Ask HN: How to RTFM?

I’ve had the opposite experience. I’ve found countless times that online tutorials confuse the issue, even if they help you to accomplish some specific task. The FM on the other hand tells it like it is. The trick is to only read the parts that you need to in order to clear up your confusion. This sometimes means reading one section and having to look something up in another section before you can understand the first, and this can sometimes be a recursive process, but if you have any understanding of the technology at all the recursion depth is rarely greater than two or three. You’ll quickly find that the things you don’t understand have straightforward explanations in terms of the things you do understand.

If you find yourself five levels deep in this process and still unable to comprehend what you’re reading, you need to take a step back and ask yourself if you do in fact have any real understanding of the technology you’re using.

Maybe a slow walk through each item in that subject is needed? Also for any particular popular subject there's more than one 'manual'.

I rarely read manuals. Except for roleplaying ones back in the day.

Is it a matter of time to focus for a long time on one task?

>if someone actually reads the manual

Uh, I thought everyone does.

>I don't see how manuals can be useful in the real sense

I'm...not sure how you can say this. Maybe you mean, reading a manual cover-to-cover. I don't think "RTFM" means that. Don't read the whole thing if it's boring! But I find once I'm well into using/learning some piece of software, and want to know everything, reading the entire manual is fascinating. Plus they vary in quality and readability. The python docs are extremely readable..aren't they? (especially if you have a high tolerance for Monty Python gags). Man pages mostly suck for learning software the first time, but are brilliant for refreshing the memory. Mostly, I google lists of the best books on a subject, and read as many of them as I can get my hands on. If I'm not enjoying one, I turn to another.

> If you find yourself five levels deep in this process and still unable to comprehend what you’re reading, you need to take a step back and ask yourself if you do in fact have any real understanding of the technology you’re using.

... in which case, you are in exactly the right spot to learn the fundamentals of whatever you're trying to learn :D

One reason why I value (good) manuals is precisely that they are not simply a how-to-do-X-with-Y tutorial. Instead, a good manual will explain the theory behind what you're trying to do - and so leave you in a much better position to solve future problems on your own. Because now, you actually understand what you're doing.

I think reading software manuals is a waste of time. Unless if you do something wrong, you break something, it is much more efficient to just try to do a few examples and work with the tool, then when you need the manual, you read it. Just search on it what you need.

I think it is impossible to read those things and still be ahead of the curve on what is happening with software and things in general. Very time inefficient way of learning things. Try to learn by practicing and knowing where to search when problems happens, learn how to debug problems in real life effectively, because that's what you will do on your whole career.