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Published on April 4, 2022
This is a guide not for App Inventor, but for how to use the App Inventor community functions. This guide will teach you how to create a new topic (ask a question or post tutorials), send personal messages to a user, and more.
A. Create A New Topic.
When you need help for your app or some bugs in your app, or you want to show off your apps/tutorials, go to https://community.appinventor.mit.edu/. You need to create an account to ask a question.
Go to the main page of the community.
On the right-top side, click on + New Topic.
You will see a popup for you to create a new topic.
Before posting, check if your problem is already asked before using the Search facility.
The top textbox is for you to type a title. If you cannot think of a title, type in a brief sentence that explains your problem.
Below, choose a category for your topic. Do not choose the wrong category.
If you need help in your app, either if you want someone to debug it, or you want someone to explain to you how to do something, you use the MIT App Inventor Help category.
If you find bugs in MIT App Inventor, or in the Companion (not in your app), use the Bugs And Other Issues category.
If you want to discuss features about App Inventor, or simply about app developing, use the General Discussion category.
If you want to contribute to App Inventor in GitHub, or have issues with open source development, use the Open Source Development category.
If you have trouble making your extension, use the Open Source Development + Extensions Development category.
If you have any questions about GSoC, or simply want someone to comment on your GSoC proposal, use the Open Source Development + Google Summer of Code category.
If you want to propose a new extension, or show off your new extension, use the Extensions category. (note: use App Inventor blocks and follow the Naming Conventions)
If you have questions or bugs about the iOS companion, use the App Inventor for iOS category.
If you want to post a tutorial or a guide about App Inventor, use the Tutorials And Guides category. (note: please read the guidelines first before you start posting)
If you want to showcase your app, use the App Showcase category.
If you have questions about TinyDB, CloudDB, TinyWebDB, File or FirebaseDB, use the Data Storage category.
If you have questions about IOT devices, or simply showcase your IOT apps, use the Internet of Things category.
Give feedback for App Inventor, or other AI clones, using the Site Feedback category.
If you have guides about improving user interface, or simply ask questions about UI, use the User Interface and Graphics category.
If you want to hire app developers for jobs, use the Work For Hire category.
If you have any questions about the community, use the Community category.
If you want to discuss about the Appathon (a.k.a. App Inventor Hackathon), use the Appathon category.
If you want to discuss about Artifical Intelligence and App Inventor, or extensions about Artificial Intelligence, use the Artificial Intelligence category.
If you want to join translating App Inventor, use the Translating App Inventor category.
Next is a dropdown for you to choose tags. Tags are for better navigating through topics, so others can find your topic quickly. Instead of creating new tags, find tags that already exist.
Last is a huge textbox for you to describe your problem, or showcase your apps, extensions or tutorials. Describe clearly, and post a screenshot of the output/blocks, or even an AIA file.
Click on Create Topic to create a new topic. There are around 50 to 100 active members in the community that can answer your question. Please patiently wait.
B. Sending A Personal Message.
If you want to personally talk to a user, send a personal message to them. Note that you must be at least a basic user (TL1) to send messages.
Click on your profile image at the top-right corner on your screen.
Click on Preferences (the user icon) in the popup.
Click on Summary in the popup.
You will be redirected to your profile page. Click on Messages.
Click on the blue New Message button.
To add a user to your message, click on Add a user and type their usernames.
You will need a title, and a body, but the category and tags are omitted.
If you can see the Message button on the user details via clicking on their avatar, you can also use that.
C. Replying To A Topic.
Read the topic carefully. Make sure that topic is not too old (more than 2 months), and that you have read the title and body.
Below the last post, you will see a Reply button. Click on that.
Enter your reply. After that, click Reply.
D. Likes and Flags.
Like is a way to express approval, and is a tool to encourage our fellow community members. Rather than posting "Agree!", "+1", or "Good", use the Like button for a post. Here is how.
Locate the post.
On the bottom of that particular post, you see some symbols, including a heart, a link, and three dots. The heart symbol is for liking a post. Click that.
After clicking, that means that you have liked this post. The author will receive a notification about it.
Likes may also be a way for measuring trust levels. There are 5 different trust levels - no trust, basic, member, regular, and leader. To jump from a member to a regular, you need likes and need to give likes.
Flag is similar to "report". If you see unwanted content, for example, swearing, off-topic content, flag it. Do not hesitate - if you flag the wrong post, it's still OK. We encourage flagging so that the author and other people can learn from their mistakes. If you find an unwanted post:
Locate the post.
On the bottom of that particular post, click the more symbol.
Some more buttons will show up. Click the Flag symbol, which is the Flag button.
You will see a popup. You have a few options:
If you want to only talk to that person privately, select "Send xxxxx a message". Be nice and constructive. You will send a PM to this user.
If you want to notify staff privately:
select "It's Off-Topic" if you believe that this post is off-topic.
select "It's Inappropriate" if you believe this post has inappropriate content. If you cannot decide whether your post is inappropriate or not, imagine your friend saying that to you in real life.
select "It's Spam" if you believe this content is not useful. For example, you select this when a user has posted 100 ABCs, and that this content is unwanted.
if you find the post needs special attention, select "something else". You will send a PM to all moderators.
Click the Flag Post button to complete the flag.
Staff will be notified when you flag a post. They will also know who flagged it, when and what type of flag it is. If a post receives multiple flags, for example, 3 basic flags, or 2 member/regular flags, or only 1 leader flag, the post will be hidden.
Flags also decide trust levels. If you have 5 or more flagged posts in 100 days that are classified as "inappropriate" or "spam", you will jump from regular to member, or remain this. If a new user (not basic) joins the community and receives multiple flags from regulars, the post will not only be hidden, but the user will also be silenced.
E. Understanding Trust Levels.
Trust levels decide how much trust the community has in you. There are 5 trust levels: no trust, basic, member, regular and leader. Here, I briefly introduce them.
A new user who just joined the community 1 minute ago will start in no trust. They will not be able to send messages, and a lot of functions are disabled.
If that new user read a few posts for around 10 minutes, they will jump to basic. A basic user has all essential community functions, and can join the fun discussion.
If that new user participates in the community for around 2 weeks, they will jump to member. A member has more functions enabled, and can like more posts.
If that user spends a few months participating in the community, and has won some respect from fellow community members, they will jump to regular. They are trusted in tidying up the community, and can cast more powerful flags.
If that user spends some years participating the community, solving a lot of problems (around 100) and receiving a lot of likes (around 1,500), staff will take notice, and they might jump to leader. They have won our respect, and are granted all community functions.
That's it! Sign up in the community and join in the fun discussion! Good luck!
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