DCC Manuals for engineers, only?

[tstage]

Harley,

Keep in mind that these manuals are written for ALL users - i.e. beginner AND advanced.  So, of course, you're going to find examples that don't make sense to you right now...but they're there when you (or anyone else) is ready to grasp it and/or for reference purposes.

Like a shop manual for your car, you - yourself - may only use the manual to figure out how to replace a cracked radiator hose.  However, the guy who needs to:

1. Adjust the serpentine belt
2. Replace the motor to his electric window
3. Figure out what the various error codes displayed on his dashboard mean to track down an intermittent problem, or
4. Drop/install an entire transmission
   

...is going to be awfully glad those sections are included in the manual.

So, just like in life: You gotta start with a crawl...so you can stand...so you can walk...before you can even think about running.  Learn the basics firsts and the more advanced things will come (and make sense) in time.

Unless it's titled "....for Dummies", manuals are generally written to a wide audience and have to cover a vast number of scenarios or examples.

Tom

[Graffen]

Well the instructions and interface on the DCC systems are EASY compared to the computer programs designed to RUN the DCC system, Talk about made by engineers for engineers! If you aren¨t a computer wiz don´t bother . I know, I´ve been there.

[mfm37]

 Lets see. I hook two wires from the transformer to my DB150 because I'm sure that the electricity needs to go some where inside of it. The power In terminals seem like a logical spot to connect them. Then I hook two wire from the DB150 to the track because I'm sure the trains won't go anywhere without wires. Rail A and Rail B look good for this because none of the others sound better than those two.

Now I have to turn it all on. I turn the transformer on and the power on light on the DB150 lights. That sounds right.

Next I need the DB150 to turn on. I set the scale switch to N because I'm Nscale and HO and O are the other two choices. I set the other switch to Run because Sleep and OP don't make any sense for RUNning trains. I still can't get trains to go but that throttle that came with the Empire Builder must be important. Since the plug on the end of its wire fits the socket on the DB150, I plug it in there. The screen lights up and settles on SEL twice on the screen. Don't have a clue what that mens so I will finally have to look at the manual.

So I look in the inedex and find a section titles "How to select and run a DCC locomotive" What the heck, no sense reading the rest of the manual if it's right there so I read that page.

Follow the page and press the loco button and SEL starts flashing. I press the 3 button and the 3 replaces the SEL and it's flashing. I press the LOCO button and the 3 stops flashing,.That makes sense. Next I turn one of the knobs and nothing moves. I turn the other knob and nothing moves. Now What? Need to look at the *** manual again. This is beginning to be no fun.

The index has another section titled "Turn track Power On". Maybe that's what is wrong?

I try what that section says and voila the track status light comes on and the train moves. Think I'll press the 0 button and see if the headlight comes on. It does have a drawing of a light on it. Light works and the other one comes on when I switch direcion using the button with the arrows on it. I press the other number buttons but nothing else happens except there are nw little numbers on the throttle. I press them again and the numbers dissappear. The numbers must be on the display when they are on. It's probably in the manual somewhere, I'll read that some day.

[selector]

 [sarcasm turned on]

Awwwww....  You're making this sound too complicated. Personally, I like the clapper approach.  You know, clap your hands and the train you're thinking about moves off and accelerates to the speed you intend for it?  I had to read the manual to learn that three claps brings your engine to a halt.

[sarcasm turned off]

[blownout cylinder]

selector

 [sarcasm turned on]

Awwwww....  You're making this sound too complicated. Personally, I like the clapper approach.  You know, clap your hands and the train you're thinking about moves off and accelerates to the speed you intend for it?  I had to read the manual to learn that three claps brings your engine to a halt.

[sarcasm turned off]

I see you got the fangs out

---actually, this has me kind of wondering. Eric, the disabled child that I'm helping build the layout at his families house down the way from us, has a NCE Powercab. Same one I'm using--giving me more space to run my lokes(natch)--and HE isn't having issues with the manuals. He's 12 now. I have had only one issue with the manual and that was a learning curve issue---so---

--having said all this, can I suggest that we need to exercise that muscle called a brain---otherwise we will lose it? Maybe we just gone a little soft around the edges----I know now that mine certainly has---

My own opinion---others may differ---