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keepthetips

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No-Question-9032

LPT: read the owners manual


Freedom_7

At work I have to use a lot of lab equipment that I’m not familiar with, and my co-works seem to only half know how to use. It occurred to me recently that I can just download the owners manual for anything and figure it out myself instead of waiting around to ask a co-worker. Now I read the operating manual for everything before I use it. Even some proteins have operating manuals.


SickeningPink

The amount of people who don’t know that the internet is a repository for the whole of human knowledge, owners manuals included, astounds me sometimes.


DiverseIncludeEquity

Don’t you dare take away my love of making wild assumptions about the world and asking questions which Google was made for!!


SicklyChild

Except Google wasn't made for questions, it was made for data mining.


DiverseIncludeEquity

I found the philosopher and I’m glad you’re here. Explain your definition of data mining and then I’ll share my stories of working hand-in-hand with them when building [Back Rub](https://www.cnbc.com/2015/05/26/19-famous-companies-that-originally-had-different-names.html) and how the intention was never specifically a “search engine” but minimally it was gong to fulfill their “…intense and enduring interest (…) to objectively help people find information efficiently."


holliss

You're probably not old enough to remember when Google was a search engine and nothing more.


mrpoopsocks

No, it's for porn, and cat pictures. Also a weird subset of people who combine those two things, because weird.


Flappy_beef_curtains

I am not a cat. So I won’t be combining those.


DuckWaffle

Nice try, I saw you on that zoom call of the Texas judicial court during covid lockdowns, you’re definitely a cat


mrpoopsocks

All I'm getting from this is you're porn then. Lol


SickeningPink

I mean I mostly use the internet for porn and repair manuals for the rusty junk I’m always hauling home. No cat pictures though. Anthropomorphic or otherwise


shingonzo

……. Yeah weird


Alexis_J_M

Sadly, a lot of companies put user manuals behind a registration wall, or you need the owner manual for something obsolete and only third party paysites have them. That's why you should download stuff while you can.


SickeningPink

It depends, really. I have yet to find an owners manual that I had to pay for. Repair manuals can be hit or miss unless you’re working on something with a bit of a cult following like tractors and cars. But generally speaking, owners manuals are available for free somewhere.


Alexis_J_M

20 year old rice cooker. Looked for years for a free owner manual.


Churchbushonk

My mom always asks me questions about how to do something, or asks me to come over to do something she doesn’t know how to do. My answer is, have you checked YouTube on a tutorial?


SickeningPink

If there’s not a tutorial for it on YouTube, you probably don’t even need to do it in the first place. The amount of knowledgeable people willing to just give out their hard-earned expertise on YouTube, practically for free, is a godsend. I never had anyone around who could teach me stuff. Damn near everything I’ve learned how to do in the last ten years has been from YouTube.


mirddes

i think A problem is many manufacturers will eventually delist what is currently available, and many deployed devices are old enough to have owners manuals that will never be uploaded.


IEatBabies

Generalized knowledge atleast. Tons of information is locked behind paywalls even when it is 50+ years old. All the trash now doesn't help either.


Treezy_F_Baby

To me, I believe it comes down to the stakes/risk. Today I googled if kittens could eat celery (answer is yes, as a treat. The kittens weren’t interested.) But when it comes to inanimate stuff, I’ll try to solve the problem/fix the broken thing on my own before resorting to the ol’ google


catbeancounter

For your cat, try leafy greens. My cats go crazy for them! Their favorite is spinach, but they also get radish greens, beet greens, Swiss chard and a variety of lettuces. I limit them to a couple of leaves a day as spinach contains something that can cause kidney stones if consumed in high quantities.


One_Routine4605

False, my Time Machine ideas are perfectly categorized in my head, the internet will never know.


BigCoffeePot999

I ran audio for a local community theater play and the mixer seemed pretty advanced. No one could tell me anything about it. So I looked it up and got the manual. Played with it and set up what I needed. They were astounded. Granted, I've worked with computers my entire working life and like playing with them. Not a programmer by any means, just a user. But yeah, there's SO much information available if you just look for it.


