal, Complete and Verifiable Example that demonstrates the problem. This may not always be possible, but in many cases (for example, displaying numbers on a 7-segment LED display) it is very practical. This helps separate out the problem (not being able to display) from the non-problem (how you calculate those numbers).

Provide links to any libraries used
Many libraries have variants (for example, keypad libraries, SD card libraries, LCD display libraries). To help reproduce (and understand) your problem provide a link to the exact library you are using.

If the question mentions hardware, be specific
Don't just say "I have a temperature sensor connected to my Arduino".

Say which sensor (part number)
Give a link to the datasheet which describes the part or the board
Say where you got if from (eg. Adafruit, Sparkfun, eBay) with a link to the specific page where it appears
Say which Arduino (eg. Arduino Uno)

Include a photo of your set-up
If the issue sounds like a hardware issue, take a clear, in-focus picture of your hardware. The photo should clearly indicate which wires go where. Preferably use a different colour for each wire like in this picture:
[![Example photo of board][1]][1]

Include a schematic
Many projects involve extra hardware (switches, LEDs, motors, other parts). Draw or make a schematic showing how they are connected together. Do not use Fritzing which is not the same as a schematic and often difficult to read. You can get free software which draws schematics from Express PCB (you need the ExpressSCH program). This runs under Windows. You can also use Eagle although the learning curve may be greater with that. As a last resort sketch out your schematic with pencil and paper and scan or photograph it, and include that.
Example of ExpressSCH schematic:
[![Example schematic][2]][2]

Be clear what the question is
A good question states:

What you expected to happen; and
What actually happened

For example, "I expected the LED to flash every second" (the expectation) "but it doesn't flash / flashes every 5 seconds / is always on / is always off".

Avoid saying "it doesn't work". What doesn't work?
Distinguish between:

Compiler errors (that is, you can't even compile the program)
Uploading errors (it compiles, but doesn't upload to the board)
Run-time errors (it compiles and uploads, but does something you don't expect it to)

Tips for getting the most out of your post

Mention which Arduino you have. Is it a Uno? Leonardo? Due? Mini? Mega? The problem might be specific to a certain model.
Describe your problem in detail.
If it relates to an electronics part (chip or board), give the exact part number and preferably a link to the data sheet.
Describe how you have connected things like switches. Are they wired to ground? Or +5V? Are there pull-up or pull-down resistors? Post a circuit if there is doubt.
Post a complete sketch (program code)! If you don't you waste time while people ask you to do that. However, with coding problems, if possible post a Minimal, Complete and Verifiable Example that demonstrates the problem - not hundreds of lines of code. If the problem goes away in the minimal sketch, it wasn't where you thought it was.
Copy and paste code. Don't retype "from memory" on your mobile phone, in the train.
If you get an error, post the error (copy and paste). Not just "I got an error".
If you have debugging information in your sketch, post your debugging displays.
If you are using a library that does not come with the IDE (in other words, you downloaded it from somewhere) please post a link to this library.
Describe what you expected to happen, and what actually happened. Not just "it doesn't work".
If possible, describe what you are really trying to do, not what you think might work. For example "I am trying to turn on an aquarium heater and pump at the same time", not "how do I break out of an interrupt?".
Try to narrow down the problem, whether coding or electronic. Don't confuse us and yourself by trying to do everything at once. For example, if you are having problems reading a sensor, make up a simple test case, that tests that sensor (both electrically and in code).
Be nice - people are trying to help you here. If you are asked for more information, provide it calmly. Resist the urge to say something is "obviously" the case, or "I already mentioned that".

Don't cross-post!
Do not cross-post the same question on different Stack Exchange sites. See Is cross-posting a question on multiple Stack Exchange sites permitted if the question is on-topic for each site?. Work out which site is the best fit for your question (sometimes this can be a bit hard) and stick to one site.
You might consider:

Arduino Stack Exchange (here)
Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange - if the question is largely about electronics, and not really about the Arduino
Stack Overflow - if the question is largely about programming in general, and the fact that the programming is on the Arduino is incidental to the question (for example, a question about C++ classes)
Raspberry Pi Stack Exchange - if the question is about the Raspberry Pi
Robotics Stack Exchange - if the question is more about robotics than the Arduino

If you have asked on another site (like the Arduino Forum) it is polite to mention that you have also asked there (post a link to the question). Some people here are members of Arduino Forum as well as Arduino Stack Exchange, and rather than helping you more if you post on both sites, may ignore both questions.

Don't double-post!
If you haven't got an answer in a couple of days, do not post the same question again. Regular users will soon spot that and flag your reposted question for deletion.
You can add a bounty to a question if you in a hurry for it to be answered. However you will need 50 reputation to do that.
Another thing you can do to help get a question answered is review your question. Have you followed the suggestions above? Maybe more details, links to parts, schematics, images, code, and so on, would help other people work out what the problem is, and post an answer.

Other resources

See Jon Skeet's post: Writing the perfect question As Jon says, imagine you are trying to answer your own question.

Once you’ve finished writing your question, read it through. Imagine you were coming to it fresh, with no context other than what’s on the screen. Does it make sense? Is it clear what’s being asked? Is it easy to read and understand?

Is it a homework question. That can be OK, so don't try to hide it (we can usually tell, when people say something like "my task is to do X").
If you admit it is homework we can still try to help you, but also try to help you to learn the underlying concepts. In other words, don't expect an answer that you just type up and hand in, but expect people to help you to help yourself with the issue.

If you aren't sure of some procedural issue (for example, you can't post a lot of images) you can ask on the Meta Arduino Site which is there for asking about how the site itself works.

Related
How to write a good answer for Arduino Stack Exchange
[1]: https://i.sstatic.net/d43yx.png
[2]: https://i.sstatic.net/QWdzV.png

In the Post Your Code section, I suggest adding a note about the using the Auto format tool in the Arduino IDE before posting (Tools->Auto Format) (Ctrl-T)

@Craig Good idea! I've done that.


text:
Arduino.SE graduation: will users lose privileges?
Arduino.SE is graduating. Woohoo!
When a site graduates the reputation required to earn certain privileges eventually rises. My question is: will users lose privileges earned under beta rep thresholds, as their rep will be below the new thresholds? Are earned privileges kept after graduation?

This is what happens when you make an overly narrow site for a subcategory of questions which belong on EESE.

@ChrisStratton - this is what happens when a site graduates. You have this "problem" whether or not it is an "overly narrow site" (as you put it). See here and here. Trying to tie this to the sort of questions that might be asked on EE.SE is just a long and irrelevant bow.

No, Nick, the specific issue is cause by graduating with too small a user community which is in turn caused by having a site with too narrow a mission.  This is beyond obvious to anyone willing to take an honest look - which no doubt will be hard to those who've become caught up in this ill-conceived project to arbitrarily split off a small portion of EESE topics.

Yes, I believe that the "full site" privileges will apply once we get the site design (which as Alex said could well be months away).
For reference, here is the current privileges list. Compare to the numbers for a full site such as Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange.
There are 29 users today who would have access to "edit questions and answers" (2000 rep).
One of the reasons why we took a while to graduate was that, in January 2016, the Stack Exchange people noticed that we had very few people with enough privileges to do things like editing.
In the meantime, before we get our site design done, we all have time to increase our reputation. I notice that quite a few people have quite healthy rep levels, even though they only joined around 6 months ago. You could probably expect those to double in the next 6 months.

Later, the site will still receive a full custom design ...

The word "later" is pretty open. We may well have a year to bump up privileges before the new levels are activated.

Maybe the SE people are concerned about not having enough people with editing privileges, but I'm far more concerned (qualitywise) about having only 16 users today able to close questions (3,000 rep).

