Questions tagged [faq]
These posts are your quick guide to the what, how and where of Stack Overflow. Stack Overflow FAQs are indexed at https://meta.stackoverflow.com/questions/251225.
67 questions
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What is the Stack Overflow Lobby? Is it different from other rooms in Chat?
I've recently visited Chat, specifically the Stack Overflow Lobby, however, I was unfamiliar with the rules and expectations of the chat room. Does the Lobby follow the same rules as Stack Overflow ...
43
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1
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Reviewing in the Staging Ground: A practical guide
How should I review questions in the Staging Ground and when should I use which option?
(Like the FAQ on reviewing Late Answers/First Posts and reviewing in Triage, this Q&A is intended to provide ...
31
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1
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Can I flag suspected AI-generated posts as "plagiarized content"?
I found a post that I suspect to be generated by ChatGPT or another LLM service.
The available guidance about what to do in such cases suggests to raise a "looked at by a moderator" flag.
...
31
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1
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Are questions about Stack Internal on-topic for Meta Stack Overflow? Where can I get support?
I have a:
bug report
feature request
support question
pre-sales inquiry
some other type of question
…related to the Stack Internal product (formerly known as Stack Overflow for Teams). Since this is ...
99
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1
answer
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I want to seed Stack Overflow with questions about my product/project. What do I need to know?
I run a project or business that involves coding and I'd like for people to be able to find information about this on Stack Overflow. What do I need to know about doing this? Is this allowed?
Return ...
34
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1
answer
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Why was my moderator flag to have a duplicate question closed/reopened declined?
I ran across a question that I believe is a duplicate (or was wrongly closed as a duplicate). I flagged it for moderator attention, but my flag was declined.
Why won't moderators do anything about ...
74
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11
answers
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Question Close Reasons - Definitions and Guidance
This community-wiki Q&A is a compiled set of guidance for the close reasons used on Stack Overflow.
It's meant to be a canonical repository and a resource for the community – both for authors of ...
77
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3
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I've rethought my question about a homework assignment—why can't I get it deleted?
I asked a question related to a course I was taking. I followed all the Stack Overflow rules, and I got a useful answer. But it's coming to the end of the [grading period here], and my professor has ...
132
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2
answers
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What are the rules governing multiple accounts (i.e. sockpuppets)?
I noticed some users have a separate account (sock puppet) that operates as a chatbot.
Are we allowed to have multiple accounts?
What can we use those accounts for?
What are the rules governing ...
91
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3
answers
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Why shouldn't I assume I know who downvoted my post?
I've been told not to assume that a specific person downvoted my post just because they commented at the same time the downvote came in.
Why not?
Return to FAQ index
81
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1
answer
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How do I present a proposal for change or write a feature request for Stack Overflow?
I have a great idea for changing parts of Stack Overflow.
Upon searching, I see a lot of these feature-request questions are downvoted, closed as duplicates, and I've even seen a few get deleted!
With ...
404
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1
answer
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How do I hide the left navigation sidebar?
There is a new left navigation sidebar.
I prefer using the space for reading questions. How do I hide it?
Return to FAQ index
68
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2
answers
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Why was my custom flag declined? When should I use a custom flag?
Every post or comment flag dialog has an option to raise a custom (moderator) flag:
Every day, moderators receive a lot of custom flags that do not need to be custom flags. Custom flags take a longer ...
66
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2
answers
5k
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Why should I post complete errors? Why isn't the message itself enough?
I have a shell script that fails saying there's no such file or directory.
This error message seems clear to me, but when I post about it, I'm being asked to include the full and complete error ...
168
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1
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I've been told to create a "runnable" example with "Stack Snippets". How do I do that?
Sometimes when asking a question or posting an answer related to HTML, CSS, and/or JavaScript, I've been told to create a minimal, complete, and verifiable example using Stack Snippets. How do I do ...