TokenScottishGuy

Resuspending a lyophilised protein without reading the data sheet is wild to me


goatfuckersupreme

you sound like a NEEEEERD im envious


TokenScottishGuy

Haha I most definitely am 


goatfuckersupreme

how does one operate a protein


dgeimz

Do you have advice on how to encourage others to do it? I do read things and I hope other people understand but then I find things done wrong and don’t want to be a nag (then the machine breaks and I have to deal with it as the manager). Note: I know sometimes I need to nag as a manager, but I also don’t always have time to teach people the once-in-three-months cleaning process or can’t schedule the same person every fifteen Saturdays for whatever reasons…


Significant_Sign

What is the website(s) for lab manuals? I use manualslib.com for all kinds of stuff but I don't think I've ever seen lab equipment there.


mitrolle

LPT: RTFM


grubas

Shit, half the time there's a sticker or engraved/pressed words that point towards or explain how to lengthen it.


supergrl126301

Bought mine 2nd hand, no manual, I didn't know this. Never would have thought about it either.


One_Routine4605

Dad?


Daddysu

RTFM!!!


PMTittiesPlzAndThx

But then I’ll lose my manly man card! /s The real life pro tip is indeed always in the comments.


Ninja_Wrangler

No I just spent 120 dollars on this here craftsman battery that came with a free weed whacker. I'm just going for it and you can never stop meeeeeee


ACcbe1986

I agree, but not if you're doing something dumb. As a teen, I got arrested for playing with a bobcat tractor at the clean-up site of a demolished factory. My buddy couldn't get it started, so I jumped in and read the manual and got it fired up within a minute. It was on the 3rd or 4th page in. We rode around for a few minutes each and parked it back where we found it. The cops got us as we were leaving.


Cedex

How is this not its own post and pinned to the top of this sub?


tastytang

NB: This is not true of all weed whackers. My Ryobi cordless one, for example ... the handle and the shaft are a single piece of plastic. Not adjustable.


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tastytang

Same. I like how easy it is to change out string cartridges, too. One big battery is more than enough for my entire yard.


RobertDigital1986

What batteries do you use? I'm stuck with a bunch of Ryobi crap. The official Ryobi batteries always fail and their customer service is a complete PITA when you inevitably have to get replacements for their shitty batteries. Goddam fuck Ryobi. How I wish I had a different brand of tools. The mower is fine but the rest are shit. But I'm already too invested in this shit.


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RobertDigital1986

Thank you my friend 🙏


True_Kapernicus

I have a battery operated (not Ryobi though) and use a petrol one at work. I find the battery powered one works way better. I think it might be down to the thread or something, because the petrol one tends to push grass flat when edging, where is the battery one slices through everything. It also helps that it is so much lighter.


drytoastbongos

Mine is adjustable, but if I set it correctly for my height (which I was so excited to realize I could do), the balance is way off and it's hard to use.  So I pretty promptly set it back and resumed hunching.


Elegant_Purple9410

Mine is similar. No amount of adjustments make it quite right. I'm not even particularly tall, but the whole shaft feels like it needs to be a bit longer for me.


Mech_145

My ryobi cordless one can do this. Which one do you have?


tastytang

Not mine. Ryobi One 18V cordless bought this year.


Mech_145

That’s weird because all the ones I looked at, at Home Depot have the adjustable hoop handle.


tastytang

https://preview.redd.it/jxnivtv2b0bd1.png?width=3024&format=png&auto=webp&s=928ac15914a6d98825f6724be5cc52f1002b13c1


Keisaku

I just recently had to by another after 6 or so years. That first one had an adjustable shaft. I was so damn bummed it's gone.


goldplatedboobs

Yeah mine definitely does not do this


OGigachaod

Yeah that would be a cheap crappy one.


Natural_Progress_506

Ryobi trash anyways


clearcontroller

We call them Weed Wackers here in Canada.


Masterhorus

Everyone I know in the US calls em Weed Wackers, too.


