Instructions: Paper vs. Digital

[Jay Psi]

I'm going to stick my head above the parapet and proclaim my preference for digital instructions - I spend a lot of my free time at my computer, and most of the desk/floor space is taken up by those pesky plastic building blocks. Ultimately, the convenience is a greater benefit to me than any argument over nostalgia.*

However, paper instructions are, to put it bluntly, far more Ragnarok-proof than digital instructions could ever hope to be. So I do not want them to be discontinued. TLG are very close to what I would call the "happy medium," where A-models always have printed instructions and B-models are almost always digital.

*The comprehension argument however, is new to me. Many thanks to @nerdsforprez for bringing it to my attention.

[Lasse D]

I would prefer to have the choice of purchasing paper instructions as add-ons to sets.

The environmental impact of printing all these millions of almost-single-use booklets cannot be trivialized.

 

I'm not happy with the arguments put forth in this thread, so I will try to counter some of them:

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I prefer instructions on paper which can be easily re-cycled eventually, unlike electronic devices which eat up the worlds resources and are hard to re-cycle due the many different rare earth components inside of them.

This is a false equivalence. The electronic devices are not single-use. Displaying building instructions will be just one among many, many other usages of these devices.

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but we are comparing against the very minor and trivial impact of paper Lego instructions

Just because the individual does not have many building instructions does not mean that the environmental impact is trivial. I would like to see the numbers: What is the environmental impact of one instructions booklet vs. the power it takes for a device to display the same instructions.

Quote

Also you can build your lego while the power is out. If you ask me, lego should not change to digital instructions. 

Funny. Whenever my power has been out, I have only been able to build digitally since my phone and laptop run on batteries - my lights for seeing the bricks do not...

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Paper.  You physically have it and it is harder to disappear into the ether. 

Digital copies can easily be copied - easier than paper, so I would say the argument is reversed.

Quote

"Paper does not radiate and has no refreshrate... It's not attacking your eyeballs like a monitor does."

Unless your screen is a CRT, there is no "radiation" of concern. Paper actually does "attack" eyes in the same way as a digital screen since it reflects light... I fail to see the argument that refresh rates has on this argument.

 

 

Edited October 13, 2019 by Lasse D
Added counter arguments

[trekman]

Having built some models only from a digital format, using an A5 sized tablet, I have found that it is much easier to miss a step, as some instructions continue unto another page, and you end up having to scroll back and forward much more.
In a new set, the instruction book is part of the experience.  There is the visual size of the book, and the understanding of how far you have progressed in the book.
Just like the downsizing of every commodity nowadays, if they do remove the printed booklets, it will likely not be reflected in the price.  I also think that Lego know that many parents purchase sets for the "Screen free time" which Lego generally brings.

One positive on the digital media is that, if like me, you have loads of parts, then quite often you can build official models without having to buy a new set.

[icm]

I prefer to build from paper instructions, but I don't insist on getting paper instructions for every used set I buy.  I do always download the digital instructions as backups in case I lose the paper versions and for those used sets that didn't come with the instructions.  I also use digital instructions on my phone when I'm too lazy to pull the paper versions out of the filing cabinet where I keep them.

[Asajki]

I don't mind, instructions often rip and I can't count how many folded instructions I've had brand new! Not to mention, I find them easier to lose

[Toastie]

I believe we should discuss this topic with a focus of what @nerdsforprez brought to our attention (learning/comprehension/development of mental skills etc., this is very interesting). The environmental impact is a totally different issue. Of course both are strongly coupled, as you can't build using a paper instruction when you don't have one.

Spoiler

TLC sells 75 billion elements every year - these are made to 80% of ABS - a non-recycable plastic material made from non-renewable petroleum sources. ABS is one of the most powerful plastic materials - as we all know: As only one example the bricks clutch even after 50 years. As of now, ABS cannot be made in a more sustainable way. Even TLG is desperately looking for solutions, see e.g. here. Paper in turn is to 70 -100% recycled (not recycable) - at least in Germany - there are many official websites showing that. And lastly: When you live in or near a city, count the stores, which sell books, newspapers, and the like. Every day. Every store. The sheer amount of paper in the loop is gigantic - amazon is another good one. I truly believe that TLG's instructions don't have such an impact, as feared by some. But true: Every little effort counts. But then: Don't buy ABS.

