Chapter Five

5.1. Documentation

Most computer software comes with some form of documentation. This is usually a text file that comes with the program files (s/ware you get from a BBS) or a printed manual (if you buy it from a shop). Generally speaking the standard of this documentation is very low! It often makes you wonder how they managed to get it to work at all if the logic they've used in writing the programs is the same as what they've used to organize the manual!

5.2. Manuals

With manuals that come in the form of a computer file, it's pretty essential to print them out onto paper so you can refer to them at the same time as you're fucking around trying to get the program to work. It's impossible to do this *and* try and read the manual on the screen too! Anyway, it's much harder to find what you want in a long text file than it is on sheets of paper.

Reading manuals is a skill that takes a certain amount of practice to get good at. It shouldn't be really, but they really are incredibly bad! It all helps to maintain the mystique which the whole game is shrouded in.

There are two approaches to manuals - and sometimes one is better than the other. You can sit down and read it from cover to cover before you start, so you know what you're doing from the beginning. Or you can work through bits you need as you need them and try and get the program working before you've really read the manual - using the documentation where you run into problems.

Neither way is fully satisfactory. And both ways together is more or less the best way to do it. However, you've got to be a particular kind of weirdo to be able to sit down and read a computer manual through (yes, *i* can, but i'm weird!) They're usually so badly written and baffling that you can't follow it anyway. And of course until you've had some experience of using the software, a lot of it doesn't mean much either.

I would recommend trying to read the manual first - at least the preliminary bits. But don't be put off if you can't read it right through - almost nobody can! Do try and get familiar with the way it's organized so you can find things you need when you're looking for them (chuckle!) (You'll be lucky!) And also get familiar with some of the terms it uses.

5.3. Help

The other form of documentation is the help functions that are built into the program itself.

Most software has some form of on-line help. It may be in the form of menus which guide you through the operation of it, or there may be a "help" command of some sort, which displays information on the screen. This stuff is very useful and is sometimes more help than the manual. Get to know your way around these features of the software as soon as you can.

5.4. Keep records

Another aspect of documentation is the records you keep. If i had a dollar for every time i had to solve the same problem twice, i'd be very rich now! And how many of those times have i kept a record of what the problem was and how i solved it? Not many, sadly! There's nothing more frustrating than grappling with a problem you've solved before and not being able to remember how you sorted it out last time! You'd be amazed how often this happens.

It's important to keep a log of all this stuff. It's easy to do - just write it in a text file as it happens. This file can be shared with other people doing similar things and for training. It will make everyone's lives easier.

5.5. Help is at hand

When all else fails and you're completely stumped, don't despair, help is never far away in the computer world - so long as your comms s/ware's working, that is! Every BBS is frequented by people using computers. Most of them have solved a few problems in the past and most of them are more than happy to help someone out with a bit of advice.

A lot of BBSs have a "technical" message area where these things are discussed. Otherwise, a quick message in the general message area should bring a few helpful responses.

Someone out there somewhere will know how to sort it out. If you don't get the help you need straight away, try another BBS or a different message area. This way you'll definitely find a solution.

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