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User-friendly documentation (was: "Button Gravity" and "Warning Gravity")
Subject:User-friendly documentation (was: "Button Gravity" and "Warning Gravity") From:poshedly -at- bellsouth -dot- net To:Laura Lemay <lemay -at- lauralemay -dot- com>, techwr-l List <techwr-l -at- lists -dot- techwr-l -dot- com> Date:Wed, 17 Dec 2008 20:45:03 +0000
I completely agree with Laura on the Clymer (and Chilton) repair manuals. Nothing like getting it all apart and then finding out you need something else.
Little did I know way back in 1972 while working on my news-journalism degree at Kent State did I ever think I'd be doing docs on cement plant operation. And to a large extent, a big influence on my gradual transition to technical writing was the much beloved "Idiot Book" for Volkswagen owners.
The actual title is "How to Keep Your Volkswagen Alive, A Manual of Step by Step Procedures for the Compleat Idiot", and it was by the late John Muir.
That book -- funky cartoon-style graphics and all -- came to be my bible when trying my very first car maintenance (I was a late starter at age 21).
What I loved about it was not only its very informal, humorous, conversational tone, but its setup; for example:
Condition: Car won't stop
Possible causes: Brakes need adjusting, brakes need replacement, low or leaking brake fluid, etc.
Tools: (list here of tools you've scrounged around for)
Parts: (stuff you need to buy)
And that was followed by a narrative that seemed like your most helpful friend was there with you actually talking you through which bolt to turn and nut to remove, etc. Heck, the books even recommended putting the various bolts and whatever pieces in baggies to keep things organized.
Knowing ahead of time all the tools, parts and info that you'd probably need before delving into a major repair job is great!
Now I'm sure many folks find the book cheesy, but it was -- to my understanding -- the FIRST of any of the "idiot" books, and it got me from a basic brake adjustment (flathead screwdriver through the brake backing plate to rotate the adjusting "stars") and various other procedures all the way through a full engine rebuild only six months after getting the book. My '65 Beetle was already a seven-year-old pre-owned car, with a "put-together" engine from a friend of a previous owner; that explains why the crankshaft broke six months after I got it.
I went on to become a VW fanatic and adept at almost every repair (except for transmissions) on my various VW Beetles through the years; but alas, career demands, marriage, kids, and the fact that not much is very do-able by shade-tree mechanics on the water-cooled Veedubs mean I now have to take my '99 Jetta (175K miles and all are mine) to a real shop and cringe when I get the invoice.
Oh well . . .
-- Kenpo in Atlanta
-------------- Original message from Laura Lemay <lemay -at- lauralemay -dot- com>: --------------
>
> On Dec 16, 2008, at 8:08 AM, Nancy Allison wrote:
> > "The users who got electrocuted are going to be mad when they finally
> > get to the warning!" That's what I always think!
>
> I've told this story before, but I told it badly, so I'll tell it again.
>
> A number of years ago I was taking apart a motorcycle with the help of
> a Clymer manual. The Clymer manuals, for those of you who don't know
> them, are maintenance and repair manuals for cars and bikes, with step
> by step instructions and lots of photographs. They are not perfect.
> They could be better. But sometimes they are all you have.
>
(text snipped describing cam chain removal and unfortunate incident addressed in Clymer manual one page too late)
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