We'll Fix It In Post

I've unconsciously started to use the internet as my resource of first resort, bypassing more legitimate authorities such as owner's manuals, plumbing instructions, paid phone support or even the phone book itself. Sure, the web may be famously untrustworthy, but it's just so convenient.

Case in point: My convertible's battery dies like clockwork every Winter when the foul weather takes hold and I stop driving it. This particular German model cleverly stows the battery inside the trunk, which is guarded by a locking mechanism, which is battery powered. The battery locks itself inside the trunk in protest at my neglect. What to do? Refer to the owner's manual? Hardly. The owner's manual seemed to predict this lucrative predicament: "In case of dead battery, contact dealer". I think not.

So to the Internet. After 20 seconds of searching I find that many others have encountered and solved this catch-22. All I need is a flashlight, icepick, some dental floss and a magnet. Simple - and after 4 winters I've perfected the technique. I don't even head out to the garage after the car has set idle for a few weeks without taking my lock-override-kit.

Another example: my shower needs a new seal washer. God help the homeowner who must decode the exploded parts diagram provided by the manufacturer. It looks like a misaligned photocopy of a manual that was converted to PDF and slapped online with little concern for readability. Google to the rescue again. Thankfully, some benevolent soul in California expanded on the manufacturers literature and explained the key detail that every Delta Monitor 1300 owner NEEDS TO KNOW: the lock screw is reverse threaded. Strip that and your screwed.

One more example, perhaps most extraordinary, of this increasing trend - the trend of the Internet, of people, providing better answers than the product manufacturer itself. Our game, MAG, released a month ago with only the scantest of explanation how the game itself actually works. It is a big game. There are lots of details. Lots of information that is key to enjoying the gameplaying experience. There is no printed manual, no reference to an online guide - just a series of cryptic tutorials buried deep in the HUD. I've worked on the game for years but had no idea they existed. As far as I could tell, the public was on their own in figuring out the game.

And here's the astonishing part - they did. Really well. Within one week of release, a web forum posting had thoroughly documented every aspect of the game and even gone so far as to propose strategies for the various faction in each of the various game types. I was blown away.

So is this the trend? Will manufacturers and content creators increasingly skimp on the documentation? We'll see. So far, in my experience, it seems fine if they do. I never read the manual anyway.