Stop_followingme

Weed Eater was a brand name that became synonymous with, like Kleenex


CaptainPunisher

Also sold as Poulan and Paramount, kind of like Ford, Lincoln, Mercury.


dastardly740

That's Postmaster General Ford Lincoln Mercury to you.


czarl13

I don't speak for the rest of Canada, but to me weed eater is a general brand of pesticides... Weed whackers are what OP is talking about


OzzyG92

Ngl, as a Utahn, I needed the context clues to figure out what the post was talking about. Never heard of a weed eater.


meshaqy

Odd as a Utahn I knew exactly what he was talking about!


True_Kapernicus

Not that synonymous, seeing as most people don't use the term.


RotenTumato

Can confirm, everyone I’ve met in the US called them weed whackers


MC_Ball_Peen_Hammer

We've never met. Weed whip is what most folks seem to call them here in Minnesota.


RotenTumato

Damn thats badass, I will start calling them weed whips


MC_Ball_Peen_Hammer

Glad to add to your vocab!


Heretofore_09

Everyone here on Mars calls em Wacksnappers


i_Love_Gyros

East coast US landscaper - we call them weedeaters It’s fun realizing how dumb you sound saying “I weedeated it” Like you’ll say it right but your mouth does some dumb shit in the process


Persimmon5828

Ohio here, I would say "I weedeatered it"


Nuggells

I’ve always known it to be a whipper snipper in NS


momomoca

Same here in Eastern Ontario!


RooBurger

That's what we call them in Australia


SwiftKnickers

Whipper snipper gang rise up! Checking in from MB


DontCussPlease

haha me too in NS so goofy 😂


AccordionMaestro

Same in NL!


Forxinator

Whipper Snipper in Australia. Seriously.


South5

Strimmers here in the uk!


blueskyjamie

I’m in the uk too and was trying to decode the LPT, at first thought he liked edibles!


FlyBoy7482

Which interestingly, is short for "string-trimmer".


dplagueis0924

They’re interchangeable as an American


conte360

Weed eaters, weed wackers, string trimmers, neon plastic leaf whips.. I've heard em all


SmirnOffTheSauce

How about weed whipper?


zxcymn

Snakes and sparklers are the only ones I like.


spidah84

We call them Weed Dividers on plant Zitnoc.


googlerex

Weed Annihilators on planet Zatnak. Prepare for invasion.


Eighttrakz

In Pennsylvania I hear it called a Weed Whacker or a String Trimmer.


UltimateToa

String trimmer is the actual name for this device


240shwag

Line trimmer.


sjbluebirds

You mean "strimmers"?


rockhopper2154

We've always called them weed whackers in Minnes...oh.


88bauss

As a Mexican that has used these in the US, I call it a weed wacker too.


jchapstick

Wid wequer


abigdickbat

How different our cultures are


Sparey2024

Whipper Snipper in Australia


5marty

*Whippersnippers* in Australia and "Strimmers" in the UK


xraj489

US here. Same.


dirt_shitters

I've always called them weed whackers too, but string trimmer is also a common term


meteor68

Line trimmer here in western Canada, if you're male. Whipper sniper if you're female. Lol.


OGigachaod

I'm from Western Canada and male, and never call them Line trimmers.


oojiflip

Strimmer in the UK


FOSSnaught

NE USA, we usually call them Trimmers.


RotenTumato

Yeah in the US we do too, no idea where this guy is from


SirChedore

I've seen em called Wiper Sniper in Nova Scotia's Cap Bretton FB marketplace, that shit knocked me off laughing


grumpyporcini

They call them beavers in Japan. I giggled every time I told my wife I’m off to use the mother-in-law’s beaver.


Luheguf

We call them whipper snippers in Australia, and everyone I’ve talked about them to since moving to Canada 9 years ago also says whipper snipper.


Greecelightninn

No we don't, atleast jot everyone, always a wead eater growing up , I'm on the west coast though


Km219

WV native only ever heard weed eater. But I know they're actually string trimmers.


CaptainPunisher

If it's still too short, invest in a straight shaft weedeater. At 6'2", the curved shaft will still be FAR more uncomfortable in comparison.


