Quite a few members new to rooting (I hate the words newbie or noob - pejorative and patronising) are reading the "why we root thread" and I thought I'd give them a quick breakdown of some of the stuff we who (like to think) know what we're on about say. I say demystify the process of rooting and make it something we all want to achieve with confidence 
Bloat or Bloatware
apps that come preloaded on the phone, usually "baked into" the firmware so impossible to remove without root. Can be carrier applications or manufacturer added applications, called bloat because they are just that, they sit unused and unloved in the application drawer taking up valuable space. "Bloat" is a subjective term given one person's bloat is anothers must have application.
A Custom Recovery
All Android phones have a "recovery mode". These are used to factory reset the phone and clear the phone's cache in the event a normal non rooted user finds their phone playing up. Accessed from phone completely off by pressing and holding all at once in this order (on Samsung devices anyway): Volume up + home key and power until you get the opening logo then release all three. Extremely limited in what you can do with it, the magic of rooting allows so much more, hence custom recoveries. A custom recovery should be the first thing you flash or install after rooting, accessed the same way as stock recovery you can make a nandroid with them, clear dalvik cache, back up very important system files like the EFS folder, restore a nandroid plus much, much more. You learn as you go.
TB
Titanium Backup I would regard this app as essential for rooted phones. Use it to back up your apps and their data, freeze unused bloatware, unistalling bloatware (use with extreme caution), saving settings and Wi-Fi passwords etc. A pretty steep learning curve is involved but it is worth it. Buy the Pro version. Highly useful after flashing a custom ROM to get your apps back with their data ie Angry birds levels achieved are saved (did I actually type that!).
Nandroid
A "Nandroid" is basically a "snap shot" of your phone as it is when the Nandroid is made. They are made in a "Custom Recovery". They are used to restore a phone when something goes horribly wrong when playing with root access. Go into your Custom recovery and restore a Nandroid all will be fixed. Make one when you first root and flash a custom recovery and save it somewhere safe, and make one every time you flash something new or mess with root privileges. A nandroid has saved just about every one who roots at some point. Nandroids are generally huge in size (7Gig is not uncommon) and are only usually useable from the custom recovery that made them.
Right a quick glossary of some common rooting terms. This list if far from exhaustive and is a work in progress for anyone who wishes to add to it. I've not seen a recent list like it that is up to date. I may in future add to it myself. If anyone wishes to add more, please, please do. I want to make rooting as popular as possible, simply because I feel it is something anyone "into" their Android as to come here for an answer and ask a question or simply read is passionate enough about their phone to want to explore it's full potential, and have fun along the way.
Bloat or Bloatware
apps that come preloaded on the phone, usually "baked into" the firmware so impossible to remove without root. Can be carrier applications or manufacturer added applications, called bloat because they are just that, they sit unused and unloved in the application drawer taking up valuable space. "Bloat" is a subjective term given one person's bloat is anothers must have application.
A Custom Recovery
All Android phones have a "recovery mode". These are used to factory reset the phone and clear the phone's cache in the event a normal non rooted user finds their phone playing up. Accessed from phone completely off by pressing and holding all at once in this order (on Samsung devices anyway): Volume up + home key and power until you get the opening logo then release all three. Extremely limited in what you can do with it, the magic of rooting allows so much more, hence custom recoveries. A custom recovery should be the first thing you flash or install after rooting, accessed the same way as stock recovery you can make a nandroid with them, clear dalvik cache, back up very important system files like the EFS folder, restore a nandroid plus much, much more. You learn as you go.
TB
Titanium Backup I would regard this app as essential for rooted phones. Use it to back up your apps and their data, freeze unused bloatware, unistalling bloatware (use with extreme caution), saving settings and Wi-Fi passwords etc. A pretty steep learning curve is involved but it is worth it. Buy the Pro version. Highly useful after flashing a custom ROM to get your apps back with their data ie Angry birds levels achieved are saved (did I actually type that!).
Nandroid
A "Nandroid" is basically a "snap shot" of your phone as it is when the Nandroid is made. They are made in a "Custom Recovery". They are used to restore a phone when something goes horribly wrong when playing with root access. Go into your Custom recovery and restore a Nandroid all will be fixed. Make one when you first root and flash a custom recovery and save it somewhere safe, and make one every time you flash something new or mess with root privileges. A nandroid has saved just about every one who roots at some point. Nandroids are generally huge in size (7Gig is not uncommon) and are only usually useable from the custom recovery that made them.
Right a quick glossary of some common rooting terms. This list if far from exhaustive and is a work in progress for anyone who wishes to add to it. I've not seen a recent list like it that is up to date. I may in future add to it myself. If anyone wishes to add more, please, please do. I want to make rooting as popular as possible, simply because I feel it is something anyone "into" their Android as to come here for an answer and ask a question or simply read is passionate enough about their phone to want to explore it's full potential, and have fun along the way.
