It's now two weeks since I started as Community Manager here at TweetDeck, and what a great time it has been so far. I have really enjoyed getting to grips with the issues people have been having and trying to resolve them so that you can all enjoy the cool features that TweetDeck offers you.

Giving great service to every individual in the wonderful TweetDeck community is a challenge for just one person, but this is my goal because, as they say in the ads, "You're worth it!" :)

In order to help me in my quest, there are a six pieces of information, that, if provided up-front, will really speed the process along and mean a faster response for everyone.

1. Your operating system. 
Are you using XP? Vista? Mac OS X? Linux? Different operating systems often have different file locations, and each need to be supported in a different fashion.

2. Your TweetDeck version.
The version number is shown in the top-left corner of the TweetDeck screen. It is important for us to know which version you are using.

3. Your TweetDeck account ID (if you have one)
This is the ID that you can create if you wish to use the new synchronisation facility. It should be an email address. With this information we can troubleshoot your account.

4. Your Twitter ID
The name that you use to log into Twitter (e.g. @richardbarley). This is essential to allow us to run tests, searches and diagnose problems with your Twitter stream displays in TweetDeck

5. Any error/status message that is displayed.
There are many messages generated by TweetDeck and Twitter. If we are not 100% certain which message you are referring to, we could give you incorrect advice. Exact wording will really help.

6. Screen-shots
They say "a picture is worth a thousand words" and it is very true when it comes to troubleshooting problems. If you can manage to take a screen-shot of the problem you are having, it can often make a huge difference to our understanding of the issue.

Include this detail, with a description of your problem, and you will make it far easier for us to diagnose and thus give you a solution.

So there you have it. Six small steps to help us to help you better.

Thanks for listening!

Richard

Several people have reported an issue whereby TweetDeck will open entirely empty, with no data, and the buttons will not work. We have investigated the problem, and it appears the cause is down to a corruption of some Adobe AIR files.

In order to fix the problem, please follow these instructions, depending on your operating system.

Windows XP

1. Close TweetDeck
2. Open your C: drive in Windows Explorer or My Computer.
3. Open the folder Documents and Settings
4. Under this folder, there should be a folder with the the same name as username that you log into XP with. Open this folder.
5. You should then have a folder called Application Data. Open it.
6. You should then have a folder called Adobe. Open it.
7. You should then have a folder called AIR. Open it.
8. You should then have a folder called ELS. Open it.
9. You should then have a folder called TweetDeckFast.xxx (where xxx is a string of numbers and letters). Delete this folder.
10. Restart TweetDeck

Windows Vista

1. Close TweetDeck
2. Open your C: drive.
3. Open the folder Users
4. Under this folder, there should be a folder with the the same name as username that you log into Vista with. Open this folder.
5. You should then have a folder called AppData. Open it.
6. You should then have a folder called Local. Open it. If you do NOT have an Adobe folder here, go back up to the AppData folder and open theRoaming folder within it instead.
7. You should then have a folder called Adobe. Open it. 
8. You should then have a folder called AIR. Open it.
9. You should then have a folder called ELS. Open it.
10. You should then have a folder called TweetDeckFast.xxx (where xxx is a string of numbers and letters). Delete this folder.
11. Restart TweetDeck

Mac OS

1. Navigate to ~/Library/Application Support/Adobe/AIR/ELS/
2. You should then have a folder called TweetDeckFast.xxx (where xxx is a string of numbers and letters). Delete this folder.
3. Restart TweetDeck

Linux

1. Navigate to ~/.appdata/Adobe/AIR/ELS/
2. You should then have a folder called TweetDeckFast.xxx (where xxx is a string of numbers and letters). Delete this folder.
3. Restart TweetDeck

You should then be able to use TweetDeck as normal. We will continue to follow up on this issue and will be adding functionality in the next release to check for this situation and solve it when TweetDeck starts up.

In the meantime, if you have any more questions about this problem, or others, feel free to email hello@tweetdeck.com

Thanks!

Richard