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panky Guru Joined: 02/10/2012 Location: AustraliaPosts: 1114
Posted: 01:58am 06 Mar 2016
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I am not by any means a guru but the best advice I can offer to any beginners is "Print out the manual and read it, regularly".
I check the Backshed most nights and I believe that many of the questions that come up can be answered by Geoff''s excellent manuals. Don'the get me wrong , by all means post when you get stuck and someone will assist you (and in fact, often it triggers a solution to others with similar issues), but I believe you will get great satisfaction as I do in trying to " figure out that curly problem" myself.
Also, there are code examples galore in the MMBasic library that can be perused to get an idea of how to code a particular problem.
Again, not being critical of anyone, just trying to help
Doug.
... almost all of the Maximites, the MicromMites, the MM Extremes, the ArmMites, the PicoMite and loving it!
Grogster Admin Group Joined: 31/12/2012 Location: New ZealandPosts: 9593
Posted: 02:45pm 06 Mar 2016
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I keep a copy of both manuals open all the time(24/7) in Foxit reader, so the manual is only a click away whenever I need it. I also have the latest manual as a shortcut on my desktop, so if I accidentally close Foxit, or need to reboot, getting the manuals back is just two clicks.
You are right - they are well written and I refer to them often.Smoke makes things work. When the smoke gets out, it stops!
WhiteWizzard Guru Joined: 05/04/2013 Location: United KingdomPosts: 2934
Posted: 10:19pm 06 Mar 2016
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I can't agree more - Geoff's manuals are extremely well written and contain pretty much everything you could need to know when using the MicroMite products.
Very often with products, the User Manual(s) are the poorest part. And to create a decent manual takes a great deal of effort. I am currently trying to create documentation myself and keep going around in circles thinking it is too complex, and then too 'basic' with not enough detailed info. Geoff really has struck the balance perfectly well with the MicroMite manuals IMHO.
Also, if you haven't read any of Geoff's magazines articles before, then can I suggest you get hold of one (he has many!), and give it a read. They are always so simple to read and follow.
For anyone thinking that his manual(s) are missing something; then drop him an email (or post on TBS) and no doubt he will oblige in the next edition if indeed it is some useful information that is 'missing' (or a helpful hint for others).
Like Grogs; I ALWAYS have a copy of both current manuals open on the machine I am working on - something I can strongly recommend . . . .
srnet Senior Member Joined: 08/08/2014 Location: United KingdomPosts: 164
Posted: 07:20am 07 Mar 2016
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I agree that documentation and\or manuals takes a great deal of time and effort to prepare, and those for the Micromite are a lot better and clearer than most.
The modern way however, is for those who don't understand or have questions to post directly on forums, it's just so much easier to do that than suffer the inconvenience of reading a manual.
$50SAT is Silent but probably still working. For information on LoRa visit http://www.loratracker.uk/
Benzol Regular Member Joined: 07/01/2015 Location: AustraliaPosts: 64
Posted: 08:26pm 07 Mar 2016
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I have printed out a hard copy of Geoff's manuals and refer to them always but to a complete novice such as myself the manuals do assume some prior expertise or basic understanding. I'm learning fast thanks to help from TassieJim, Grogster and TwoFingers but some of that stuff is still "dark magic" to me. Getting answers to my questions opens up new areas of understanding each time.
WhiteWizzard Guru Joined: 05/04/2013 Location: United KingdomPosts: 2934
Posted: 09:35pm 07 Mar 2016
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You raise a valid point; however, the two manuals should be considered as 'Reference' User Manuals; and from this point of view they are excellent.
Thankfully there are many BASIC tutorials on the internet which can help understand the 'basics'. It would be a 'crime' to ask Geoff to spend time re-creating a 'guide' for the MicroMites/MaxiMites as his time is best spent in pushing the features of MMBASIC further.
You are 1000% correct - this forum is brilliant for help & advice! All I would say to people is possibly check the User Manual first if the 'query' relates to 'syntax'
Notice. New forum software under development. It's going to miss a few functions and look a bit ugly for a while, but I'm working on it full time now as the old forum was too unstable. Couple days, all good. If you notice any issues, please contact me.
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, by all means post when you get stuck and someone will assist you (and in fact, often it triggers a solution to others with similar issues), but I believe you will get great satisfaction as I do in trying to " figure out that curly problem" myself.
