Fairphone help is a bit of mixed bag, Iâm not sure whether there is a generally useful format that would apply there.
In any case, stuff that might be good to encourage people to include when something doesnât work:
Fairphone OS version number from the updater app (or at least something specific - Iâve seen a lot of posts that do try to give the information, but report âAndroid 5.1â)
If unexpected behaviour:
Steps to reproduce
Observed behaviour
Expected behaviour
If concerning a specific app:
Which app specifically? (e.g. âmy calendar appâ is ambiguous)
If the app was installed via a store:
Which store?
Which app version? (i.e. not the version of the store)
Though in some cases this may scare people off - which is not what we want to doâŚ
For cases where someone doesnât know how to do something:
What is the desired outcome / what do you want to achieve? Sometimes we develop tunnel vision and end up trying to fix what we think is a small bump in the road when the actual problem is that weâre on the wrong road.
What operating system is being used? (maybe version number isnât too important - but FP Open or FP regular can be important)
Is the OS rooted (not always important, though)
Does the solution need to be compatible with certain other apps? (though this should ideally already be clear from the stated goal)
Any other restrictions? (e.g. FOSS only)
Overall, I would encourage a template for #software:bug-reports, but at best some tips for #fairphone2help (how to maximise the chances of getting an actually useful response) as it may otherwise put people off. For #software:bug-reports it would be a practise run for the bug tracker that is planned to be implemented, so we may also want to get some input from the devs.
There is just one thing that Iâm missing in that list, which is a question you are taught to ask as a medical professional:
What have you tried so far? And be specific!
Sentences like âI tried everything I found on the forumâ or âI searched the whole internetâ are about as helpful as the sentence âI have exactly the same problemâ, when posting in a collective-thread with various versions of similar issues.
This information can not only speed up things because you wonât suggest things the person already tried, but itâs also helpful to learn about the skill level of the user. If someone writes âI tried everything! Even a reboot didnât helpâ Iâll definitely suggest different things than if they tried debugging and write down code and commands they tried.
Oh and also in some cases the actual current problem may be caused by a misguided attempt to solve an issue. E.g. âstuck on boot screenâ is often in fact âentered fastboot mode when trying to enter recoveryâ.