Discovery

I think I’ve discovered a useful practice. I call it, “reading the directions.” Now that I think of it, I seem to recall my ex chittering about something to that effect. Or was that, “asking for directions?” No matter. Like many great discoveries, this one came almost by accident. As previously related, I bashed my way through a series of waterproof cameras. They were all the same brand with each successive one being an upgrade of the previous edition. So there was obviously nothing to be gained by wading through the voluminous manuals with each replacement. Most of the controls were familiar. And, if they weren’t…well, I lived without that function to-date so why would I need it now? One thing that did repeat throughout the series was a few design flaws. I wearied of them and switched brands with this change. At first glance, the layout and controls appeared similar. But, I quickly reached a point of departure and was faced with the choice of reading the manual or good old trial & error. As I was readying for a trip, time was of the essence. The shipment included a CD that contained the manual. Over 250 pages, which is to say, out of the question. The quick-start guide was less than 10% of that, or almost within the bounds of my attention span. With camera in one hand and pamphlet in the other, I gamely forged ahead I skimmed through the settings menu as it’s usually a source of frustration. Such guidance details how you can select from dozens of options but gives no clue as to why or at least the pros and cons of each. I know something of this but am quickly left in the dust. And, isn’t the whole point of the internal computer chip to think for me? As I flipped through these pages, one illustration caught my eye. I turned back to see a comparison of employing different formats. In a flash, it solved a problem for me. I had been going with the “standard” in this category, requiring considerable editing to make the stills fit into a video format. This showed how a simple setting would do that for me. Could there be something to this concept of actually knowing how the gadget works? As if to reinforce the point with me today, I had a similar revelation while testing some kayaks of the playboat genre. This consisted of throwing the boats about in acrobatic fashion, although my version of the maneuvers stretches the adjective. Let’s go with “somewhat acrobatic.” I had some problems with one trick in the first kayak. The second one was equally balky so I ratcheted up the effort until something let go. Unfortunately, that would be in my back, not the boat. I did wind up buying the one that was most forgiving of my technique, or lack thereof. Upon returning home with my spine approximating the form of a question mark, I strapped on some ice and plopped down in the lounger with a dusty book about playboating to research the error in my ways. Ah-hah. I was throwing my weight the wrong way at a critical point. If I had read this prior to my morning’s venture I wouldn’t be gritting my teeth now and popping ibuprofen like M&Ms. So, at last I have a resolution for the year 2012. Read the directions. Yeah, that’ll last.