Documenting a remote

[vickyg2003]

Documententing a remote is a real low priority of mine. Typically the documentation is just the summary page from IR. But I've found that I am the only one that benefits from this. My DH still can't figure out how to select the DVD player, gee long press of the DVD button has done it for 6 years, anywhere a TV is under my control. You'd think this would sink in sooner or later but nope. It isn't going to happen.

Does anyone have any good tools for documenting their remotes?

Document examples that your most obtuse users find very helpful?

Document templates?

Routines that mine RMIR or IR for data?

Drag and drop solutions?

I want to do it up right. I'd like to document my 8 viewing areas and then store the document on line, and just label the remote with the webpage, so there will be no more complaints about the documentation being missing.
I normally have gone with printed documentation, but it gets lost, or tossed when someone uses it as a coaster, or written on when someone can't find any blank paper. I don't think I could find a single piece of printed documentation anywhere.

I don't know if I want it to be printable/ Perhaps something that is just plain interactive, maybe something in flash, or some fancy java script. Learning new tools, would at least make things interesting. I do think it would be helpful to include the pictures of all the OEM.

Or maybe that would be too high tech, and I should just do a FAQ.

What do your user's like?

[The Robman]

I don't think any of us have a spouse as stubborn as your DH so I don't know that any of us have needed this level of documentation. My wife and kids have all been happily using my 15-1994 remote for about 12 years now (and my youngest is only 12 years old).

Now, elderly parents can sometimes present the same challenges as your DH though.

[pH7_jp1]

Here is an example. This is for my sister-in-law and there is a nasty bit about how to get things back in sync, thanks to a cable box (not discrete power) and a recent low end LG TV that did not have discrete power or input device, or any of the usual workarounds to stay in sync. The rest is pretty straight forward, but necessary as I have found.

[vickyg2003]

Rob, you do the elderly a disservice with this comparison. I teach computer classes for a senior group, and because they come willingly they do just fine.

My DH is predisposed to dislike the remote because he hates my JP1 hobby. So imagine the angriest customer you've ever had and multiply that by 2. Then you have my DH.

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Phil, I outsmarted myself. I brought a complete JP1 toolkit to my babysitting gig, but I can't get my laptop to see the network! My phone sees it and is able to connect, so I have hopes. In the meantime, I haven't downloaded your file because I can't get to it with my laptop. The baby slept all day , and I'm bored as can be. If I ever get the laptop connected the baby will probably start to be demanding. Will look at it, as soon as I get thie problem sorted out. I can always wire in to the network but the modem is under the crib. Go figure.

[The Robman]

Rob, you do the elderly a disservice with this comparison. I teach computer classes for a senior group, and because they come willingly they do just fine.

Like any generalization, there are always exceptions, but I know my mother in law has never understood her remote.

[vickyg2003]

Here is an example. This is for my sister-in-law and there is a nasty bit about how to get things back in sync, thanks to a cable box (not discrete power) and a recent low end LG TV that did not have discrete power or input device, or any of the usual workarounds to stay in sync. The rest is pretty straight forward, but necessary as I have found.

Phil that's beautiflul. What do you call those dialog baloon shapes in Word, I need to look up how to do that.

EDIT: It is called a rectangular callout. Cool, learned something new.

[greenough1]

Here is an example. This is for my sister-in-law and there is a nasty bit about how to get things back in sync, thanks to a cable box (not discrete power) and a recent low end LG TV that did not have discrete power or input device, or any of the usual workarounds to stay in sync. The rest is pretty straight forward, but necessary as I have found.

This is perfect and already set up for my remote

We've got a house sitter coming to stay while on vacation and this will help him remember how the remotes work.

[pH7_jp1]

This is perfect and already set up for my remote

Glad to be of help.

I should have also commented. I have a "master" jpg file that is the layout of the remote with nothing shaded. For each of the figures, I start with the master, shade the necessary buttons using the paint bucket in MS Paint and then save it as a new jpg to insert in the Word document. I got the master from the PDF version of the remote manual.

This attempt to explain how to use the remote is probably my 3rd or 4th version. When I learn that my previous attempt did not make it clear enough, I just try again.

One thing that I have learned is that even though I find using a long press adds wonderful functionality, my non-tech users never seem to get it. So, I only use a long press for things that I might use and others never will. The most used functions I keep as a single short press.

[xnappo]

One thing that I have learned is that even though I find using a long press adds wonderful functionality, my non-tech users never seem to get it. So, I only use a long press for things that I might use and others never will. The most used functions I keep as a single short press.

Agreed.

I find it interesting after all the years of JP1 how many of us have settled on a setup like yours. When things first started we were all over the place! Of course Harmony helped with this I think...

xnappo