Yes, but since the rep changes are likely to be 6 months away, there are a number of people (like you) who could double their rep in that time, and reach that threshold. All SE sites which graduate are likely to have similar issues, and they seem to have survived.

This is fundamentally a demonstration of why Arduino should never have been a distinct site.  The pool of expertise to provide good answers, and the pool of high-rep users already exists on EESE; by creating an Arduino site, questions get shifted to disfunctional backwater and certain notorious curmudgeons on EESE get a migration option / closure excuse they've developed an impressive track record of abusing.

Perhaps the "notorious curmudgeons" are why people prefer to post here? Arduino is targetted at beginners, some people on EE.SE don't seem to be able to accept that fact.

Example of a similar thing: English Language Learners Stack Exchange vs. English Language and Usage Stack Exchange.

@NickGammon Stack Exchange rules are Stack Exchange rules - same here as on EESE.  Arduino is not only about beginners, and beginners use many things other than Arduino, so the association is illogical, and counterproductive as it artificially divides similar questions which should be being handled together.

For people concerned about the reputation/privileges issue I'd like to make a suggestion: Make a little more effort to upvote good answers. A big problem I see with this Stack Exchange is that generally the people asking questions have no interest in accepting answers or upvoting. The main way for people to gain reputation here is upvotes from the regulars.

source: Stack Exchange

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/

sort: votes


text:
Call to action! We need more moderator nominations!
The nomination phase of our moderator elections ended on Monday 21st. August 2017 at 20:00 UTC.
Note that Stack Exchange has a rule that there must be at least one more candidate than positions available (so there genuinely is an election).
When the nomination period finished we had 3 nominations for 3 positions, and therefore the election could not proceed (the 3 nominated people were not automatically elected).

Update
The nomination period was extended by 7 days to give other people a chance to nominate. It will now close at 20:00 UTC on Monday 28th. August 2017.

If you are one of the many users who post frequently, help clear the review queue, and have an interest in this site, please nominate as a moderator candidate. Who knows? You might be elected! You would join a small, friendly team of moderators who keep an eye on moderator flags. Moderators have their own chat room for private discussions. There is also a Stack Exchange chat room for moderators only from all sites, where issues can be discussed and resolved.
Moderation is not particularly onerous, unlike the higher-activity sites like Stack Overflow. You may only have to look at a few flags each day.

At the time of editing (Wednesday 23rd. August) we now have 4 nominations, however it would still be helpful to have more nominations. Nominating shows an interest in the site, and gives voters a wider range of choice when voting.

Was queuing up an announcement to discuss that we are, indeed, extending the election, but I think I'll just piggyback off of this as an official announcement: due to insufficient moderator count, the nomination period of the election has been extended by an extra 7 days.

I would be a terrible moderator. The delete button would be abused.

In case anyone is wondering, moderator actions are extensively logged. They don't have carte blanche to do whatever they like. :)

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/


text:
Can the timeout on editing comments please be increased?
There's a 5 minute rule about editing comments.
It should be more like 30. Some of us are slow thinkers, need to consult references, need time to review and edit our work, ....
Buzzzzzzzzzzz your time is up, next contestant please!
If nothing more, check the time the user starts editing, not the time the user save the changes!

I think it is so that comments don't get completely changed, which makes the subsequent comments (under it) make no sense. Basically if I wait 5 minutes after you make a comment, I can be sure you won't change it.
I think in your case you accidentally pressed Enter half-way through typing a comment, and then had to edit it. In that case you can just self-delete the comment (after copying what you had already typed) and then start a new one, being careful not to do that again.
You have all the time in the world to type a comment, just don't "commit" it half-way through the process.


text:
2017 Moderator Election Q&A - Questionnaire
In connection with the moderator elections, we are holding a Q&A thread for the candidates. Questions collected from an earlier thread have been compiled into this one, which shall now serve as the space for the candidates to provide their answers.
Due to the submission count, we have selected all provided questions as well as two of our back up questions for a total of 10 questions.
As a candidate, your job is simple - post an answer to this question, citing each of the questions and then post your answer to each question given in that same answer. For your convenience, I will include all of the questions in quote format with a break in between each, suitable for you to insert your answers. Just copy the whole thing after the first set of three dashes. Please consider putting your name at the top of your post so that readers will know who you are before they finish reading everything you have written, and also including a link to your answer on your nomination post.
Once all the answers have been compiled, this will serve as a transcript for voters to view the thoughts of their candidates, and will be appropriately linked in the Election page.
Good luck to all of the candidates!
Oh, and when you've completed your answer, please provide a link to it after this blurb here, before that set of three dashes. Please leave the list of links in the order of submission.
To save scrolling here are links to the submissions from each candidate (in order of submission):

Nick Gammon
Avamander
Anonymous Penguin
jose can u c
Majenko

A question is flagged as "off-topic" because it only peripherally involves an Arduino. For example "How do I get my Arduino to turn on a motor using a transistor?". Should it be closed altogether, migrated to Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange (where they are used to questions about transistors), or left here as a good beginner's Arduino question? Alternatively would you dismiss the flag and let the community handle the question via down-votes or vote-to-close?
A question has a lengthy number of comments under it suggesting various possible solutions to the asked problem. Once the number of comments reaches 20 the system (Community) automatically flags it suggesting that the comments be moved to chat. You move the comments to chat as suggested, and then get a complaint from a user that "valuable information is now hidden away in chat rather than under the question where it should be". How do you respond?
A question is flagged as "not an answer" because it basically only has a link in it. The question is "Where can I find the datasheet for the Atmega328P" and the answer is a link to the datasheet. There is a school of thought that link only answers are not good answers. However in this case there isn't really any other way of answering the question. Copying and pasting a huge datasheet into the answer isn't really an option. Also see Should I flag answers which contain only a link as “not an answer”?. As a moderator, would you delete the answer, or let it stand?
How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?
How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?
Regarding why something has to be flagged/closed, do you believe that the actual system (a fixed list of reasons) can be improved or changed for a better one? If you do, how do you propose it could be accomplished?
What level of knowledge do you demand from users asking questions? Do you believe there's a minimum standard required?
What would you do if two users start insulting each other about not having sufficient knowledge to post on this site? Assume that both users have flagged each other's comments as rude or abusive.
In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?
In your opinion, what do moderators do?

I'm Nick Gammon. My nomination for moderator is here.

A question is flagged as "off-topic" because it only peripherally involves an Arduino. For example "How do I get my Arduino to turn on a motor using a transistor?". Should it be closed altogether, migrated to Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange (where they are used to questions about transistors), or left here as a good beginner's Arduino question? Alternatively would you dismiss the flag and let the community handle the question via down-votes or vote-to-close?

This is a tricky one. It happens quite a bit, believe me. If the question shows some attempts to involve the Arduino (not just mentioning the word), like a schematic and/or a sketch, then I would probably dismiss the flag. A bit also depends on whether it has got good answers by the time I see the flag.

A question has a lengthy number of comments under it suggesting various possible solutions to the asked problem. Once the number of comments reaches 20 the system (Community) automatically flags it suggesting that the comments be moved to chat. You move the comments to chat as suggested, and then get a complaint from a user that "valuable information is now hidden away in chat rather than under the question where it should be". How do you respond?

There is a Meta Stack Exchange post about that. From that page "Comments are disposable: unlike posts, there's no revision history, and they can be deleted without warning by their authors, by moderators, and in response to flags.".
The post When should comments be used clarifies that comments under questions are to:

Request clarification from the author;
Leave constructive criticism that guides the author in improving the post;
Add relevant but minor or transient information to a post (e.g. a link to a related question, or an alert to the author that the question has been updated).

Therefore I would point out to the person complaining that comments under questions are not for attempting to answer the question.

