Correct pronunciation needed

[conrad]

Well, I used to read the manuals religiously, then try out the equipment.  But, manuals ain't what they used to be!  Model trains aren't so bad (except for the useless California materials warnings), but the manuals for tools have become jokes.  They are mostly lawyered to the point of uselessness.  I have to read through actual pages of generalize warnings that sound like the kindergarten teacher saying "Don't run with scissors!" just to find a bit of information about how to run the gizmo.  And, everything must be written in multiple languages, the number of which seems to increase annually.  Now, it is not just English, Spanish, French and German, but also several Asian languages that I can't even tell apart.  With all that legal verbage in all those languages, there is precious little space left for actual gizmo-specific instructions.  Apparently, that is left to the YouTubers to provide.  The actual manuals seem to have been written by somebody who has neither created nor used the gizmo, and then translated into English by somebody else who not only doesn't understand the gizmo, but doesn't really understand English very well, either.  Model train instructions might not be great for the really complicated locos with decoders, these days, but they are still far better than what I see for other consumer goods.

I agree with you on manuals being lawyered up.  However, as for the many foreign languages consider that we live in a much more connected world.  Nowadays we can order all sorts of trains and accessories direct from around the world.  Just last weekend at a train show I spoke to a HOTrak guy who got his Dapol British loco direct from England.  As an Ntraker I was impressed.

Conrad

[Maletrain]

I am fine with getting consumer goods from other countries that speak different languages.  But, if they really need to put that lawyer language in everything, then maybe they should make different instruction packages for each language.  And, they probably don't even need all the lawyer BS for many of the countries that those gizmos are sent to, because I seriously doubt that most other countries are as litigious as the U.S.  (Italy being the exception.)

[Point353]

But, if they really need to put that lawyer language in everything, ...

Just wait until you buy a modern motor vehicle in which "that lawyer language" pops up on a display screen every time you start it up and that you must accept and acknowledge it before some functions become accessible and operable.

[MK]

Great start Bobster!  If you are never going to use RAW files, I would switch to JPEG Large instead of RAW + JPEG.  It'll save you some hard drive space on your PC.  You can always go to RAW for "important" events.

[learmoia]

The manuals have dumbed down to:
1: Take thing out of box
2: Dont put bag over head
3: Plug thing in.
4: Push button makes thing go.

Trouble shooting.
Push button. No go? Try plug in.
Plug in,  No go? Try push button.
Email customer service.

~Ian

[nkalanaga]

That's for the ones that HAVE a manual.  I bought a cellphone, a basic model, just for emergencies, to be left in the car.  The "manual" consisted entirely of the legalese, and how to turn it on.  For anything else, you have to go online.  Once online, there still isn't anything, beyond how to change functions, and how to load more minutes. 

What I really want to know is how to disable the texting function, as I get tired of deleting unread texts.  I don't know how to send a text, haven't asked anyone to text me, and don't want to know that someone else's prescriptions are ready, or to buy a timeshare, or anything else.  But no, there's nothing in the manual about that.  There is a section on how to sign up for texts from the phone company, and what to do if one can't receive texts.

Cellphone companies reuse phone numbers, naturally, or we'd run out of numbers.  Apparently, when a number is assigned to a new phone, the new user also gets all of the previous number owners texts.

[Chris333]

About 15 years ago I ditched a land line for a cell phone and converted my land number to my cell. Now about 5 or 6 phones later I still have the same number.

[Missaberoad]

About 15 years ago I ditched a land line for a cell phone and converted my land number to my cell. Now about 5 or 6 phones later I still have the same number.

Same, as an adult I've never had a land line...
I've even moved across the country and kept my old phone number... Tried to change it when I got my latest phone, but I get a lower rate if I keep my Manitoba Number...

[nkalanaga]

Yes, you can keep your old number when changing phones, and most people do, especially when changing from one cellphone to another.  In my case, our primary phone is a landline, so I needed a new number for the cellphone.