i just open the manual on an extended desktop display, or if i want to on a laptop next to me on another stand...

no need to print and kill trees.

More trees killed making the other monitor than a few hundred pages of paper I think. Also, why the sarcastic ellipses? Do you know how rude it is to end a sentence like this... instead of like this? If you did that habit talking to another person it would be very offensive. Bad habit. Stop it.


As for printing the manual, my first instinct is to talk you out of it. It's not very text-efficient and more reference than learning focused. My second instinct is that if you do want to print the manual, do it now. Don't wait for a perfect or final version. Start learning now. You won't ever finish learning, that is the life of a pilot.

Feel free to print only the items you need. Look for the USAF A-10A Dash-1 manual, it is an excellent amplifying resource (many systems are the same from the A to C). In many cases it is more concise and accurate than the DCS materials. Get Snoopy/paulrkiii's unit's checklist, it is much better than the DCS manual or training walk-through.

Realize that the manuals are written by people who are imperfect. Focus on real understanding. When a manual says do do something in a certain order, ask why. Find out alternatives, analyze which way is best for you. Play with the systems. Try different things and measure the results. Try to understand why the engineers that built the airplane did it that way. If you look in depth 10,000 unrelated details take on simpler patterns that are much easier to learn.

Hmm, I've never seen ellipses as rude, more of a literary crutch that works just fine in the informal forum enviroment. Now, calling someone else's posting habits as rude and then telling them to "stop it"...

690 Page Manual or Open PDF on 2nd screen, Hmmm. (<- Look No ellipse).

But Im not gonna Stop a Habit because you tell me too, so...... <-Bam, Ellipse.

TBH, You would only need to print the references (airfield freqs., and stuff),

Start Up, Shut Down, and Other Button Clicking, Switch Flicking procedures are easily learned more quickly by running the Tutorial, and jotting down the procedure, then running Create A mission and using your notes to get through the procedures without the tutorial.

You Writing it, Reading it, and Applying it, so it will stick in your memory quicker.

waiting for critique on how many random characters i have capitalized.

Don't be upset. It seems rude to me (and many others*) and I just want you to know to help you avoid problems communicating. If I type in a manner that you interpret as upsetting please let me know so I can adjust for better communication. Thank you for your cooperation.

*Example

He might not have a second monitor or iPad or anything like that. Paper is often the only way for a lot of people to reference information while using a fullscreen application. It would be very presumptuous of me to assume he had other resources. I agree about the manual. Writing notes, making concentrated "cheat sheets" and printing those are much better ways to learn since it passes through you in an active process to make raw information in your own words, like taking notes in school.