A question is flagged as "not an answer" because it basically only has a link in it. The question is "Where can I find the datasheet for the Atmega328P" and the answer is a link to the datasheet. There is a school of thought that link only answers are not good answers. However in this case there isn't really any other way of answering the question. Copying and pasting a huge datasheet into the answer isn't really an option. Also see Should I flag answers which contain only a link as “not an answer”?. As a moderator, would you delete the answer, or let it stand?

Arduino Stack Exchange is different from sites like Cooking, where you can usually answer without having to have an off-site link. I would look at the link and see if the linked site has information that could be usefully copied into the answer, thus making the answer more useful if the site goes down. For things like datasheets, perhaps I might suggest that the answer be modified to provide a way of finding the datasheet without giving a literal link. For example: "Go to atmel.com and use the search function to find the datasheet". (And even that isn't a great answer, because it is like saying "Google it").

How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?

If necessary I would remind them of the Stack Exchange Be Nice policy. These flags can be a bit subjective - sometimes new users take offence at being asked to write a better question. If I thought that the flag wasn't warranted I would dismiss it.

How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?

If I felt strongly enough about it, I would contact the other moderator through the private moderators' chat room. Between us we would come to an agreement about whether to let things stand, or change them.

Regarding why something has to be flagged/closed, do you believe that the actual system (a fixed list of reasons) can be improved or changed for a better one? If you do, how do you propose it could be accomplished?

The "in need of moderator attention" flag allows for a reason to be typed, so I don't see any reason to add more reasons. Too many reasons and it is hard to choose which one applies.

What level of knowledge do you demand from users asking questions? Do you believe there's a minimum standard required?

The Arduino is a beginners' platform - it was designed to be a low-cost introduction to computing and electronics in school. Thus I personally cut people a bit of slack if they seem to only have beginner knowledge. However if a question is more like "do my homework for me" then I am less tolerant of them. As a moderator I would allow the community to vote a question down if they thought it showed insufficient research - we don't need moderators to do that.

What would you do if two users start insulting each other about not having sufficient knowledge to post on this site? Assume that both users have flagged each other's comments as rude or abusive.

I would remind them of the Stack Exchange Be Nice policy. If the comments are just trading insults I would delete all of the insults (from both parties). Possibly if a comment had a combination of insult and useful information I would delete the insult part.

In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?

It lets me intervene in the (rare) occasions when moderators are needed like a flame war. It also lets me more quickly deal with really egregious posts (such as spam) which I might notice when activity here is low, without having to wait for other people to also flag something for deletion.
It also lets me handle unusual situations like lock posts, protect posts, roll back unsuitable edits, and things like that.

In your opinion, what do moderators do?

The Stack Exchange Theory of Moderation explains quite well what moderators are for. They are there to handle exceptional situations. The normal voting rights that privileged users get are normally enough to handle most situations.
Moderators are there for those odd cases where normal user voting is insufficient, or perhaps would not take place quickly enough.

A question is flagged as "off-topic" because it only peripherally involves an Arduino. For example "How do I get my Arduino to turn on a motor using a transistor?". Should it be closed altogether, migrated to Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange (where they are used to questions about transistors), or left here as a good beginner's Arduino question? Alternatively would you dismiss the flag and let the community handle the question via down-votes or vote-to-close?

It's most likely a duplicate anway, so the system would take care of it. If it is technical and the question is applicable to any microcontroller then I may well migrate it to EE.

A question has a lengthy number of comments under it suggesting various possible solutions to the asked problem. Once the number of comments reaches 20 the system (Community) automatically flags it suggesting that the comments be moved to chat. You move the comments to chat as suggested, and then get a complaint from a user that "valuable information is now hidden away in chat rather than under the question where it should be". How do you respond?

Tell them to post the information as an answer. If it's really that valuable they will take the time to do it.

A question is flagged as "not an answer" because it basically only has a link in it. The question is "Where can I find the datasheet for the Atmega328P" and the answer is a link to the datasheet. There is a school of thought that link only answers are not good answers. However in this case there isn't really any other way of answering the question. Copying and pasting a huge datasheet into the answer isn't really an option. Also see Should I flag answers which contain only a link as “not an answer”?. As a moderator, would you delete the answer, or let it stand?

Probably let it stand in that instance, however the question that elicited such an answer is another matter...

How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?

You mean me? ;)
Probably take the side of the person with the higher rep. We gotta have each others' backs...

How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?

If the question is that valid it will probably be asked again. Or the user will whine. Either way nature will take its course.

Regarding why something has to be flagged/closed, do you believe that the actual system (a fixed list of reasons) can be improved or changed for a better one? If you do, how do you propose it could be accomplished?
  What level of knowledge do you demand from users asking questions? Do you believe there's a minimum standard required?

The system is tried and tested and has enough flexibility in it already. I have suggested other close reasons before in another thread, but can see no benefit in changing the underlying methodology.

What would you do if two users start insulting each other about not having sufficient knowledge to post on this site? Assume that both users have flagged each other's comments as rude or abusive.

You're talking about me again, aren't you?
I'd probably move the discussion to chat and leave them to it in private. The rest of the world doesn't need to watch them.

In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?

Faster deletion of spam. That's my pet hate, and there seems to be a major influx of it recently.

In your opinion, what do moderators do?

Rule with an iron hand wearing kid leather gloves.

Faster deletion of spam - oddly enough I don't see much spam. Maybe it's a time zone thing. The automated system of spam deletion seems to work OK usually. I do see some spam, but it usually has about 4 down-votes before I get to it, and would probably be deleted 15 minutes later anyway.

15 minutes in an eternity for spam. 15 seconds is too long even. Spam must die. Instantly. According to the spam everyone wants to watch boxing whilst listening to Jay-Z. Neither of which interest me in the slightest.

Whilst I agree with you about spam, unless you are on the site 24/7 and actively monitoring it for spam, deletion of spam is something the community does effectively rather than individual moderators.

@NickGammon Alas I can only manage 18/7...

A question is flagged as "off-topic" because it only peripherally involves an Arduino. For example "How do I get my Arduino to turn on a motor using a transistor?". Should it be closed altogether, migrated to Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange (where they are used to questions about transistors), or left here as a good beginner's Arduino question? Alternatively would you dismiss the flag and let the community handle the question via down-votes or vote-to-close?

Most of these types of questions, although they might also be a good fit for Electrical Engineering, should stay on Arduino as long as they are related directly to Arduino. The transistor question probably would stay since knowing the current and voltage characteristics of an Arduino are essential to answering the question.
On the other hand, if the question was about the thermal characters of a transistor that just happened to be connected to an Arduino, we could consider moving that question to Electrical Engineering. Likewise, if a question asks about the specifics of the syntax for a for loop, we could consider migrating that question to Stack Overflow.

A question has a lengthy number of comments under it suggesting various possible solutions to the asked problem. Once the number of comments reaches 20 the system (Community) automatically flags it suggesting that the comments be moved to chat. You move the comments to chat as suggested, and then get a complaint from a user that "valuable information is now hidden away in chat rather than under the question where it should be". How do you respond?

First of all: even with 20-30 comments, there are still a lot of "discussion" comments that don't really add much value. Since I always read the comments before migrating them to chat, I can go back and undelete the comments that are useful for everyone to see.
If someone did become upset at me because of migrating comments to chat, I would consider figuring out a better way to get the information added to the post that they feel is missing. I might also explain to the user the reasoning for why comments are moved from chat, and back up what I say with links to Meta Stack Exchange.

A question is flagged as "not an answer" because it basically only has a link in it. The question is "Where can I find the datasheet for the Atmega328P" and the answer is a link to the datasheet. There is a school of thought that link only answers are not good answers. However in this case there isn't really any other way of answering the question. Copying and pasting a huge datasheet into the answer isn't really an option. Also see Should I flag answers which contain only a link as “not an answer”?. As a moderator, would you delete the answer, or let it stand?

