Have you ever bought something and found it had no instructions

Knight said:
That was supposed to be funny right!

If not then this is a mandolin used for all kinds of food prep.
Click to expand...
Lynn wasn't alone, I'd never heard of it either.......neither had my supervisor, and when I showed her the link she said "Why not just use a knife?' - guess we're just not gadget people.
 

Knight said:
That was supposed to be funny right!

If not then this is a mandolin used for all kinds of food prep.

Progressive pl8-1055ml Mandolin Washer, Plastic, black, 40 x 15 x 15 cm

https://www.amazon.com/Progressive-pl8-1055ml-Mandolin-Washer-Plastic/dp/B01F956JMI/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3Q7DWJSCRCW8&keywords=mandoline+pl8&qid=1671381892&sprefix=mandoline+pl8,aps,127&sr=8-3

It is pictured with the spiked plate up for dicing & cubing. Flip the plate for slicing from very thin to about 1/4 inch thick.
Click to expand...
Yes of course it was intended to be humorous. Sorry you didn't find it such. According to my feedback quite a few members liked my feeble attempt. Much of what I post on SF is intended to be tongue in cheek or otherwise funny. At my age, I don't take much seriously with the exceptions of nuclear war and death. Feel free to put me on ignore.

Please have a Merry Christmas.
 
Last edited:
Sometimes having the paper instructions is almost the same as not having any. If someone was fluent in Chinese, they could make a fortune doing translations. At least I hope they’re not paying too much for the translators they use.
 

Nemo2 said:
Lynn wasn't alone, I'd never heard of it either.......neither had my supervisor, and when I showed her the link she said "Why not just use a knife?' - guess we're just not gadget people.
Click to expand...
Why not use a knife is valid. My wife is a great cook & gadgets that make her happy & help prep food the way she wants to present food is why she has one.

As an example here is a list of what she has available to cook with.
1. 60,000 BTU 4 burner BBQ with rotisseri
2. Propane burner aside of the BBQ for use with a wok
3. Free standing rotisseri capable of holding to roast a 140lb. pig
4. Masterbuilt Digital 711-Sq in Black Electric Smoker
5. new 5 burner gas stove/oven
6. microwave oven
7. Breville convection oven
8. CHEF iQ Smart Pressure Cooker 10 Cooking Functions & 18 Features, Built-in Scale, 1000+ Presets & Times & Temps
9. Aroma rice steamer
10. under cabinet toaster oven.
11. West Bend slow cooker
12. George Foreman Submersible Grill
13. George Foreman Healthy Cooking Skillet <--- really great for frying bacon.
14. Ronco showtime rotisseri
15. BELLA 4 Slice Non-Stick Belgian Waffle Maker, Fluffy Restaurant-Style Waffles
16. Zenchef air fryer

I think that's all.

Of course not all used every day but for great presentation gadgets to prep food are a must. I don't think I have enough time to generate a list of the gadgets she has.
 
Llynn said:
Yes of course it was intended to be humorous. Sorry you didn't find it such. According to my feedback quite a few members liked my feeble attempt. Much of what I post on SF is intended to be tongue in cheek or otherwise funny. At my age, I don't take much seriously with the exceptions of nuclear war and death. Feel free to put me on ignore.

Please have a Merry Christmas.
Click to expand...
I thought it was supposed to be funny but thought I ask to be sure. You did see Nemo2 didn't know what a mandolin was
 
It's just reaffirmed my decision to stay as far from plastic as possible. Sure it's cheaper by 3-6X but junk is junk. There's somethings where plastic just won't survive.
 
JaniceM said:
I didn't know what they were talking about either, til I just looked it up.
Click to expand...
Nemo asked why not just use a knife/ a reasonable question. Like anything else having the tools to do what you like and do it well, the mandolin is a tool. The other day my wife made scalloped potatoes. Slicing potatoes, a few large mushrooms, a little celery & onions uniformly unless super skilled with a knife the mandolin does the uniform slicing perfectly.
 
Nathan said:
All the time. Most people don't read instructions anymore, plus if it's a tech product nobody knows how to write a coherent set of instructions that humans can understand... View attachment 251303
Click to expand...
Well as someone working in engineering for decades, read your statement as an obvious casual conversation exaggeration. There are many complex tech products today, especially those of large American corporation designed products, with superb complete well reviewed instructions. Part of the problem is many impatient folks are overwhelmed when say they buy a DSLR camera and the online user manual is 100 pages long. So much of the issue is with the individual customer's ability to correctly understand what they are reading. IMO reading skills today are much worse on average than when I grew up. It is true that fair numbers of smaller companies with aggressive product cycles are managed by execs that demand such tight product schedules that design engineers who understand products best have to delegate technical writing to lesser knowledgeable others with a result of issues.

One of the main reasons I as originally a non-degreed electronic tech was able to work in top engineering groups, was my clear concise writing skills with an ability to write whatever for a range of others. Thus was delegated much of that work or proof reading. Fair numbers of otherwise very intelligent people cannot explain things to others, much less write instructions. That is reflected at universities there is an enormous difference between best professors, those of middling skill, and others. In this era, given the offshoring and outsourcing due to Wall Street bean counters, many products sadly are no longer American manufactured. As a result, many consumer products, especially low cost ones, have pathetic user manuals written by foreigners with even worse results. Anyone actually working in hardware or software engineering lead rolls has to read much complex terse technology information that needs to be correct else people elsewhere will be receiving embarrassing phone calls.
 
Last edited:
As to the OP's question, "Have you ever bought something and found it had no instructions", I could make a long list. Funny is how members narrowly interpreted what they thought that meant.

  • Ok folks, have you ever bought a banana? Did you need instructions on how to peel it and then eat it?
  • What about that new pair of shoes? Instructions on how to put which foot into each shoe or tie laces?
  • And what about that pair of pliers you just bought at Home Depot?
  • Or that new fiction book you picked up? Instructions for which end to start at or how to turn pages?

Obviously, there are endless like products without a need for instructions, and like I mentioned, it is hilarious to this person how ordinary people narrowly re-interpret actual communications. Not only on this specific question but also in a broad range of other ways. It is how our human brains tend to work unless one develops a deeper level of verbal perception.
 
I once bought a hammer, it's still there in the shed, one of these days I'll figure out how to use it. 😊
 
Last edited:
I bought the little 'uns a good quality microscope for Christmas as they are really getting into science. We opened it and, of course, it came with no instructions (you can download on line, though).

No problem, though, as their mama is a chemistry and biology teacher and is very au courant with a microscope.

After we looked at the prepared slides that came with it, we moved on to spit, blood and other disgusting items including a squashed bug.
 
Have I ever bought something that had no instructions……

My 2nd spouse which is now my X.

Sent for instructions, but this model was deleted……none were available.
 

You must log in or register to reply here.

Back
Top