Manual labour

How do you stop your husband reading your emails? Rename the Inbox 'Instruction Manual'. The joke might be a little corny, but there's an undeniable ring of truth to it. At some point most of us have unpacked our latest toy, set it up and started to play without even a glance at the instructions.

Unless we've just bought a DIY wardrobe everything usually works out fine, at which point accompanying documentation is consigned to the bottom of a drawer never to be seen again.

Of course, this is what happens when everything goes to plan, but if it doesn't, or you want to find out more, you'll need that manual. You'll also need it to be as clear and comprehensive as possible. Ironically, while a £200 DVD player is likely to come with a booklet explaining everything you need to know and more, this isn't always the case with a £1,500 computer.

When it comes to PCs, the quality of the manuals supplied can genuinely seem like pot luck. Even if you do get instructions for assembling the hardware, a book about using it, upgrading key components and the accompanying software can be an entirely different matter.

PC manufacturers may be united in their quest to bring us the fastest hardware at affordable prices, but they appear to have very different ideas on what constitutes adequate documentation.

Contents
So, just what kind of information should we expect to get with a new PC? At the base level, almost all companies provide material designed to get you up and running.

On top of this, it's not unreasonable to expect a user guide detailing what your new machine can do, the features it has, how to get the most out of it and the technical specification. In reality, things vary greatly. IT security specialist and ex-Epson manual writer Robert Schifreen believes the current situation isn't good enough.

"Companies don't provide anywhere near enough documentation," he says. "Once upon a time, PCs came with huge manuals, as did software packages. Nowadays you just get a three-page getting started guide, some pdf files and a handful of URLs."

When asked what should be included, he explains: "Most people buy PCs to use the web or to use standard office software.

"So a decent manual on Office (or whatever software is bundled with the machine) and Windows would be good, plus details on how to upgrade the hardware; how to upgrade memory, which type you need and how to install a fast graphics card."

At Microsoft, Office marketing manager Mike Pryke-Smith agrees on certain points. "We would advocate that PC manufacturers provide customers with help on how to get the most out of a new PC, including upgrade options. Some already do this very well," he says.

Meanwhile, Ernest Bebbington of the North London PC Users' Group believes manuals should give more help, such as "a comprehensive troubleshooting section allowing both new and more experienced users to sort out problems without having to resort to phoning a helpline.

"There should also be clear and detailed information on how to upgrade things, like adding more Ram, for example."

According to Trading Standards there aren't any set guidelines as to what should be in a PC manual. As long as a something is correctly described and there's basic information on normal operation and using it safely, that's it.

That said, spokesman Robert Gardner thinks "any sensible manufacturer will provide as much information as possible. However, the situation is impossible to police."

Inside the box
A look at some of the biggest brands shows how things can differ. Packard Bell supplies its PCs with printed user and warranty guides, Microsoft's Windows XP welcome booklet and a set-up sheet.

The main manual is 55 pages and covers subjects from ergonomics and understanding the basics of the PC, such as turning it on and using the keyboard and mouse, through to getting around the system, your first steps on the net and troubleshooting.

The presentation is neat and everything is easy to follow. However, while the manual talks about the different drives, memory card readers and other additional features, these are 'on selected models'.

There's also very little about upgrading or the main system specification. To access this kind of information, you need to use the installed Infocentre application.

Jason Fletcher, product group marketing manager at Packard Bell, says: "Our manuals are designed to offer generic advice covering a range of Packard Bell PCs. If specific advice about a product is required, consumers are directed to either the Packard Bell website or our helpline."

HP provides a similar user guide for its Compaq Presario machines. Itgives an overview of the range and helps with getting started, but it also includes illustrated chapters on upgrading and removing both optical and hard drives, memory and other components. All in all, it's much more rounded.

In contrast, mail-order firm Evesham covers its bases by bundling a variety of manuals, some on disc - a common approach by manufacturers.

According to Carolyn Worth, external relations manager, the company supplies a set-up guide, a basic user manual - don't set up your PC in the bath, remember to do back-ups and this is what a keyboard is - and the third-party manuals that come with the branded components inside the machine. The latter provide plenty of technical data, right down to the motherboard level.

On the other hand, because each manual is produced by a different company, there's no real consistency and nothing to tie them all together.

But Worth maintains it isn't practical to design a specific manual. "Change within the PC industry and the sheer number of variations make putting together a specific paper-based manual for each product very difficult," she points out.

"Only if you produce systems with a long shelf life and no variations would this become an economic reality."

Up until recently, Mesh also bundled component manuals. It now provides a 14-page Customer Support Manual and a Quick Reference poster. The manual covers the basics, though it's more technical than Packard Bell's, and includes a glossary of terms, a troubleshooting section and a contact list of component manufacturers that may have provided something in your system.