If the question is well phrased and is asking for a link, there's no reason not to answer with a link. I've deleted plenty of link-only-answers that do not provide sufficient explanation, but I pretty much leave library questions alone, although I may comment and ask the poster to edit to include a basic example, etc.

How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?

If they're acting rudely, I will talk to them and tell them that their behavior isn't okay. As with any time a user is rude/mean, it's good to be a little lenient as people who are very knowledgable are often very passionate about their work. But, I will not let a user create an unwelcoming environment just because they are knowledgeable.

How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?

Privately contact them. There's often info you may not know about the situation, or the other mod may provide a different viewpoint on the matter. I would hope that any other mod would be open to take constructive criticism and openly talk about matters.

Regarding why something has to be flagged/closed, do you believe that the actual system (a fixed list of reasons) can be improved or changed for a better one? If you do, how do you propose it could be accomplished?

Pretty happy with what we already have here already, but I would be open to change if anyone else had any ideas. Don't have a lot of input here mostly because I, as one of the "pro-tempore" mods for Arduino Stack Exchange, try not to interfere with the natural process of voting to close a post. A mod can close/open a question with a single vote, so I step in when needed, but let the community handle most of the close voting.

What level of knowledge do you demand from users asking questions? Do you believe there's a minimum standard required?

Sometimes users need a little more guidance than others, but that's no reason to push someone away. Be nice and patient. If they still aren't getting it, maybe suggest some reading materials/etc. so they can improve their understanding of Arduino. We were all beginners once.

What would you do if two users start insulting each other about not having sufficient knowledge to post on this site? Assume that both users have flagged each other's comments as rude or abusive.

Again, it's an expectation that users need to be nice. If they aren't, they need to be talked to. In the case that a stern warning doesn't work for either one or both, a short term suspension might have to be considered, after talking with the other moderators about the issue and trying alternative solutions to resolve any underlying issues and to help neutralize the situation.

In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?

Handle flags, settle disputes, be a public figure for the community, and plan and propose new things to help build and expand Arduino Stack Exchange. All of those things are very difficult (if not impossible) to do with 20K rep. A moderator has more of a higher-level role than 20K rep users. Although they are just as important, high rep users work more with closing questions and handling the review queues.

In your opinion, what do moderators do?

Be a flight attendant. I know it sounds silly, but it's a fairly good analogy:

Both are forced to put on a smile, even when they don't want to.
Both deal with angry customers/users.
Both are responsible for the general wellbeing of the customers/users.
Both have a lot of obscure, small jobs behind-the-scenes that most people don't know about.
Both hand out free mini bags of peanuts and pretzels.

Nice analogy about being a flight attendant. :)

My name is Avamander. You can find my nomination post here.

A question is flagged as "off-topic" because it only peripherally involves an Arduino. For example "How do I get my Arduino to turn on a motor using a transistor?". Should it be closed altogether, migrated to Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange (where they are used to questions about transistors), or left here as a good beginner's Arduino question? Alternatively would you dismiss the flag and let the community handle the question via down-votes or vote-to-close?

I know what the intention is by asking this question from me, these questions are interesting to solve as it's hard to say what exactly counts as an Arduino. But in this case, that specific question is Arduino specific. The transistor is an important part, but not what turns motors on by itself. I would dismiss the flags, comment why it's Arduino specific and also mention to use up- and down-votes if people think the question is bad because that's another topic.

A question has a lengthy number of comments under it suggesting various possible solutions to the asked problem. Once the number of comments reaches 20 the system (Community) automatically flags it suggesting that the comments be moved to chat. You move the comments to chat as suggested, and then get a complaint from a user that "valuable information is now hidden away in chat rather than under the question where it should be". How do you respond?

If the comments are important to solving the issue I would possibly keep them there because it does cause confusion when some key detail is only in chat. Moving to chat should happen if there's really a lot of discussion  going on maybe not directly related to solving the question. But if I already have moved the discussion I would probably respond that I'll keep that in mind for the next time but this time solve the issue in chat. Chat opening on hover would also help, but that's not in my power to add.

A question is flagged as "not an answer" because it basically only has a link in it. The question is "Where can I find the datasheet for the Atmega328P" and the answer is a link to the datasheet. There is a school of thought that link only answers are not good answers. However in this case there isn't really any other way of answering the question. Copying and pasting a huge datasheet into the answer isn't really an option. Also see Should I flag answers which contain only a link as “not an answer”?. As a moderator, would you delete the answer, or let it stand?

I would close the question, for two reasons, answers are all going to be a link-only (with no good solution) and the datasheet is not hard to find. Google in this case will always have a better result and maintaining such question is just a waste of time.

How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?

Amount of answers is irrelevant, one good and one bad doesn't equal 0. I would warn if the amount of arguments gets too high (assuming nothing banal or offensive though), delete after it isn't toned down or when it's flagged by someone else and lastly warn the user(s) privately if it might be needed.

How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?

I use the moderation chat and discuss. Maybe there's something I don't know about the question or the asker.

Regarding why something has to be flagged/closed, do you believe that the actual system (a fixed list of reasons) can be improved or changed for a better one? If you do, how do you propose it could be accomplished?

The current system is good, it allows one to add their own reason. One small improvement that could be made is a button in "Reopen" queue to let the user know they're on the right path with their edits, possibly just adds a comment.

What level of knowledge do you demand from users asking questions? Do you believe there's a minimum standard required?

I don't demand anything, this is Arduino SE, people have usually just started with electronics and programming. Maybe only knowing how to use Arduino IDE and being literate would suffice.

What would you do if two users start insulting each other about not having sufficient knowledge to post on this site? Assume that both users have flagged each other's comments as rude or abusive.

As I am not omniscient, it is quite likely I can't determine and even shouldn't be determining which of the users is right. I would possibly convert the discussion to chat, tell them to discuss calmly (and without insults there if there were any), if that's not possible (knowing user's history), a warning and deletion of the comments.

In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?

10k or even 20k reputation is hard to achieve with retention being as low as it is. Main benefit would be for example the ability to retract edits, quickly deleting spam and doing other more dangerous tasks like migration/deletion/conversions.

In your opinion, what do moderators do?

As much as needed, as little as possible. A moderator should use moderation tools only for things that are exceptional.

@LookAlterno Moot since that question would get closed for not being about Arduino ;-)

@LookAlterno There isn't any responsibility on the answer's poster. It's entirely on the users on this site to determine if the answers are correct or not and if it's safe to follow them, there isn't a good way to make sure noone makes any mistakes and this issue isn't limited to Arduino SE.

@LookAlterno Terms of service say "Subscriber also certifies that they are legally permitted to use the Services and access the Network, and takes full responsibility for the selection and use of the Services and access of the Network." and you know what that means. It's like trying to sue google for a search result being wrong, well, you can, but you probably won't win.

I'm glad I could help. :D

A question is flagged as "off-topic" because it only peripherally involves an Arduino. For example "How do I get my Arduino to turn on a motor using a transistor?". Should it be closed altogether, migrated to Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange (where they are used to questions about transistors), or left here as a good beginner's Arduino question? Alternatively would you dismiss the flag and let the community handle the question via down-votes or vote-to-close?

Many users come here as wee beginners, looking for help on a specific project that may involve Arduino as they progress. I would be more inclined to dismiss the "off-topic" flag if the question looks like it may lead that user to continue their project on Arduino. However, if the question is more complex or advanced than a beginner's Arduino question, it's possible a better answer may be given by some other SE community.  Each of us were beginners at one time, and being pushed away may cause us to lose some great potential.

