Managing User Manuals and Documentation

[conceptumator]

Just thought I would share a tip that works great for me and might help others. A lot of you may have already figured this out and be doing it - certainly nothing magic to it.

We all have piles and piles of user manuals, troubleshooting guides, general instructions, etc for our RV's. For our coach, I had, for example, manuals on the chassis/engine/transmission, microwave, washer, dryer, toilet, TPMS, stereo system, electric bunk, awning, GPS, dash cam and so forth. Piles and piles of irregularly shaped books and papers that you could need to reference at any time. My solution? Simple.....the iBooks app on your iPhone or iPad. Even if you don't use Apple products, your electronics most likely have a similar application for viewing and organizing PDF files. In my case, everyone of the manuals I listed could be found and downloaded free online. I can now reference each of them from my iPad at will. Really helps when you need a quick reference or a refresher on how to work something.

Hope this helps someone....safe travels!


Sent from my iPad using Forest River Forums
2015 Legacy SR340 360RB with 2014 Wrangler Unlimited Toad
Gigi, Poppy and Sadie the Jack Russell (all 14 lbs of her)

[doc73]

Good tip.

First thing I do with a new anything (that requires some effort to figure out) is to download all the info ie manuals, spec sheets, brochures etc and put them into a Google Drive folder. Thus way when we want to fix or know how much our trailer weights we have it,even 10 years later.

Thanks

[hordok]

X2 iBooks

[Flybob]

Can't say for ibooks as I don't use Apple, but if you use PDFs, it is very easy to search for a key word rather than scanning the entire document.

[doc73]

Originally Posted by Flybob

Can't say for ibooks as I don't use Apple, but if you use PDFs, it is very easy to search for a key word rather than scanning the entire document.

Ctrl 'f' is your friend

[Jeff_and_Abby]

Now that you have them all downloaded and in electronic form ... take it one step further ... (or would this be, one step backwards ??)

Print just the "most important" or "most referenced" few pages that you keep going back to ... put them in sheet protectors and in a small / lightweight ring binder or report cover. You can also "print larger" to make it much easier to read.

Sometimes it's really nice to be able to check that "number" or "size" you can't remember, without having to fire up the computer. Or which fruit wood goes best with which meat in the smoker ... or the NOAA Weather codes at which county / campground ... or that pesky checklist ...

Been doing this "trick" for about a decade, and it is a nice hassle saver.

[conceptumator]

IBooks does have a search function - just tap the magnifying glass at the top right corner. Printing the pages you need is a great idea for some folks; I just prefer the electronic format. I can zoom in when I need to view a diagram, etc. To each his own! I also like it that I can view the documents without going out to the RV to get papers and such.

[dalford]

Originally Posted by conceptumator

IBooks does have a search function - just tap the magnifying glass at the top right corner. Printing the pages you need is a great idea for some folks; I just prefer the electronic format. I can zoom in when I need to view a diagram, etc. To each his own! I also like it that I can view the documents without going out to the RV to get papers and such.

X2. I have been using iBooks for several years now. I have folders for my RV, TV, boat, car, house, etc. I can view a document on my iPad or iPhone or laptop anytime I want....

[waiter21]

I did similiar. I searched and download manuals and technical info on my chassis and appliances. I then printed most of the information, took it to OfficeMax and had them bind it into a book (spiral bound with clear covers). This book stays in the MH.

I also uploaded all the pdf service, parts, manuals, etc to my blog site so I can get to them anytime.

DOWNLOADS | 2001 Coachmen Mirada 300QB

..

[Oaklevel]

Thanks for the tips .

I assume you could down load them onto your computer?? We do not have smart phones or pads .. Printed form for us is better as internet is not always available.

[lesptr]

Ever since work forced me to learn and use an iPad, my computer use has dwindled. (Last time I fired up the laptop was for tax purposes). I download every manual I can and using the search function, the info I need is available much quicker than pulling out the paper version and searching the old fashioned way. When wifi is not available, I use the iPhone as a hotspot. I was brought into iPad usage kicking and screaming. What was I thinking?