Mesh offers additional information through its online support centre, but its printed manual is rather thin and disappointing compared to other examples here.

"The decision to exclude manuals from motherboard manufacturers was taken to rationalise the product information supplied in the box," explains Mesh's Nick Walter. "This information is now considered to be fully available online."

Typically, Apple thinks different. The printed manual for its G4 computers includes set-up and getting standard information, tips on working with the OS, advice on using the features of the G4 range, troubleshooting and sections on upgrading software, drives and memory. It also provides a six-page technical specification and is very well-presented.

Though not 100 per cent specific to the model it comes with, it's by far the closest we've seen. It would appear Apple's control over its hardware and software designs allows it to produce manuals to a high standard.

Manual labour
Some of these differences in documentation may be due to the amount of resources given over to its development. The variation between manufacturers is interesting.

According to Fletcher: "Packard Bell has a team of approximately 10 people working on producing documentation for all products to ensure constant quality for our customers. All manuals are written in-house. We know and understand our products and are best placed to guide our customers through the inner workings."

Time Group also has a team of around 10 people who are responsible for design and production of user documentation. This differs from Evesham, which typically uses just two dedicated people in-house together with an outside writer who helps convert the more technical jargon into a digestible format.

The company also employs third-party translators to convert foreign documentation. Meanwhile, PC World has a team of four for its own-brand Advent systems, based at PC Servicecall in Nottingham, who test each product and produce all literature.

At Mesh, Walter says: "Mesh Computers, on producing any manual, draws upon the talents of many departments including technical support, R&D and marketing."

HP gives a similar response to development, but also reveals that its manuals are put together externally. Given the detail in the Presario manual, it would seem that companies don't need a large in-house team to produce useful documentation, just the will to do it.

Going digital
One thing that is consistent is the gradual move away from printed material towards online documentation. This can range from HTML files on the hard disk, to pdfs on CD-Rom and downloadable manuals. In particular, an increasing number of the software packages bundled with systems now have manuals in this format.

Going digital has several advantages. As well as being good for the environment, it doesn't require the same storage space and is much easier to search and update.

You can print things yourself if you need to, and it keeps costs down. "Printing manuals is expensive," cautions Schifreen.

Microsoft is heavily into digital documents. "Excluding basic start-up information, Microsoft has gradually moved away from paper-based manuals over the past five to 10 years and instead has focused on providing a better customer experience by making our product help and support features easier to use," says Pryke-Smith.

"These include wizards, online links, English language-based help systems and guided tours." That said, the company still provides resource kits and manuals to developers and IT professional through Microsoft Press.

However, many users, especially novices, find it much harder to work on screen than with traditional paper. If you haven't got a printer, this is a real problem.

"Where possible, Time supplies printed manuals. Market research has shown that the majority of customers prefer the manuals in printed format," says Time's Ian Shaw.

Similarly, Walter also feels printed documents are particularly important for first-time buyers. "Many of these people are technophobes and, consequently, more reliant on simple and easy-to-follow hard copy instructions," he explains.

Evesham's Worth feels it comes down to personal preference. "Some consumers like to have books for everything, while others prefer to use the space they take up for other things," she observes.

"With disk or web-based info, you have the choice of what you print out and the search facility is usually a lot more helpful than an index.

"[But] you have to take precautions to make sure you've printed off the bit that says what to do when your PC is so sick it won't wake up."

As a user, Bebbington remarks that "online or CD manuals are obviously cheaper and easier to produce then printed manuals and can be more up-to-date. However, if your computer isn't working, it's nice to have a book."

Read me
Clearly, there are as many ideas about manuals as there are machines and some companies devote more attention to documentation than others.

The situation is complicated by the variety of user expectations and knowledge levels, and by the fact that many of today's PC companies don't actually design their own systems - instead, they concentrate on putting the best combination of third-party components together for an attractive price.

Manufacturers that create their own hardware and software, and those that support long-life configurations, will find it easier to produce better manuals. The debate as to which approach does the customer more favours in the long run is set to run and run.

However, there really is no excuse for poorly presented documentation. A well-designed manual covering key topics such as getting started, using specific system features, troubleshooting and upgrading will go a long way to avoiding technical support and helping users get the most from their PC.

Even separate component manuals can be translated, rewritten or edited, coupled with some original material to link them together and ringbound. Given the price of PCs, is it truly unreasonable to expect a decent manual for your system?

The good news is all of the companies we spoke to welcome customer feedback to help develop their offerings. Evesham is already trialling a number of options, while HP is looking into developing motherboard-specific information to replace generic manuals and aid PC enthusiasts. We live in hope.