A question has a lengthy number of comments under it suggesting various possible solutions to the asked problem. Once the number of comments reaches 20 the system (Community) automatically flags it suggesting that the comments be moved to chat. You move the comments to chat as suggested, and then get a complaint from a user that "valuable information is now hidden away in chat rather than under the question where it should be". How do you respond?

If the information is truly valuable, it ought to be in an answer rather than a comment. Comments should be for "meta" discussion, to help the questioner ask the question better.

A question is flagged as "not an answer" because it basically only has a link in it. The question is "Where can I find the datasheet for the Atmega328P" and the answer is a link to the datasheet. There is a school of thought that link only answers are not good answers. However in this case there isn't really any other way of answering the question. Copying and pasting a huge datasheet into the answer isn't really an option. Also see Should I flag answers which contain only a link as “not an answer”?. As a moderator, would you delete the answer, or let it stand?

A link-only answer should at least have a brief summary of how it answers the question or of the actual answer in order to remain. The linked article/page might be more in-depth, as long as it pertains to the question. If it's just background material not specifically answering the question, it certainly doesn't belong as an answer.

How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?

The user should be encouraged to be helpful without including whatever tends to generate the negative flags. If the flags are coming from only one or two other users, it may be that it's an interpersonal conflict, in which case the users involved should be warned, and possibly blocked/banned for a specified time. I believe it's possible to provide valuable answers which do not provoke argument (vim/emacs notwithstanding).

How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?

In general, I would defer to the other mod, unless it was clear that the action was intentionally aggressive or oppresive.

Regarding why something has to be flagged/closed, do you believe that the actual system (a fixed list of reasons) can be improved or changed for a better one? If you do, how do you propose it could be accomplished?

The current system of a fixed list, with option to free-type is sufficient.

What level of knowledge do you demand from users asking questions? Do you believe there's a minimum standard required?

As a community that gets many beginners, I don't expect a great deal. However, the basics ought to be the ability to recognize the most common passive components (resistor, capacitor, battery, LED, wires) as well as being able to recognize basic source code elements (#define, function declaration, loops/conditionals) in such a way that the answers provided can be understood and utilized by the questioner.

What would you do if two users start insulting each other about not having sufficient knowledge to post on this site? Assume that both users have flagged each other's comments as rude or abusive.

Initial warning to all parties, leading to temporary ban. Non-helpful answers/comments should be removed. Noting that an answer/comment is incorrect are fine, but personal attacks are not.

In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?

I can't say I view it that way. If there is a need for a moderator team, and I can help in that way, then good. There are a lot of good answers coming in, but the site/community becomes more effective with curation.

In your opinion, what do moderators do?

The moderator is there as a kind of filter, to keep useless bits from detracting from users getting excellent answers to their questions.


text:
2019 Moderator Election Q&A - Questionnaire
In connection with the moderator elections, we are holding a Q&A thread for the candidates. Questions collected from an earlier thread have been compiled into this one, which shall now serve as the space for the candidates to provide their answers.
Due to the submission count, we have selected all provided questions as well as our back up questions for a total of 9 questions.
As a candidate, your job is simple - post an answer to this question, citing each of the questions and then post your answer to each question given in that same answer. For your convenience, I will include all of the questions in quote format with a break in between each, suitable for you to insert your answers. Just copy the whole thing after the first set of three dashes.Please consider putting your name at the top of your post so that readers will know who you are before they finish reading everything you have written, and also including a link to your answer on your nomination post.
Once all the answers have been compiled, this will serve as a transcript for voters to view the thoughts of their candidates, and will be appropriately linked in the Election page.
Good luck to all of the candidates!
Oh, and when you've completed your answer, please provide a link to it after this blurb here, before that set of three dashes. Please leave the list of links in the order of submission.
To save scrolling here are links to the submissions from each candidate (in order of submission):
Ghanima
VE7JRO

A question has a lengthy number of comments under it suggesting various possible solutions to the asked problem. Once the number of comments reaches 20 the system (Community) automatically flags it suggesting that the comments be moved to chat. You move the comments to chat as suggested, and then get a complaint from a user that "valuable information is now hidden away in chat rather than under the question where it should be". How do you respond?
How will you handle questions that doesn't require knowledge about the Arduino platform to answer (general coding questions, general electronics questions)?
How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?
How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?
A question is flagged as "off-topic" because it only peripherally involves an Arduino. For example "How do I get my Arduino to turn on a motor using a transistor?". Should it be closed altogether, migrated to Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange (where they are used to questions about transistors), or left here as a good beginner's Arduino question? Alternatively would you dismiss the flag and let the community handle the question via down-votes or vote-to-close?
How would you prefer to handle a Question, if the source of the problem is only a typo in the OP's source code?
In your opinion, what do moderators do?
A diamond will be attached to everything you say and have said in the past, including questions, answers and comments. Everything you will do will be seen under a different light. How do you feel about that?
In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?

Ghanima

Preface

From my nomination to become moderator on RaspberryPi.SE in 2015 (see here):

I believe in the power of the crowd and cooperation. Therefore it is my firm hope that a mod only has to step in in the rare cases where self-regulation fails. I see the work of moderators as part of the work the community does as a whole - after all Stack Exchange is community moderated and moderators are also just users.
It is my understanding that the community members should define the goals and policies of the site together (e.g. in meta), with the mods aiding to focus this process and helping to implement the agreed upon procedures. As a moderator I would like to act as part of a team on behalf of and to the benefit of the community.

Over the past four years my hopes in community moderation were confirmed to a very large extend. The main exception being that on small stacks collecting five close votes takes forever so I tended to visit that particular review queue quite often to cast a binding vote if I felt that there would be a community consensus for closure.
Arduino's and RaspberryPi's stacks are roughly of a similar size and according to this and that are rather peaceful at that (considering the use of the heavy moderation tools, contacting users and casting suspensions).

A question has a lengthy number of comments under it suggesting various possible solutions to the asked problem. Once the number of comments reaches 20 the system (Community) automatically flags it suggesting that the comments be moved to chat. You move the comments to chat as suggested, and then get a complaint from a user that "valuable information is now hidden away in chat rather than under the question where it should be". How do you respond?

I would try to convince that user how comments are supposed to work - backing that up with positions outlined at numerous posts on Meta.Stackexchange. Furthermore I would suggest that "valuable information" should be either incorporated into the body of the question by editing it or posted as an answer instead.
In short: "under the question" is in fact not "where it should be". All relevant information concerning the question should be part of the question, everything that is an answer should be posted as such, not as a comment.

How will you handle questions that doesn't require knowledge about the Arduino platform to answer (general coding questions, general electronics questions)?

According to this stack's helpcenter those questions are considered off-topic. If they are reasonably phrased and of sufficient quality I would migrate them to the appropriate stack, i.e. Stackoverflow or Electrical Engineering. If in doubt I would try to reach out to a moderator of those stacks before migrating. Sometimes it is more appropriate to rephrase a question and put emphasis on other aspects when posting on another stack, in which case I would use comments to guide the user to do that instead of migrating.

How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?

Clear and open communication with the user is key here. The tools to do so are available - private chats and/or "contacting the user". I have come to understand that the teamwork of the moderators can help to alleviate any interpersonal sensitivities. If talking the issue through is not helping to resolve the problem, even suspensions should be considered, assuming serious infractions.
The be nice policy of Stackexchange applies to all contributors regardless of seniority or amassed reputation (see here).

How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?

Talk it through in the moderator's chat room. Usually there is no need to rush things and single-handedly reverse another moderators decision. Hear them out the understand their point of view and motivation first before acting.

