Frazz by Jef Mallett for October 09, 2023

I learned a lot of things from textbooks, but “life” wasn’t any of them.

I recently unpacked a printer and found that the ONLY documentation was a series of numbered images. And a list of URLs for the actual documentation in various languages. I suppose they never sell printers to anyone without internet connectivity. The images actually worked pretty well except for getting it connected it to my router. The online doc was better for that part, though still not all that helpful.

A Therapist might help?

A quick start card? What would that be?

Caulfield is rarely content to just let things happen. He has to ‘push the envelop.’

And, like most of us, he’ll try an extemporaneous install, get tied in knots, then read the manual.

I’ve wondered about that. If you buy almost anything, it comes with a manual. Then you have a baby and it’s “you’re on your own”. Maybe someday, someone will discover the placenta is a series of QR codes and the answer was always there….

If I can’t have an instruction manual, how about VCR controls? Instead of “how did THAT happen”, I could hit rewind/pause/slow motion.

That would be coffee, kid.

An algebra textbook is a life instruction manual?

I know the difference between a direct object and a predicate nominative, and my relationships still crashed and burned. In fact, that might be why.

The Bible. The Ten Commandments and the Sermon on the Mount for the quick-start guides. John 3:16 and the book of Romans.

S/360 assembler codes

Neah, life is full of surprises

Those are called adages.

Books teach you what to expect from life. Life teaches you to expect the unexpected.

10 Commandments

America comes with a users’ manual. I keep a copy of it in my back pocket. It contains the text of the Declaration of Independence and Constitution (including amendments).

Hence the saying, People that don’t learn from history are condemned to repeat it

For many people the Bible is the instruction manual

Unfortunately, the unit on dealing with interpersonal challenges and social awkwardness is missing from school books.