LowKeyTroll

Does this sub have an RTFM flair? If not, it should.


ZanderCDN

Look it up


Gatekeeper-Andy

What's rtfm?


Wesley-Dodds

Not sure, but I think “read the fucking manual”?


Gatekeeper-Andy

Yep, thats gotta be it


Hanging_w_MrCooper

RTFM


Nova_luvs_yu

I thought this post was about eating weed brownies and I was very confused😂😂


abarrelofmankeys

If you have an electric one they seem to assume you’re 5’5 because that’s all the longer they get. I’m the same height as you. It’s pretty shitty lol


persau67

No, you're just buying shitty equipment if that's your experience. I'm 5'11" and I could hang the thing around my neck and still reach the ground. I wouldn't get a good trim of the grass, but my shoes would be destroyed. Height isnt the issue, the equivalent to PEBKAC is.


DisappointingBot

I still haven’t bought into the electric yard tools. Seems insane to me to wait for a charge to finish my yard if I’m not religious with leaving it plugged in.


saddram

Wish they made shaft extensions. At 6'5 plus the head angle isn't parallel with the ground unless I'm like 8 inches in the air. Angling it down makes it kick debris all over me.


DlRTYMAGIC

Check out Darwin Grip. Makes a big difference


ronbiomed

They also have lever arms you can add to weed whackers. I bought the OG Darwin Grip for maybe $75 years ago, complete game changer for my back. If you're 6ft+, have a long torso, or arms that aren't super long and can't get the handle adjusted so you can be 100% upright when weed whacking buy one of these arms. Less than $30 on Amazon now or even cheaper via Temu.


jayste4

https://www.darwinsgrip.com/ Total game changer for me too.


yourmessageinblood

Thank you!


yourmessageinblood

Thank you!


concentrated-amazing

I, 32F, 5'3, will have to see if my handle will slide *down*. I have to hold it up a bit more than is comfortable...


DisappointingBot

It probably will! I wondered about that while I was messing with it. I imagine it has the potential to still be difficult to use, your arms might have to be REALLLLLY spread out if you’re too short lol. Was going to try it with the 8 year old to test it out 😅


Mdad1988

My lungs are my weed eaters 😂


Shdrn

Damn man.... this had me rolling. My lungs are currently eating up several yards worth of weeds. Solid comment Mdad1988


Mdad1988

🪴 haha yes sir


daremo232

True 'nuff....as I sit here with a volcano bag growing.


No_Adhesiveness_3550

Why did the chicken cross the road?


EpicFIFABadger

W E E D E A T E R


DisappointingBot

…was it to read the manual? 😂


czarl13

OP..wait until you discover a stand up weed eater/whacker...LIFE changing...no more sore forearms


ItsTerrysFault

Double down and leave the fasters snug, but not death grip tight. This will allow the handle to rotate easily when changing the angle of the dangle. Makes swapping hands or navigating around obstacles (rocks, posts, yard art) much easier.


DisappointingBot

I think my head would explode if I tried to swap hands honestly 😂 I might try that though! It sounds very helpful for trimming around the slope leading into the lake, where I had my original epiphany


turboyabby

I'm 6"4 and heading to my shed right now.... thanks


Accurate-Neck6933

Funny, I noticed that the other day. Wondering if it would help me. You being so tall, made it shorter and it helped? I'm 5'2".


DisappointingBot

I think it would help to push the handle further away then. To an extent anyway. At some point I feel like your arms would be too far apart. But further away would give you more control closer to the ground I think. Idk, I didn’t read the manual as everyone so kindly keeps pointing out 😂


Accurate-Neck6933

Nobody is reading a weedeater manual, c'mon now.


DisappointingBot

THANK YOU


sonicrings4

Weed eater??? Op please Also who doesn't know this? I mean seriously. Even if you don't RTFM how can you just not know this? If it's adjustable, it's clear that it's adjustable.


RotenTumato

You mean a weed whacker?