A question is flagged as "off-topic" because it only peripherally involves an Arduino. For example "How do I get my Arduino to turn on a motor using a transistor?". Should it be closed altogether, migrated to Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange (where they are used to questions about transistors), or left here as a good beginner's Arduino question? Alternatively would you dismiss the flag and let the community handle the question via down-votes or vote-to-close?

I would not cast a moderator's binding vote but leave it to community. Personally I believe in a more inclusive approach as long as this community has the expertise to provide quality answers, i.e. has members that could answer the question. Considering that a large part of the community are hobbyists and/or beginners the listed example is likely to pop up again on this stack so it'd be best to have good answer for it.

How would you prefer to handle a Question, if the source of the problem is only a typo in the OP's source code?

Ha, good one.
As I was saying before, I think that the community as a whole should be making policy not just the moderators. For lack of a solid answer on the topic I have posted a meta question to have the community make up its mind. As a moderator I would then go along with the way the community deems fit.

In your opinion, what do moderators do?

I like the phrase Moderators are human exception handlers very much. As pointed out above I have come to understand that community moderation works quite well on Stackexchange and I have little doubt that it will be different on Arduino. Moderators should therefore only step in in the rare cases where self-regulation fails, those exceptional conditions that could otherwise disrupt the community.
Most of the light moderation required is actually done by using comments to guide (new) users and point out how things work or could be improved... but then again most of that can be done by any avid user (think community moderation). Communication is 80% of the moderators work.

A diamond will be attached to everything you say and have said in the past, including questions, answers and comments. Everything you will do will be seen under a different light. How do you feel about that?

I am pretty confident that my previous posts here, on the Stackexchange network and my history of moderation on RaspberryPi reflect well on me. If you ever find me cross the line, just give me a hint. I am not above reconsidering and apologizing. I take responsibility for what I have posted in the past and what I will post in the future, so in fact, the potential diamond does not make me feel dizzy.

In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?

Reaching 10k rep would be a matter of years. Gaining mod powers now will allow me to support the current team of moderators and contribute to the main site, meta, and chat more actively.

VE7JRO Q + A

A question has a lengthy number of comments under it suggesting various possible solutions to the asked problem. Once the number of comments reaches 20 the system (Community) automatically flags it suggesting that the comments be moved to chat. You move the comments to chat as suggested, and then get a complaint from a user that "valuable information is now hidden away in chat rather than under the question where it should be". How do you respond?

If the complainant has enough reputation, I would ask them to add the "valuable information" to the question. If they don't have the rep, I would do it for them.

How will you handle questions that doesn't require knowledge about the Arduino platform to answer (general coding questions, general electronics questions)?

Some of these questions can be migrated to other places within Stack Exchange, if an appropriate place exists.
I've noticed some experienced users will answer these types of questions in the comments. Perhaps it's because they know the question is off topic and will be migrated or closed. This may not be what comments are for, but I am OK with it, providing the question is sure to be closed. IMHO, the most important thing we do is help people solve their problems. If a quick comment like "HINT: URL TO THE ANSWER", solves the OP's problem, mission accomplished.

How would you deal with a user who produced a steady stream of valuable answers, but tends to generate a large number of arguments/flags from comments?

If the user's comments are inappropriate, a moderator should delete them. If any person feels that a comment is not relevant to the question/answer, flag it for moderator attention. Users who raise 80 helpful flags are awarded a silver badge, and 500 helpful flags is a gold badge.
Arguments are rare on Ard.SE, but are a normal part of human interaction. A long time ago, people believed the world was flat. Then, people argued about it. Sometime after that, I was born, went to school, and was taught the world was round. Differences in opinion occur throughout one's lifetime.

How would you handle a situation where another mod closed/deleted/etc a question that you feel shouldn't have been?

I would discuss it with them first. If two moderators can not reach a consensus, the third moderator should decide the final outcome.

A question is flagged as "off-topic" because it only peripherally involves an Arduino. For example "How do I get my Arduino to turn on a motor using a transistor?". Should it be closed altogether, migrated to Electrical Engineering Stack Exchange (where they are used to questions about transistors), or left here as a good beginner's Arduino question? Alternatively would you dismiss the flag and let the community handle the question via down-votes or vote-to-close?

It should be migrated. Sure, it's nice to have a few of these Q+As on Ard.SE to "guide" the OP in the right direction, BUT, what if the answer gives bad advise? A question just like this was asked 10 days ago. Four people plus myself voted to close. The question is now closed, but not deleted from the system yet. I have a problem with one of the answers. It recommends using a IRF540 MOSFET. A quick look at the data sheet shows testing was done with a VGS of 10V. That's a big red flag for me. I would have recommended a Logic Level MOSFET such as the RFP30N06LE.
I've been "lurking" on the Electrical Engineering network for 241 days, and see this same type of question asked over and over again. On EE, they can get into great detail about which MOSFET is the best to use with a micro controller, and how to use it properly.

How would you prefer to handle a Question, if the source of the problem is only a typo in the OP's source code?

If the typo is a missing curly bracket or semi-colon, someone will point that out to the OP. If they answer in the comments, I up-vote the comment. If they make a proper answer, I up-vote it. Once the OP acknowledges the problem is solved, I would put the question on hold, which means the system will eventually delete it.
According to this page https://arduino.stackexchange.com/help/on-topic, off topic is: "If the solution would be the same with or without Arduino, then it's usually a general coding question."
So I guess that means a for or while loop with incorrect syntax is off topic too.
Whats on topic? The same webpage says: "Specific questions about Arduino boards, code…". If the OP includes a sketch with their question, and it compiles in the IDE, then isn't it Arduino code? When I try to compile an Arduino sketch using XCode, it fails. The same thing happens when I use Visual Studio.
Right now, I am one of the few people who is voting to NOT-close most of these types of questions. They are still being closed because 5 people voted to close. What happens if I'm elected as a moderator? Do I step on 5 peoples toes and over-ride their decision? Of course not. A moderator works for the community and aligns themselves the the communities goals, keeping the community within the rules set by Stack Exchange. I don't agree with the people closing these questions, but I respect their decision.

In your opinion, what do moderators do?

I've read on meta.stackexchange.com that they are "unicorn yodelers": https://meta.stackexchange.com/a/166628

A diamond will be attached to everything you say and have said in the past, including questions, answers and comments. Everything you will do will be seen under a different light. How do you feel about that?

That's cool with me.

In what way do you feel that being a moderator will make you more effective as opposed to simply reaching 10k or 20k rep?

Right now, it takes my vote plus 4 more to put a "unclear what you are asking", "too broad" or "off topic" question on hold. As a moderator, I will be quick to click the "Put question on hold" button, if such a button exists. Keep in mind, it will still take time before the system deletes it. The OP can still edit the question which will automatically add it to the "Re-open" queue. If the OP improves the question so it can be answered, I would be just as quick to click a "re-open" button. Sometimes people just need a "nudge" in the right direction in order for them to do the right thing.

Re: the code typo: Help the person, then put the question on hold. Doesn't that prohibit other users from providing answers, some of which may be more explanatory or cover the background of why (if that's helpful to the Q)?

@jose can u c - Thank you for the question. I've updated my answer.

license: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text:
Is dark mode coming for Arduino SE?
Stack Overflow has a setting in the preferences for Light/Dark mode for quite some time now.
I would like to also have a dark mode in Arduino SE.
I don't know how such things are handled in the Stack Exchange environment. Is it planned to provide this feature on Arduino SE? If not, why? Is there some kind of hindrance for this to come to Arduino SE?

https://meta.stackexchange.com/questions/359739/plans-for-dark-mode-for-all-stack-exchange-sites

Mhh, that sounds like "not in the next 5 to 10 years". Sad thing. Should I delete this question, since already answered on meta SE?

