You might find it beneficial to reflect on your experiences with a given type of document–including those you have made and those made by others that you have used. Let’s do this with instructions.
After watching this week’s lecture, I would like you to write a brief memo of at least 250 words reflecting on instructions. There are two main things that I would like you to respond to in your reflection: (1) Discuss a good set of instructions that you’ve used before, (2) Discuss a bad set of instructions that you’ve used before, and (3) Write some ideas that you have about how to make technical instructions useful and engaging.
When you have completed your memo, copy-and-paste it into a comment added to this post on our OpenLab Course Site.
To: Prof. Ellis
From: Matthew Rupchand
Date: 03/18/2021
Subject: Good & Bad Instructions
When writing a manual having clear and thorough instructions are crucial for the reader. Having good detailed instruction will make the process much easier to follow and also will help you come more familiar with all that goes into it. A good set of instructions that I have used before was at my job when I had to learn quickly about how to setup E-Stations in different classrooms. My boss gave me a rundown about what should be done in order for everything to run smoothly and how it can be done. With him giving me details about the steps I had to take, it allowed me to fully understand how to set up each machine more quickly. A bad set of instructions that I have encountered before was when I had to install a new program on a computer for my co-worker. The application that needed to be installed had a unique way of doing and the way one of my supervisors had told me to seem to not be working. As a result, when I used the unclear instructions that I had received, the process took much longer to finish the task. Ideas that I have to make technical instruction clear and engaging is to involve all the specifics that you will have to do. I would include step by step how to do a certain task and also include pictures so that the reader would know exactly where they should be or should be doing.
TO: Prof. Jason Ellis
FROM: Richard Rivera
DATE: 03/24/21
SUBJECT: Good & Bad Instructions
There have been multiple good instructions on how to install a central processing unit (CPU) fan onto the slot within the motherboard. I have installed the fans fairly easily on Intel builds and on AMD builds. The manuals demonstrated pictures with a lot of text details showing me what exactly I have to do and where to do it. I did not need any other resources other than the manual to install the CPU fan. On the other hand, when I first installed an All-In-One (AIO) CPU watercooler, it was almost a mess because of how few details I received from the manual so what I had to do was ask some friends how they did it with their own AIO’s and I also had to search up videos on YouTube on how to do it specifically with my AIO since every AIO is different. There were so many cables on the AIO itself that I was not sure where to plug it into. The manual mainly just showed me what was included in the box and that I just have to connect it. I feel as if the AIO manual was intended for experienced users rather than both new and experienced users. I’m sure not every other AIO manual is like that but mine was. Honestly, online videos demonstrating how to do something step by step can be very beneficial for everyone regardless if the manual is enough or not. People who still use disk drives can benefit from receiving an instructional DVD to watch wherever they want.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM: Angela Hernandez
DATE: 3/34/2021
SUBJECT: Good & Bad Instructions
In my opinion, a good set of instructions are detailed but also easy to follow along. An example of that would be the instructions I used to mount an ultrawide monitor onto a desk mount. The assembly manual that was provided listed all of the contents that were needed in order to mount a monitor and the tools that would be needed. It went through the steps of putting the desk mount together with pictures and written directions. The parts that were used were also labeled so that I could differentiate between the pieces and make sure I was using the right parts to put it together. Warnings were also included in the manual as well as the contact information for the company in case I needed assistance. An example of a bad set of instructions, in my opinion, are IKEA instructions. While they do provide pictures of the parts included, the steps required to put together the products and images, there are rarely written instructions to help you along with the images. I find many times that the instructions can be confusing because a lot of the parts are identical and while they are labeled, the images provided to depict how they should be put together are sometimes not clear and it takes a bit of trial and error to be able to fit the products together like they should. I think that by providing images and written instructions and being as precise and detailed as possible can make technical instructions useful and engaging, especially if there are a lot of elements.