[Ree]

All of these are great ways to stay organized. I have all of these and also have hard copies of important stuff, directions I seem to forget! I also took all of our manuals and put them in a 3 ring binder. I cut them apart, put holes in them and labeled them with dividers. Reason? My computers have failed many times, so I don't want to take a chance of not having the info available when we need it. It took a lot of time consuming work, but I feel it was worth it. We just keep it tucked in a corner cabinet. Happy and safe travel enjoying all the beautiful sights God has given to us!:

[wahoonc]

Originally Posted by Oaklevel

Thanks for the tips .

I assume you could down load them onto your computer?? We do not have smart phones or pads .. Printed form for us is better as internet is not always available.

Yup works on a computer too...

Coachmen has an app where you can access the manuals if you have a smart phone or tablet. I ALWAYS download mine so they are available when I am off line.

I do print some pages and keep in a 3 ring binder in the camper for quick reference. I also back them up to the cloud and keep them on a thumb drive. We currently have 4 smart phones, iPad, Android tablet, iMac and Windoze laptop... nope not connected at all.

Tablets or old smart phones are great to use for storing things on for easy acccess. I have an old Android phone that I keep movies, music and other documents on. I keep it on WiFi only and it works great as a media player.

Aaron

[ben31]

I use both, the printed material (in binders) and the pdf files on my computer and phone. The binders, for when I don't have internet and the pdf manuals, when I do. The pdf manuals many times get updated along the way. I also save good tips with the manuals for additional information.

[mkekflyers]

The FR app gives you access to most of the general system doc's but not specific components, would be nice if they'd load them to their site when they start using a brand/model on our units....

[wahoonc]

Originally Posted by mkekflyers

The FR app gives you access to most of the general system doc's but not specific components, would be nice if they'd load them to their site when they start using a brand/model on our units....

Interesting... The Coachmen App does have access to most of the specific stuff, but they list EVERYTHING so you had better know which model of appliance you have.

Aaron

[Nancyc7]

Omigosh I have every manual you can imagine on google drive but when we got this MH, I never thought of it.
We have the hundreds of big and little books in a bin. First thing I think of is having the fuse schematics printed out, and then see what we use often and print that out also would a be good idea. Have the rest off line.
I can see it now, imagine us in the middle of the night, on the side of some strange road, in the pouring rain, trying to see how to fix something and can't get the manual to download....

[hordok]

Originally Posted by Nancyc7

Omigosh I have every manual you can imagine on google drive but when we got this MH, I never thought of it.
We have the hundreds of big and little books in a bin. First thing I think of is having the fuse schematics printed out, and then see what we use often and print that out also would a be good idea. Have the rest off line.
I can see it now, imagine us in the middle of the night, on the side of some strange road, in the pouring rain, trying to see how to fix something and can't get the manual to download....

That's why Apple iBooks is so nice. It's on line as a backup but stored on devices as you choose. I have the entire library on my phone, my iPad and the iPad that I keep in the coach.

[wahoonc]

Originally Posted by Nancyc7

Omigosh I have every manual you can imagine on google drive but when we got this MH, I never thought of it.
We have the hundreds of big and little books in a bin. First thing I think of is having the fuse schematics printed out, and then see what we use often and print that out also would a be good idea. Have the rest off line.
I can see it now, imagine us in the middle of the night, on the side of some strange road, in the pouring rain, trying to see how to fix something and can't get the manual to download....

I just back the manuals up to the cloud. I keep electronic copies in a folder on my laptop, phone and tablet. I also have a flash drive that they are on too. I use the dual plug flash drives that I can plug into either a phone, tablet or computer. I also have a 3 ring binder where I keep information that I may want to reference quickly, typically model numbers and power consumption of various items.

Aaron

[eljoho]

Old school here - still doing it the old way - a three ring binder and a three hole punch!