Judging by the link that Juraj posted it would be a massive effort to redesign the multiple Stack Exchange sites. They would have carefully chosen palettes of colours in the existing design, and the whole thing would have to be reworked to make a dark theme.
You will notice that this site graduated in 2017, and in that post they said:

Later, the site will still receive a full custom design from one of our staff designers ...

Five years later, this site got its custom design. So even if Stack Exchange agreed to rework each site to have a dark theme, you might be waiting a long time for it to actually happen. There are around 180 sites they would have to work on.

all_licenses: Creative Commons - Attribution Share-Alike - https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/


text:
Automatic replace in questions
Would it be possible to set automatic replace for some certain words in questions?
For example:

"Arduino" is a name and should start with a capitalized letter, there are no
exceptions to that.
" , " should be replaced with ", " because there are no cases where
there should be a space before a comma (or "?", "!" and ".").
Names of boards like "Arduino UNO" should fix themselves
automatically.
Double and triple exclamation marks and question marks also could be
auto-replaced.

If this was possible I think it would make the questions and answers more consistent and right saving some work to adjust those posts.

I don't really like auto-fixups. There are times when they drive you insane. You may overlook borderline cases. For example:

" , " should be replaced with ", " because there are no cases where there should be a space before a comma

Maybe in some comma-delimited file:
1234,  , , 5678

Double and triple exclamation marks and question marks also could be auto-replaced.

How about:

I tried to upload code to my Mega, but found it wouldn't upload when I had "!!!" in it:
     Serial.println ("Furnace too hot!!!");

Names of boards like "Arduino UNO" should fix themselves automatically.

Posts like your question would become impossible because you wouldn't be able to express the words "Arduino UNO". For example, you may be wanting to explain that UNO is the wrong capitalization to someone.
For example, what if someone posts "How come you corrected my spelling to Uno when it has UNO printed on the board?".

Everything in the quote, link and code tags could be ignored. The replacing should be really specific. Like only capitalising Arduino, Arduino model name first letter. The filters can be made really safe and I am quite sure the amount of errors reduced would be greater than the amount of errors created.


text:
Lots of abandoned (and/or unanswered) questions
Would it be possible to delete questions that have no reply from the OP at least a few months or user is inactive and there are no good and useful answers.
There are quite a lot of questions that should be deleted because the OP has vanished that just clutter arduino.stackexchange.
For ex: NRF24 module - how to program arduino so that it is able to listen to 2 pipes

Simply put, if they can't be answered, they should've been closed already. Too broad is applicable if they don't have enough information in their question to narrow it down to a specific solution (you end up getting a lot of very scattered answers).
So, close questions if they can't be answered. They'll get deleted after some time automatically.

I think I can't yet vote to close questions.

I imagine you can, now. ;)

I think I indeed can, now.

I would say some caution is required. Just because the OP has vanished, it does not mean that the question is redundant/useless. I Just remember what I heard from a lecturer back at college, many moons ago:

If you have a question, but are too scared to ask it, for fear of looking the fool, then fear not. If you have thought of that question, then it is very likely that someone else has either already thought of it, and wants to ask it, or will do.

So, taking the example that you have just closed. The question may be a little unclear, due to the OP's possible poor command of the English language. It may, also, be unanswered, however, that does not mean that there is no answer in the post. In fact there are two comments, which offer short, and not in-depth, answers.
It is not the fault of the OP that the question does not have an actual answer as a posted answer. Many times one can see questions, with good answers posted as comments, for the shear quickness of getting an answer up there... The answerer may not be able to find the time to craft a perfectly worded answer, so just to get the OP on their way, the solution is posted as a comment. Often the writer of a very good comment is asked to turn that in to a answer, so that it may be accepted.
So, in short, closing a question that has answers in the comment, I feel, is a little short sighted, as someone else is probably thinking the same thing, and those comments could just give them the help that they require. I know that they have helped me in the past.
Obviously, some questions are so awful that they deserve to be scrapped, however, in this cited case, I don't believe that it is.
Also, these awful questions will generally get closed through the use of close votes. If no one has voted to close it, then it is probably not a good idea to take an executive decision to close it. Let the democracy vote the questions. As the docs say, a moderator generally has very little to do, until issues are raised. There is no need to go looking for work ;-)
Instead of closing the question, why not turn the comments into answers?

Someone could write about using two radios to listen to multiple channels at once but noone will do that (or at least has not yet done that) , plus it's always possible to get it reopened.

When reviewing unanswered questions I have been attempting to turn comments into answers. Unfortunately, that means they are answers with no up-votes so the question is still technically unanswered. And I can't accept or up-vote my own answer (even if it is really someone else's copied and pasted).

@NickGammon - I have finally fully understood your comment (better late than never), now that I have just read: "The Unanswered Questions tab shows questions that have no answers with a positive score nor an accepted answer. (That includes questions with no answers at all.)" from Why does the “Unanswered Questions” tab show questions that have answers?. I had always assumed that an up-tick was required. Pᴀᴜʟsᴛᴇʀ2 just pointed it out to me in a chat on 3DPrinting.


text:
Processing, signal-processing and text-processing tags
Could we rename Processing (the language) tag to Processing-lang, and merge signal- and text-processing tags to data-processing tag.

What does data-processing mean?
Although it's clear what processing refers to -- and I agree with renaming that tag to clarify that it's about the processing language itself; tag signal-processing and tag text-processing don't have any usage guidance. I'm leery of combining two already ill-defined groups of questions into another even less-well-defined group.
I took a look at the existing tagged questions, there's currently 25 questions tagged signal-processing and 9 questions tagged text-processing.
I can guess that signal-processing would include digital signal processing techniques (within the Arduino's capability), as well as analog filtering.
Browsing the 9 questions tagged text-processing, it's not clear to me what this tag actually means.

how an Arduino program(sketch) deals with strings of text input and output?
how the C pre-processor processes the text of the source code?
how the Arduino-specific language elements work?

Is program-got-so-many-errors-about-expected-or-before-either really about text processing? Seems like this question turned out to be about why #define dw 8; should not have the semicolon.  Similarly arduino-program-got-error-expected-primary-expression-before-token-error doesn't contain anything that looks to me like text processing.
What about this question about F() FlashStringHelper -- that's useful and related to how constant string expressions are stored in an arduino program, but probably belongs in string instead.
And for that matter, why isn't How do I split an incoming string in text-processing when How to get string parts from string is? I'd edit it myself if I was sure what belonged in that tag.
So since text-processing has only 9 questions, and 0 followers, and it's unclear how these questions are related, let's instead:

rename processing to processing-lang as proposed by @Avamander
shore up signal-processing with a clear tag wiki definition
dispatch the 9 questions in text-processing to wherever they really belong (maybe string), then burninate text-processing.
add [text] as a synonym for string

Re-tagging individual questions is a straightforward edit, but without a clear well-defined definition of what the tag is supposed to mean, it's harder to find related stuff.