TO: Prof. Jason Ellis
FROM: Ralph Ayala
DATE: 03/24/21
SUBJECT: Good & Bad Instructions
To my perspective what makes good instructions is when the details inside the manual is easy to read, it can address any concerns you may have, and gives you a step by step process in details. An example I can think of is using and activating a mastercard gift card. When I looked at the manual of how to use and activate the card, the instructions were very detailed and it addressed any concerns you could have. I usually do not see a bad manual but to my eyes what makes a bad manual is when it cannot address all the concerns you have, it appears vague, or it will not provide a step if a certain action happens then what was supposed to happen. To make a manual look engaging and easy for people to read can be challenging. To attract the reader’s attention I would say the use of images can keep them focused, however I would do my best to not to go overboard with the details otherwise I could lose their attention. If I could get the details easy for readers to stay engaged while explaining the process then that would benefit the reader and me.
To: Prof. Ellis
From: Motahear Hossain.
Date: 03/23/2021
Subject: Reflecting on Instructions.
After buying a product, the next stressful job is to set up the equipment. That is why, Instruction guides are valuable because a decent arrangement of directions manual helps a client in rapidly getting familiar with an item or administration, or in settling an issue if they get confounded. Today I am going to share two of the instruction manuals that I have recently used. One has good guidance contrasted with another. The first one is an HP printer that I recently purchased. The model of the printer is HP ENVY 5000. I got their instruction guidebooks with the product. In the guide, they address what steps to start and when to finish. Their instructions were very straightforward and manageable to follow. Having an image of each move makes it easier to comprehend. Contrastingly, I have also faced some inferior instruction manuals. Last summer, I bought a set of tables and a pair of chairs from Home depot for outside seating. After purchasing the item, I experienced issues with setting up. Since the item guidance manual was extremely disarranged, even though they showed each stage individually, still It was troublesome to follow. The photos of the manual were hazy with missing sufficient data. After this experience, I realized how important it is to have a well-written instruction manual. Today, I will talk about how to make technical instructions that are both useful and interesting. The first step in writing an appealing instruction manual is to think like a user. Consequently, you will know how to make instructions simple to comprehend for the reader. Following that, you must arrange what details to write and what steps to take. Another crucial step is to include pictures or images to make the user’s journey easier.
To: Prof. Ellis
From: Benson Huang
Date: 03/18/2021
Subject: Good & Bad Instructions
A set of good instructions I have used were ones on how to build a pc. Though the computer parts come with instruction manuals reading them takes time and sometimes I can miss something important. Linus has multiple videos on how to build pcs and I have followed a build for my first pc. Though after that it was easy enough upgrade or disassemble to clean after that. Some manuals will tell you to mount the motherboard first, but Linus suggests putting all you can on the motherboard CPU, GPU, CPU Cooler, Ram, M.2 before mounting so you will not be tight for space in a case. A set of bad instructions I have used are the ones given by my math professor though sometimes they are okay when he slows down and you ask to slowly go step by step. But when it is the first time on a topic his awful handwriting along with confusing steps makes it very difficult to learn. On the first few weeks of class everyone just looked up youtube videos to learn on their own instead. Some ideas I would make instructions useful and engaging pictures and videos are definitely helpful along with multiple angle views and making sure they’re not pixelated. Keeping the language of the manual simple will help users who are new from getting confused and lost. Explanations of things that may sound trivial to experienced users can help as well.
To: Prof. Ellis
From: Pavel Hlinin
Date: March 24, 2021
Subject: Good vs Bad Manual Instructions
I cannot recall the exact example of bad instruction now, but I have a general characteristic for bad instruction. For example, any wordy instruction is an example of a bad instruction. It makes user lost easily instead of helping them to follow it and make their life easier. That is why the writing of instruction is challenging task. The writer should include only right words that give all information for audience and do not make instruction too wordy.
I think that the manuals for furniture from Ikea is an example of a good instruction. It contains a clear explanation for required step and clear pictures as well.
The way to write a good instruction are:
– always focus on readers and think as readers. Keep in mind that the reader knows nothing or very little about your topic or project, or task.
– test your instruction. The testing will help to identify any weakness of your instructions.
– where or when readers will use this instruction is also important and requires a different or specific approach sometimes to writing instruction.
To: Prof. Ellis
From: Zeela Rafija.