I cannot work with instructions on a screen, regardless of the type CRT or LCD or LED: I don't want to have my computer on when building. It does too many other things which will certainly distract me. Paper does not, because it cannot. Along these lines: One of the things I do for a living is reviewing scientific papers. When I travel and did forget to print out the manuscript, I do it on my laptop. It is horrible. In so many regards. I simply can't grasp the full story they are telling. So yes, I also believe there is a big difference in the recognition of something on a "screen" (text, pictures) or on paper. For whatever reason that is.

B models as electronic version are also fully OK for me.

All the best,
Thorsten   

 

[suffocation]

24 minutes ago, Toastie said:

[...]

100% on board with your every single word.

Speaking of how much more alert one is with paper versus screen, I've been working in the translation industry for 18 years and I know for a fact that not a single revisor, editor or proof-reader worth their salt is ever going to work on a major literary project (major in terms of artistic quality, not in terms of sales) on screen. When you work on screen your mind struggles horribly to keep up with all the intratextual links that keep the text together - and these links are arguably what separate quality writing from quantity writing.

[nerdsforprez]

1 hour ago, Toastie said:

I believe we should discuss this topic with a focus of what @nerdsforprez brought to our attention (learning/comprehension/development of mental skills etc., this is very interesting). The environmental impact is a totally different issue. Of course both are strongly coupled, as you can't build using a paper instruction when you don't have one.

  Hide contents

TLC sells 75 billion elements every year - these are made to 80% of ABS - a non-recycable plastic material made from non-renewable petroleum sources. ABS is one of the most powerful plastic materials - as we all know: As only one example the bricks clutch even after 50 years. As of now, ABS cannot be made in a more sustainable way. Even TLG is desperately looking for solutions, see e.g. here. Paper in turn is to 70 -100% recycled (not recycable) - at least in Germany - there are many official websites showing that. And lastly: When you live in or near a city, count the stores, which sell books, newspapers, and the like. Every day. Every store. The sheer amount of paper in the loop is gigantic - amazon is another good one. I truly believe that TLG's instructions don't have such an impact, as feared by some. But true: Every little effort counts. But then: Don't buy ABS.

I cannot work with instructions on a screen, regardless of the type CRT or LCD or LED: I don't want to have my computer on when building. It does too many other things which will certainly distract me. Paper does not, because it cannot. Along these lines: One of the things I do for a living is reviewing scientific papers. When I travel and did forget to print out the manuscript, I do it on my laptop. It is horrible. In so many regards. I simply can't grasp the full story they are telling. So yes, I also believe there is a big difference in the recognition of something on a "screen" (text, pictures) or on paper. For whatever reason that is.

B models as electronic version are also fully OK for me.

All the best,
Thorsten   

 

Lol......your hidden comments are exactly what i have been thinking the whole time.  I think the environmental debate (paper instructions)  is bunk when applied to Lego for this exact reason.  We are dealing with a product that is plastic. Anyone who has not been under a rock knows the damage plastic is doing to our oceans,  etc....

[Bartybum]

From an environmental perspective, as long as the instructions are recycled in a carbon neutral cycle, then by all means, please.

@nerdsforprez Does the comprehension argument still apply to pictures? Because I'm not sure looking at pictures and reading actual text is the same thing. Reading the abstracts of the linked studies, I can't find any mention of picture comprehension, only text.

Edited October 14, 2019 by Bartybum

[rekreK]

Digital all the way for me.

Using a 12.9" iPad pro sitting on a stand takes up near zero bench space, allowing for more room to layout pieces and the model.
Can also zoom in on any section on the screen.
Posture is also improved as I am not hunched over looking at the book, the instructions are at eye level.
Build speed is also better as I can advance with a little flick on the screen, not turning a page.

When I got 42100 delivered the digital version wasn't available yet, so I used the book for a couple days and it was a hassle, as soon as I got it on the iPad it all became much easier for me.

