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Mac = No Manuals?

Hankster

Hankster

macrumors 68020
Original poster
Jan 30, 2008
2,475
440
Washington DC
Being both a PC and Mac user I have tons of software, including all their boxes. I recently got Office 08 and realized the Mac version comes with no manual...then I realized NONE of the software - or even my MacBook - comes with manuals. PC products come with thick manuals.

If someone who never used Office before and installed it on their Mac, how would they know how to use it??? Just wondering :) I don't mind the lack of paper and smaller box, but it's interesting that Mac does not offer much in terms of docs.
 
It's all so intuitive that manuals are less necessary. Plus, the manuals are included as PDFs or online documents, mostly. It saves on paper. The same seems to be happening in the Windows world too, though. :)
 
where did you buy the thing? I have manual with my MB, Mini, OSX.
AFAIK, iPhone, iPT have manual too.
 
My MacBook came with a very small manual. I don't mind it as I'm used to using computers. But, my family got a MB and they have no clue how to use the OS or the software. Also, Mac Office is very different from the MS Office. For anyone who's not computer literate they'd have a tough time, I know a ton and they're always calling me.

I just realized that Mac doesn't come with many documents. Even though they are on electronic form, many people still don't go around reading .pdfs. It was just an observation.
 
well, IDK, its a little bit stretch to me, I own(ed) compaq, HP, acer, AUS, SONY laptops and desktops, I didn't notice any more or less manuals than Mac.
 
Mac Help in the Finder Help menu is pretty much the manual and theres a lot of info in there but i suppose not many new users took advantage of this and thats why they added spotlight to the Help menu.

Theres also PDF documents in the User Guides and Information folder which has an alias in Macintosh HD which i find i usually delete.
 
Hankster said:
(snipP... Even though they are on electronic form, many people still don't go around reading .pdfs. It was just an observation.
Click to expand...

You hit it on the head right there. Many people don't both to read the print manual either. At least electronic manuals are saving paper, packaging, and the money it would cost to print a physical document.
 
PC products come with thick manuals.
Click to expand...

Since when?

I used PC's from 1995 to 2006. In that time, I bought 5 computers (a Packard Bell, Micron, HP, and two Dells), and at least two different copies of Office. None of that came with (paper) manuals. The biggest manual I ever did see was with a game.
 
tjevans said:
Since when?

I used PC's from 1995 to 2006. In that time, I bought 5 computers (a Packard Bell, Micron, HP, and two Dells), and at least two different copies of Office. None of that came with (paper) manuals. The biggest manual I ever did see was with a game.
Click to expand...

I agree. PCs and PC software don't come with thick manuals nowadays. Year's ago they did as did Macs.

I recently bought an eMachines and everything is in PDF. And yes PDF stinks.
 
It depends on the software you buy. For example Toast and Logic Studio come with former tree versions of manuals, and Logic could be a complete forest(!). On the other hand many programs don't, like VMware Fusion, or iWork.
 
I see what the OP is saying, if you come from not using a computer then you wouldn't really know much about what to do.
Sure you can click Iphoto to get in and start with your photo's but with all the packaged software on the Mac there dont appear to be any manuals.

Not like if you were to buy a software application off the shelf, you would normally get an in depth paper manual or a full manual on disk.

Why is it that you think (as I did) that when you get the mac and all the software that you always end up seeing third party books coming out like "leopard secrets" or "Ilife secrets". These often end up giving you more information than what you would normally get from the official manual.
 
johny5 said:
Why is it that you think (as I did) that when you get the mac and all the software that you always end up seeing third party books coming out like "leopard secrets" or "Ilife secrets". These often end up giving you more information than what you would normally get from the official manual.
Click to expand...

The information you "pay" for is generally learned a lot better than info or advice given freely.

Take the person who asks you the same question every week and never learns ...
 
The reason that they dont give you manuals is because they dont need to :) Mac users are cleverer than PC users and dont need them :p
 
i can tell that you're a pc user :D

altho its true, v simple

edit: ooops just realised - im on a pc right now :O
 
Mac manual

You might be interested in a book titled "The Missing Manual..Mac OSX Leopard Edition" by David Pogue...I ordered it from Amazon for about $24.

I am soon to be a new Mac owner as well and I found the book very helpful..It is very detailed and goes over a wide range of subjects yet is easy to digest.
 
cudo said:
or maybe it is the other way round? maybe mac is so ridiculously primitive that you dont need one ? :cool:
Click to expand...

I hope somebody with no sense of sarcasm doesn't see that! :eek:

I've never had a problem with the lack of manuals. I never read manuals anyway, I find they make things more confusing.
 
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