i just wanted to know how many servers Stack Overflow runs on, with 240,000 users on the site, im thinking they have 1,000 of servers? but i wondered if you guys knew
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What tools and technologies are used to build the Stack Exchange Network?  See also:
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How do users on the new Stack Exchange sites get started? Each user starts with 1 rep, and can't upvote until they have 15 rep.  It struck me that this creates a bit of a deadlock. If a new user asks a question and a new user answers, neither can upvote the other.  Are we relying solely on existing SE users to join these exchange sites (with their bonus 100 rep) so that they can get started?
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Do Stack Overflow users ever have some sort of social events where they can meet and talk in person? If not, is there interest in such an event?  I thought it would be nice to meet people in real life.  I made a chat room for this question:
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I was just reading the , and noticed something:  You must be at least 13 years old to access or use the Network or Services, including without limitation to complete a Stack Overflow account registration. By accessing or using the Services or the Network in any manner, you represent and warrant that you are at least 13 years of age. If you are under 13 years old, you may not, under any circumstances or for any reason, access or use the Services or Network in any manner, and may not provide any personal information to or on the Services or Network (including, for example, a name, address, telephone number or email address). If you are located within the European Union, you must be at least 16 years old to access or use the Network or Services, including without limitation to complete a Stack Overflow Account Registration.  I signed up for Stack Overflow when I was around 11 or 12 and I did provide my email address. Are you saying that my use of Stack Overflow was not legal? I'm 16 now (so I'm in the clear), but that just seems a little harsh. Is that possibly related to the age limit for accepting a binding contract/agreement (although I thought that was 18 in the U.S.)? Is there a way for users under the age of 13, or for users from the European Union who are under the age of 16, to use the site legally?
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I know Jeff Atwood and Joel Spolsky are the owners or creators because I came by the site from reading their blogs.  Who else works for Stack Overflow in here?  Does Jon Skeet? There's also a fair number of 100k+ users now.  The answers from them are quite informative. It seems that to get that many points in such a short amount of time (the site's only been online for 2-3 years?), you would need to be spending quite a lot of time, regularly on here, so either they   Have a ton of spare time either at work or outside of work Are unemployed (seems unlikely given their breadth of knowledge) Work for Stack Overflow and their job is partially to post answers.   These guys seem too knowledgeable so reason 1 or reason 2 seem unlikely, so I suspect reason 3.
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I feel like there's a problem with Stack Overflow, as the number of people prowling it increases.  Each question's answers are sorted by descending score and then by descending time of posting. This means that if a person sits down and answers a question in a long, thorough way, going through every nook and cranny, once they post their answer, it will already be one of about seven different ones, some of which have already been upvoted. This wouldn't be a problem if those answers were as thorough as the one this guy's posting, but they usually aren't. Some of them are downright wrong, some aren't even answers to the question asked because their poster didn't bother to read the question all the way through.  This causes a problem I like to call Stack Overflow's Fastest Gun in the West Problem. I've come to a point where I'd rather just send a short, simple, correct explanation, than to go and do some proper research, write a whole blog post about it or even make sure the code I post even compiles, just so it will be noticed, as opposed to the incorrect ones.  I'm sure I'm not the only one doing this and that it despairs many people from even trying to answer questions.  I've long ago learned to try to always raise a problem with a solution in hand, rather than just say "This is a problem, handle it," so my question, after this long tirade, is:     How do you think this can be changed? What would you change in Stack Overflow to make this problem go away without hurting the site?   I promise to vote on answers I like, even if it takes you a long while to post them. :)
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I would like to know what Easter eggs are hiding in Stack Overflow, and all the other Stack Exchange sites. I love Easter eggs and I love Stack Overflow, so adding even more is a good idea in my opinion, what do you think?
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Is there an appropriate place to suggest new Stack Exchange based sites, perhaps a place for them to be voted upon?  I wish there was a Stack Exchange site for Aviation (both real-life and simulated).
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Why is it that people who have low reputation on Stack Overflow have to wait 20 minutes per question asked? I am trying to teach myself python programming and head the club at school - this website has been a magnificent resource. But, as I work on a problem the issues often come up quickly - so once more, what is the reason for the wait.   As an extra question, why is it that the limit is applied to IP addresses instead of accounts?
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SO has helped me so much in times of need. It is crazy - sometimes I am having a huge issue with a program I'm working on at school or work, and I post it on SO and the answers come quickly and easily. Lots of time it's a typo, while others it's a deep misunderstanding of mine. I wonder how I can fit in here at Stack Overflow. How I can contribute. In fact, I feel such a “beginner”, I don't even know where to look half the time. But I see there is now a place for /Programmers/ which leads me to wonder if there can be a site for beginners - and strictly beginners. Beginners post in Stack Overflow, and only beginners can post answers. Meaning, you must ask a question in the beginners forum in order to answer one. Or something, I'm not sure, I just want a place to connect with others who are just starting out how to learn about programming, and want to get the chance to answer other beginner questions so I can learn more (you learn 40% of what you do and 90% of what you teach). What do you all think about this?
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Yesterday I wanted to comment on a question on Stack&nbsp;Overflow, but I don't have 50 reputation points. The question is that I referred in my answer to another Stack&nbsp;Overflow question, and my response had showed as a comment.  It is correct?? I don't know if this is a bug.  This is the question:   And now my rep is 47.
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Edit:      explains that Stack Overflow has its own server due to sheer volume of traffic. However, it doesn't explain why Meta Stack Exchange has its own server, having only 5 active rooms compared to Stack Exchange's 60 active rooms.  To differentiate my question, I've changed my scope to specifically ask why Meta Stack Exchange has a separate chat server      Original Post  The Stack Exchange network has  for user chat.    (Stack Overflow)  (Meta Stack Exchange)  (Super User, Server Fault, Arqade, Ubuntu, Mathematics, Web Applications, and all other SE sites)   Why do Stack Overflow, Meta Stack Exchange, and Stack Exchange use separate, independent chat servers instead of sharing one subdomain?    Having separate servers means that users can have three separate chat accounts without even realizing. I only recently realized that, in addition to my  and per-site profiles, I also had separate accounts for , , and .  Profiles are fully separate with different profile settings, ignored user lists, favorited rooms, bookmarked conversations, and parent users. Each server has its own unique , , and .  I read a  speculating the servers may have been separated to improve performance. That reasoning could explain why Stack Overflow () is separate from Stack Exchange (). But if performance were the reason, why separate Meta Stack Exchange? As of posting, Meta only has   *Note: This question is not about unique per-site domain URLs. See
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I am regular Stack Exchange user, especially at Stack Overflow.  One of the things I really dislike about new and sometimes veteran users is that:   Either they do not accept an answer that works for them, Or they accept the answer but do not vote it up   I mean they can really both accept the answer and vote it up but somehow they wouldn't =(.  How many of you feel the same way?
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What are the most downvoted questions and answers on Stack Overflow, Server Fault, Meta, and Super User history to date?  Similarly, what are the most upvoted questions and answers on SO, SF, Meta, and SU to date?
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I am just wondering about whether there are any rules about chat topics on Stack Overflow?   When I first entered the PHP chat room, people were talking about music.   Does Stack Exchange monitor this?
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Is there a video that explains how Stack Overflow works and can be used? I.e. a short tutorial to get new users started. If there isn't, then the people behind this site or others who know how it works should make one, because it's overwhelmingly different from other sites and thus difficult for beginners.
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Is the Stack Exchange engine that powers Stack Overflow available to download or install internally for an enterprise or company?  I think Stack Exchange's engine is very great and could be very cool to use for internal enterprise patterns and practices, like the engine of Wikipedia.