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I recently had most of my questions closed, down-voted, or put on hold, so I'm asking.

  1. Don't my questions really belong here in EE SE? Below are samples
    • What are the components I need for assembling a hobby mobile phone?
    • How would I go about assembling such a hobby device?
    • Are there laws governing assembly/use of such hobby devices?
    • Can I flash the ROM of a mobile phone, e.g. Nokia, in order to install a custom minimal operating system on it?
    • Which peripheral/main units can be used to check a firmware's digital signature?
  2. Can someone point me to an appropriate SE site or a related SE forum? I'm hoping for a site with about as much users as this site has.
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  • \$\begingroup\$ Are those questions ones you have already asked (doesn't appear so, according to your main account), or ones you are planning on asking? \$\endgroup\$
    – Chris Laplante
    Commented Mar 26, 2014 at 0:20
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    \$\begingroup\$ Some of your questions might fit better on Reverse Engineering. \$\endgroup\$
    – The Photon
    Commented Mar 26, 2014 at 0:25
  • \$\begingroup\$ @ChrisLaplante, I already asked the said questions. The titles are a bit different. \$\endgroup\$
    – damat-perdigannat
    Commented Mar 26, 2014 at 0:48

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What are the components I need for assembling a hobby mobile phone?

Way too broad. Do you mean individual parts, like specific ICs, etc? Or do you mean high level, block diagrams? A hobby device is exactly like a commercial device.

How would I go about assembling such a hobby device?

Again too broad. There is no one way except "Soldering"

Are there laws governing assembly/use of such hobby devices?

We are not lawyers. And most likely, noone here has built a device like you intend, so they haven't done any research on their own. And laws vary by county, state, federal even international levels. Only a lawyer or paralegal would have a clue of where to even begin looking up documents.

Can I flash the ROM of a mobile phone, e.g. Nokia, in order to install a custom minimal operating system on it?

Yes. And a specific question on how to do that like "I have xyz rom. I've check the datasheet but can't be sure. Can it be flashed?" is good. A general question like "I have a nokia 3620. I can hack it?" is not.

Which peripheral/main units can be used to check a firmware's digital signature?

A computing question, at best. Not EE. Off topic.

Can someone point me to an appropriate SE site or a related SE forum? I'm hoping for a site with about as much users as this site has.

There is no other SE site that is close to EE for electronics question, and most of the other questions are off topic on most of them. Sorry.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ I disagree with your reasoning (but not your conclusion) about the firmware-checking question. If you have to hook up a JTAG controller or something, that is at least as much EE as computing. I'd say the question (as posed) is unanswerable because it's not specific enough about what kind of device is being checked. If that information were provided it would be off topic because RTFM. \$\endgroup\$
    – The Photon
    Commented Mar 26, 2014 at 0:37
  • \$\begingroup\$ @Passerby, thanks. I was referring to the concrete components like IC etc. \$\endgroup\$
    – damat-perdigannat
    Commented Mar 26, 2014 at 0:50
  • \$\begingroup\$ @ThePhoton, about the firmware-checking, a JTAG controller is one of the answers I'm looking for. Thanks. \$\endgroup\$
    – damat-perdigannat
    Commented Mar 26, 2014 at 0:56
  • \$\begingroup\$ @user33856, ok, but don't ask a question that invites a catalog of all the possible ways to interface to an embedded system. \$\endgroup\$
    – The Photon
    Commented Mar 26, 2014 at 1:02
  • \$\begingroup\$ @ThePhoton, are the interfaces that many? Three or four from that list will do. By the way, I just realized JTAG might not be an answer because it's not a security implementation (JTAG is for testing.) \$\endgroup\$
    – damat-perdigannat
    Commented Mar 28, 2014 at 12:16
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Please see What Topics Can I Ask About Here? in the help center.

Looking quickly at the questions you asked, most of these are not a good fit because it would require much more than a couple of paragraphs to answer them. Some of your questions require an entire textbook, or at least a chapter in a book, to begin to answer well.

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  • \$\begingroup\$ The scope clearly states that modifying equipment IS ON TOPIC. I quote "consumer electronics such as media players, cell phones or smart phones, except when designing these products or modifying their electronics for other uses " \$\endgroup\$
    – Passerby
    Commented Mar 26, 2014 at 0:28
  • \$\begingroup\$ @Passerby, OK, edited. \$\endgroup\$
    – The Photon
    Commented Mar 26, 2014 at 0:33

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