[nerdsforprez]

11 hours ago, Lasse D said:

Unless your screen is a CRT, there is no "radiation" of concern. Paper actually does "attack" eyes in the same way as a digital screen since it reflects light... I fail to see the argument that refresh rates has on this argument.

 

 

No.  Not correct at all.  Without going into specifics or being too technical, paper does not affect the eyes the same way digital imaging does.  Reflecting light is much different than emitting or creating light.  Color-responding neurons see and know the differences and respond differently.  Such information is also sent to different parts of the brain and traveled through different pathways. 

[MangaNOID]

I love the paper instructions

i would like to see more compressed instructions though. mostly for the technic line or UCS etc where there is usually an older audience. This would half the paper production and IMO increase build enjoyability/ with difficulty. Following instructions is all too easy at the moment which for me, and no doubt most turns me off official set building. Sure, that's almost another argument but it overflows into this discussion somewhat with the environmental debate.

I have 8851, my only real old technic set. it has 35 steps (including sub steps) and 350 parts. Avg 10 parts per step.

42100 (which I do not have) has 1000 steps? and 4108 parts? Avg 4.1 parts per step. not sure about sub steps as I do not own the instructions.

simply half the paper production.

[nerdsforprez]

2 hours ago, Bartybum said:

From an environmental perspective, as long as the instructions are recycled in a carbon neutral cycle, then by all means, please.

@nerdsforprez Does the comprehension argument still apply to pictures? Because I'm not sure looking at pictures and reading actual text is the same thing. Reading the abstracts of the linked studies, I can't find any mention of picture comprehension, only text.

Very good point.  No studies that I know of for picture scanning.  However, it really should not make a difference.  The focus should not be on just reading per se, nor the mental mechanism vision or reading, but on rather attention.  Here is what I mean......

Caveat: I get the below is a generalization.  EVERYONE WILL BE DIFFERENT, as will their jobs, etc.  But typically, especially in our advanced techy society the following applies:

When looking at computers all day we really don't read or or fully look at images.  We scan.  And we get used to when we find the information we need, we move on.  That is typically the digital world.  This is not so much a visual thing as it is an attention thing.  

WHen presented with information other than digital, there are a motley of different cognitive processes, typically with attention, that say something to the tune of "hey, this is a new type or format that information is presented to us, we really need to pay attention and take more time" - so what happens here is more attentional resources are dedicated to reading, scanning, etc.  So it has less to do with lexical vs. visual reading and scanning and more to do with the attentional resources involved.  In fact the part of vision dedicated to scanning one's environment is intimately tied to the same areas of the brain responsible for detecting novelty and assigning a hierarchical value to the stimuli coming in. Lexical or visual form.  No matter.  And a good rule of thumb in terms of how the brain works is that priority for attentional resources will always go to that which is novel.  

As  I mentioned before its not so much that the medium of physical reading has that much of a better place in the brain than does digital reading. Its just that it (again, for the typical person) physical reading is a novel way to process information (after a typical day of digital reading at work), and therefore more attentional resources are dedicated towards it. Just because of its novelty.  Conversely, as I have said before - if I have someone that reads on paper all day, but wants to really pay attention to something they need to read (or process, like Lego instructions) I might recommend just the opposite.  I might recommend they read (or do instructions) digitally rather than via physical paper if digital viewing is not something they are accustomed to.....  

[Bartybum]

@nerdsforprez Aha, so essentially your argument is basically that it's more effective to build Lego away from the screen, because the novelty of physical instructions is more engaging. Yeah okay, I can get on board with that.

1 hour ago, MangaNOID said:

i would like to see more compressed instructions though. mostly for the technic line or UCS etc where there is usually an older audience. This would half the paper production and IMO increase build enjoyability/ with difficulty. Following instructions is all too easy at the moment which for me, and no doubt most turns me off official set building. Sure, that's almost another argument but it overflows into this discussion somewhat with the environmental debate.

Oh my god I know right. Just seeing 42110's instruction book made my heart sink. I'd like to see more complex sets feature an emphasis on compact instructions with creative methods to help understanding. I'm okay with large pictures, but at least populate the available real estate on the paper. There's no call for an entire page devoted to a single 5x11 frame with only black pins sticking out of it. Use of colourful outlining for placement of individual pieces and sub-assemblies would do just the trick.