Date: 03/24/2021.
Subject: Good & Bad Instructions.
There are many good instructional manuals, I can talk about right now. I really want to talk about my first pc installation instructions manual. The manual was Specific and precise title. The manual’s Introduction was with background information. It had all the List of parts, tools, and conditions (with pictures). That was Sequentially ordered of all the steps. They mentioned the Safety information’s. A good manual should be easily understandable for all kinds of users. All instructions should be narrated in simple and detail description with appropriate images. All the required components and tools should be mentioned properly.
On the other hand, I have seen the worst instructional manual too. It had one of the vague instructions ever. They are unclear about the list of small parts. Sometimes images could be very confusing too. So, I am considering some steps to make my manual understandable to most of the folks. I am trying to outline the instructions in order to attain the solution. It may sound obvious, but these are the three basic building blocks to any good user manual. If the problem addressed in the manual is particularly complex, it is better to break it down into smaller parts. List each section with specific instructions. Photos are the number one thing that draw people to your instructions. Taking quality photos does not demand expensive equipment. We can use our smartphone or a simple point and shoot camera. For easy tips on better photos, user can check out our video on how-to take process photos.
To: Prof. Ellis
From: Tarin Sultana
Date: 03/24/2021
Subject: Good and Bad Instructions
An instruction manual is a manual that usually comes with a technological system and explains how to set it up and use it. It is imperative to have a good instruction manual if you buy something and fix/set it up at home or office. Good instruction requires some specific detail, making it easy for the reader to set up the products. It has to be simple, straightforward, and sometimes better to have a video clip available online or from that website where we buy. For example, a good instruction manual I found was when I bought a portable laptop desk from amazon prime. It had explicit instructions on how to install it. From my perspective, a bad instruction manual is if there is no information on how to set up a thing, or they might have the written description of how to get things done but overwhelmed and hard to read or understand. Manual has pictures, but no written words can be considered as a lousy instruction which I faced last year. I bought a portable closet organizer from eBay. But it made me so disappointed that it has around thirty pieces all together that I have to connect. But the instruction has only the pictures for each item but not a single direction on how to set up a portable wardrobe. But thank god that they have a YouTube video available on how to set this up. But still, I had to figure out some parts on my own, which made me so frustrated. In my opinion, to make a manual look good or more engaging is to use easy and straightforward words, put some pictures and label them. Adding some short paragraphs, one or two-sentence per step, a short video, all of this will make a reader or anyone accomplish their goal.
TO: Prof. Ellis
FROM: MD Jahirul Hasan
DATE: 03/24/2021
SUBJECT: Good & Bad Instructions
An instruction manual is a set of instructions that provide detailed information about how something should be done or operated. It is very important for a business to have an instruction manual for their product. Good instruction manual is detailed and has precise information. For example, I bought a wardrobe from amazon last year. I thought it was going to be very difficult to assemble. But it came with a 16 pages instruction manual. It had all the required information needed at the beginning and had step by step procedure with pictures. Because of that instruction manual it did not take me long to finish setting up product and I am overall satisfied. On the other hand, bad instruction manual does not have all the required information or have too much information which makes the reader confused. I also recently faced one bad instruction manual. I bought an electric bike conversion kit from eBay. The company was telling that with their product it will be easy to convert a regular bike to an electric bike. The product looked promising and had great reviews. So, I ordered it and the product arrived in a week. I was surprised once I opened the box because the battery and a motor that came in the box was very stylish and durable. So, started setting it up right away and realized that there not so much information in that instruction manual. It just came with a single piece of paper that had both warranty information and seven sentences of instructions. I was overwhelmed because I could not figure out where to connect the battery wires and the motor wires. Then, I started watching some YouTube videos and doing some research online. It took me around ten hours to finish setting the product. I believe that an instruction manual should be useful and engaging because people don’t use it to spend time or enjoy the reading. To make an instruction manual useful and engaging it should have all the information that is needed. In my electric bike conversion kit case, I would put a step-by-step guide how to install it with the pictures. I believe that in some cases pictures are very important because it gives the reader a proper idea of a product.