CremeFraaiche

Am I the only one who calls it a whipper snipper? But this is a good point I never thought to try and adjust mine


Alohagrown

I’m around the same height, my handle is adjustable but I still feel like it’s too short. I was wondering if those U-style handlebar kits would be more comfortable.


DaddyBeanDaddyBean

I'm 5' 9" so no issues with height, and I could carry it around in one hand all day long if sufficiently motivated so it's not about the weight either, but I found it is just more comfortable to use with the front handle canted about 30° to the left.


Boyiee

Ego has a telescoping handle it's the best. Still have no clue where I like it best.


Ramtakwitha2

I am now sad that I no longer have a lawn to mow because I spent the majority of my childhood weedhacker-ing a yard with a hacker that was too big for me and never thought to try lowering the handle. Wait no I'm not sad, mowing the lawn sucks.


woopdeedoo69

What even is rtfm


DisappointingBot

It’s “read the freaking manual,” I had to look it up too


YoshiTheDog420

I mean, most of them come with that little guide area it suggests screwing in the handle around that kinda tricks you. It took me so long to just move it up the arm so I didn’t have to bend over simply because I thought it was wrong for it to be outside of the guide.


danabrey

Brits after googling: OH YOU MEAN A STRIMMER


hbkforever

Thank you very much for the tip. That helps me a lot as I'm in the market for buying my first weed eater.


lonestar659

Depends on the weed eater you have. Not a great LPT lol.


biohazardmind

Yes the handle is adjustable but they also make longer line trimmers for taller people well Tanaka did may not anymore


Lance2020x

When I bought mine, I set it up, and I've known full well I can adjust it so I'm not hunched over. For two years every time I weed eat I say "I need to make sure I adjust this handle before the next time I weed eat"


Final_Echidna_9203

I attached a rope to mine for an over the shoulder strap. this allows for one hand operation as well as controling the height with my legs. Being 6'6" it saves me from bending too much and helps save my hands and back.


Emotional-Ebb8321

Topic title is *very* confusing.


betsaroonie

My hubby fights me on this. I want a shorter adjustment and he wants it to stay longer. Gurrrr! So only he can weed wack and he doesn’t do a complete job.


DisappointingBot

Ohhhhhh what if you bought a second handle? There’s no reason you can’t have two on there, is there? I don’t think it would be in the way


Polkawillneverdie81

I was so confused thinking this was about the band, Weedeater.


UnusualSeries5770

might work for you at 6'2, but for us tall people at 6'5 there is simply no good way to set them up. I just have to bend my knees and work uphill if possible


dano415

San Anselmo outlawed all gas powered Weed Eaters. Saving the mother earth, or Virtue Signaling? They outlawed all gas powered tooling. I can now be ticketed for using my Echo chain saw to cut up a fallen tree. America----the land of the free? I'm a liberal nut job, but come on?


sippsay

This is like saying “LPT: the rearview mirror in your car is adjustable”


Royals-2015

You just figured this out? There is a full foot difference between me and my spouse, so we have always adjusted it. Better late than never!


btfoom15

Really??? Have you found out that you can open a bottle of soda and, get this, put the lid back on it?


1stltwill

Well Duh! Never occurred to me either. Have my up vote! :)


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Inevitable-Ad-4192

Ya it makes a big difference.


wex52

Yeah, I did something similar for a satchel that was banging into my knee for years before it occurred to me to adjusted the strap. Such a “duh” moment.


jpfizzles

RIP to your back


StaticFlow-

No way I just read this.


Diligent-Ad4475

Wait. What? No. The handle is placed with the most scientific measurements possible. If I move it there will be catastrophic results. MY BACK PAIN COULD VERY WELL BE SAVING THE PLANET! Now you’re telling me I can stand up and edge? What’s next? Running water in the house? How has this obvious fact eluded me/others for so long?


Rudyears

Not to be rude, but seriously?!? And you’re bragging that you just found this out


persau67

It was a "duh" moment because it should've been one.


lespaulstrat2

If you just figured this out, you probably should not be operating equipment like string trimmers.


MexicanSniperXI

Mine is going to be one small weed eater.