Edited October 14, 2019 by Bartybum

[coinoperator]

An instructioon booklet contains often not only instruction.
Some history, beautyfull pictures, design sketches, etc.

Who owns the Deathstar 75159 know what I mean
No way I'd like to miss that awesome giant book.

[agrof]

@nerdsforprez Would it be possible to create a poll for this thread? It would be nice to visualize the opinions.

My suggestion is:

1. BI paper only
2. BI paper (A+B models) + digital access
3. BI paper (A model) + BI digital (B model) + digital access
4. BI digital only (A+B models)

Edit: I am for printed paper too (with digital stock - downloadable from website), most arguments already mentioned by others above.

Edited October 14, 2019 by agrof

[Bartybum]

20 minutes ago, coinoperator said:

An instructioon booklet contains often not only instruction.
Some history, beautyfull pictures, design sketches, etc.

Then again, don't need the instructions to have all that other stuff.

[MangaNOID]

Another bonus for paper instructions, is that the instructions for LEGO usually get kept for as long as the LEGO which is a long time, so it’s kind of carbon capture which won’t happen through digital media.

[aol000xw]

If I need to spend time in front of the screen then there are better things to do than following instructions.

I am pretty sure digital instructions would steer me away from purchasing Lego.

 

 

 

[coinoperator]

Okay
And now about kids.
Do they also need a phone or tablet to build their toy?
Is it not worse enough with all that autisme generating electronic junk?

[Bartybum]

3 hours ago, MangaNOID said:

 so it’s kind of carbon capture which won’t happen through digital media.

Electricity can be generated with renewables

[dr_spock]

3 hours ago, MangaNOID said:

Another bonus for paper instructions, is that the instructions for LEGO usually get kept for as long as the LEGO which is a long time, so it’s kind of carbon capture which won’t happen through digital media.

I still have my LEGO® instruction booklets and sets from 36 years ago. I use them time to time to rebuild something or a nostalgia trip. The paper & plastic environmental impact will be after I die. Although my LUG members will probably inherit them.  Meanwhile my iPad died in less than 5 years taking the files that weren't backed up at the time with it.    You also don't reach a point where your device is no longer supported by the latest iOS and you have to either buy a new one or live with the security risks until the battery dies.  Then you still have to get a new one.

Paper can biodegrade in my backyard compost heap and kitchen worm bin. The compost and worm casting can then be used to fertilize my garden and lawn.  My electronic devices not so much.  

 

[MangaNOID]

37 minutes ago, Bartybum said:

Electricity can be generated with renewables

Yes but renewables won’t capture and store carbon like paper does if the paper is kept in a stable environment. 

13 minutes ago, dr_spock said:

Paper can biodegrade in my backyard compost heap and kitchen worm bin. The compost and worm casting can then be used to fertilize my garden and lawn.  My electronic devices not so much.  

Yes but once the paper has been composted then the carbon escapes back to the atmosphere. 

 

 

Paper, books, libraries, it’s all carbon capture if stored in stable environment. Replant more trees and store them too. We know this. It’s taking the concept a bit too extreme perhaps by saying how useful LEGO paper instructions are in carbon capture, but it plays its part more than electronics ever will, especially if the energy for making the paper instructions come from renewables.

[TeriXeri]

Paper remains the best way for owned sets imo.

While there might not have been digital instructions in the 70s and 80s like now, finding old intact instructions to build old sets feels so satisifying.

And the LEGO community even have gotten old instructions back online via people who scanned those old paper instructions and then hosted them.

So I can imagine building a 2020 set in let's say the year 2070 will feel great as well still.

 

Of course a digital version is still good in the sense of not having to print 500 pages, in case of manual being lost, or never having owned the set/paper manual.

 

Edited October 14, 2019 by TeriXeri

[dr_spock]

17 minutes ago, MangaNOID said:

 

Yes but once the paper has been composted then the carbon escapes back to the atmosphere. 

 

The trees would use that carbon dioxide in their photosynthesis process.  The trees are then chopped down and made into paper.  And the circle of life of the LEGO® instruction booklet begins again.