Done. (Although signal-processing still needs a description)


text:
2018 Winter Bash Leaderboard
For all those interested in the Winter Bash hats, there is a leaderboard for hats earned on just the Arduino Stack Exchange website.
https://winterbash2018.stackexchange.com/leaderboard/arduino.stackexchange.com
A list of hats is available here:
https://winterbash2018.stackexchange.com/
And to round it all off, here is a link to where Arduino SE ranks compared to other SE sites:
https://winterbash2018.stackexchange.com/leaderboard
Winterbash2018 discussions:
Winter Bash 2018 Hat list
Show off your hats! (2018 edition)
Winter Bash 2018 Knitting Yes, you can do some knitting too!
I would like to hear what hats you think are easiest to achieve!!

post a question that gets answered or earn reputation with an answer you post


text:
I have messed up my question what should I do now?
I have asked question recently in Arduino Stack exchange but I forgot to specify the problem clearly. I thought it is a problem with the Arduino's serial.read(). Seems like the question belongs to Super User or Electrical stack exchange. What should I do?
I was going to delete the question but the question has answers now but the answers did not help. I see this question more into Serial communication. Also I have seen many users having the kind of same problem in reddit and Arduino forums.
The question may not have a answer at all, it may be old devices (Versastat II) are not compatible with modern devices. I have fully edited the question after the two answers, which is bad indeed, afterwards added the full problem scenario..
Should I delete the question and repost? Help!
Thank you
Question
How to read incoming HEX values from Serial.read() method?

the question has answers now but the answers did not help

Your question is detailed, and the answers seem to be trying to help you.
I don't think deleting the question will help. I suggest trying to work with the people that are answering you and try to work your way to a solution.

seems like the question belongs to Super User or Electrical stack exchange

Certainly not Super User. I think you should stay here and work out the issue.

If your question has changed, it is better to leave the original question as is and ask a new question. That way the answers to the original question stay relevant.


text:
How to write a good answer for Arduino Stack Exchange
How to write a good answer
Some new users on Stack Exchange may find the system of flagging, voting and commenting a bit difficult to follow, or frustrating, even.
This post is intended as a guide to writing a good answer.
A good answer

Will help the OP (Original Poster - the person who asked the question)
May be accepted by the OP, thus giving a +15 reputation bonus
May be up-voted by multiple people, each up-vote giving a +10 reputation bonus
May attract positive or helpful comments under the answer
Will help other people in the future (people with a similar question)
As your reputation increases your privileges on the site will increase

A bad answer

May attract down-votes, each down-vote deducting 2 reputation points from the person who made the answer
A lot of down-votes may cause the question to be automatically closed
May be flagged for moderator attention, possibly leading to its deletion
Too many negative flags (agreed to by the moderators) may lead to a temporary suspension of privileges
May attract negative comments

This is not a forum
Stack Exchange has a different model to most forums. On a forum (for example The Arduino Forum) answers are likely to build on previous answers, a bit like this:

Q. I've connected my LED to the Arduino output pin and earth, and set that pin to OUTPUT and HIGH. However the LED does not light up. Why is that?
John: You may have it in backwards.
Emma: You also need a current-limiting resistor.
James: Good idea! 220 ohms would be about right.
Olivia: Make sure you have the pin set to OUTPUT.
Ethan: See this web page
Sophia: What colour LED is it?

In a forum this is perfectly reasonable, and the overall answer is an amalgamation of each response. However here most of those answers would be down-voted or flagged as too short, "not an answer", or "link-only".
If you are used to forums, you may be aggrieved that a response that was perfectly acceptable on a forum gets down-votes, negative comments, or is possibly deleted entirely.
Answers should stand alone
Answers on Stack Exchange should stand on their own, and not rely upon snippets of information from other answers, or comments.
What you need to do is take the time to make a comprehensive reply that will not only help the OP today, but stand as a beacon of helpfulness for people in the next ten years! Something like this:

Example answer
LEDs are polarized, and thus have to be fitted the correct way around. If you have a LED tester or multimeter you can usually work it out by measuring the LED. There are some visual clues, however. If the leads haven't been cut the longer one is the positive lead (anode):

Also, the negative lead (cathode) will have a small notch cut out of the plastic (viewed from below) like this:

LEDs need to be protected from too much current. If you connect an LED directly across a battery or Arduino output pins, the high current through the LED will damage both the LED and the Arduino. You need to limit current, typically to around 20 mA. This is often done with a resistor in series, like this:

Note that the part of the LED symbol with the bar is the negative side (cathode). The 220 ohm resistor will limit the current to around 15 mA for a red LED.
You can visit a LED calculator site. Example of the calculations:

The forward voltage varies depending on the colour of the LED, and typical ones (from that site) are:

You can do the calculations yourself by considering that with a forward voltage drop of 2V for a red LED, then there must be a 3V drop over the resistor. Using Ohm's Law:
R = V / I
R = 3 / 0.015
R = 200

The closest standard value is 220 so we use 220 ohms here. Re-arranging the formula we can work out the exact current:
I = V / R
I = 3 / 220
I = 0.014

Thus this arrangement will actually draw 14 mA from the output pin which is in spec for an Arduino output pin.
Example code
const byte ledPin = 5;

void setup()
{
  pinMode(ledPin, OUTPUT);
}

void loop()
{
  digitalWrite(ledPin, HIGH);
  delay(1000);
  digitalWrite(ledPin, LOW);
  delay(1000);
}

More information about using LEDs at Mike Cook's site: The care and feeding of LEDs

The example answer above illustrates:

Images of parts to make clear which terminal is which
A schematic of the connections
Example code
An explanation of why a certain resistor value was used
Some off-site references for more reading

Answers should not only contain links to other sites
Links can, and probably will, go "link dead" over time. Thus an answer of "see www.xyz.com" which may be helpful today will be useless when "xyz.com" becomes defunct. Preferably summarize, paraphrase, or re-state what the linked site says. Then include the link, if necessary, as "further information". Of course, don't claim the other person's work as your own, so you could say something like "As John Smith says at xyz.com, blah blah blah ...".

Comments on answers
Please feel free to comment on someone's answer if you think something is unclear, or wrong. If you see an obvious typo, and you have enough reputation to do so, you can edit the answer to fix up the problem. However do not change the original intent of the answer.

Make another answer
If you see an answer that you believe isn't the greatest, or there is a better way of doing things, then feel free to post a different answer that explains the situation better. Stack Exchange is designed for this to happen, so that the best answer gets the most votes and "floats" to the top of the answer pool.

If you like an answer, vote for it!
If you see a good answer, vote it up. This helps others (like the OP) know that other people agree with the answer. It also helps the person making the answer get more reputation.

Answers are NOT for:

Asking another question - start your own question for that.
A "me too!" answer - that is, saying you have the same problem as in the question, and asking if anyone solved it.
To ask for more information about the question - use a comment for that if you have enough reputation. If not, answer some other questions until you have built up enough reputation to make comments (currently 50 reputation).
For the OP to add additional information, like schematics, code, photos, explanations. Edit the question to do that.
To comment on another answer - use a comment under the answer to do that.

References

How do I write a good answer?
What should I do when someone answers my question?
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How to ask a good Arduino question

This is a relatively poor example, in particular, the proposed answer is highly inappropriate.  A "question" such as "My LED doesn't light up." is not only too broad, it is not even a question,  and probably not even on topic here.  Such a posting either gets closed, or comments are used to request clarification.  Jumping right in and responding to that non-question with a full treatise on LEDs is not appropriate.  Frankly the comments you use as a negative example are closer to being appropriate initial responses to the non-question - yes, even the color one (given forward voltages).

What's unique about Stack Exchange is that it is not only not a discussion forum, it is not a textbook or tutorial site either.  Questions must be specific, and while answers may go beyond the question, they need to be a specific response to an actual question which has been asked, not a general response triggered by someone expressing non-specific interest in an area of technology.

You make some valid points, but I think the problem here is that the question was a bit vague. I can reword the question to be more of the sort of question that deserves a lengthy answer. I see quite a few answers along the lines of "go look that up on the Internet" which frankly I don't think helps anyone. I wasn't using the "what colour is it?" as a negative example, but as an example of the sort of things you expect on a forum.

Take a look at It’s OK to Ask and Answer Your Own Questions. There Jeff Atwood makes it clear that it is OK to use Stack Exchange to provide some sort of tutorial (even if you have to make up your own question so you can answer it). Arguably, if I ask a question and then answer it, it isn't a genuine question because I already know the answer.