Jump to content

Reading the Leica CL English manual ... A frustrating experience


Recommended Posts

Advertisement (gone after registration)

Grrrr!

 

I have just finished reading the 96-page English manual (“Instructions”) for the Leica CL … A frustrating exercise to say the least. The text is awkward and hard to follow. I often found myself scratching my head and muttering, “What the heck does this mean?”

 

Clumsiness aside, there are numerous spelling mistakes and, inexplicably, a fair amount of German text that survived translation. 

 

At this time, I won’t get into the awkwardness of the text or the plague of minor annoyances throughout, but I will point to untranslated German and misspellings, all of which would have been detected by an English word-processing spellchecker.

 

I hope that Leica corrects the online pdf and adds an addendum regarding the effect of Firmware 2.0 on the initial text.

 

I’d like to know what others think of the manual. Please chip in ... What errors have you found? In particular, let readers know if you have come across processing / technical errors. Be sure to state precise locations.

 

Here's what I spotted on my read-through ...

Remember these jottings relate ONLY to spelling errors and German text:

 

Page 2, left side, halfway down: “cahngeable”

 

Page 3, left side, bottom line: German text

 

Page 5, left side, last two bullets: German text

 

Page 14, left side, bottom line: “comptuer”

 

Page 20, left side, next to bottom para contains German

 

Page 20, right side, 8th line from the bottom: “butto” 

 

Page 24, right side, middle: “fuctions”

 

Page 28, right side, middle: “selectt” + the German“Erweitert” ... What is TID_3717?

 

Page 29, left side, middle: “Selectt” + bottom line: “GSelect”

 

Page 32, top: “availabe” + “GSelect” + 4thline from bottom: “GSelect”

 

Page 32, right side, middle: “für”

 

Page 32, right side, bottom line: “GSelect”

 

Page 34, left side, bottom: “GSlect”

 

Page 36, middle: “funtion”

 

Page 36, near bottom: “electroninical”

 

Page 36, bottom line: “GSelect”

 

Page 36, right side, 4th bullet: German sentence

 

Page 38, right side, top: “automatical”

 

Page 46, left side, first bullet: “Correpsonding”

 

Page 48, right side, middle: “shower” should be “slower”

 

Page 51, left side, 4thline: “containig”

 

Page 54, right side, second header: German

 

Page 55, left side, 4thblock of text: German (”ist”)

 

Page 56, left side, 2ndand 3rd bullets: German (“wählen)

 

Page 59, right side, in the last para before the “Notes” header: “influende” and “chaged”

 

Page 63, right side, middle: German sentence

 

Page 75, left side, middle: “isettings”

 

Page 81, left side, middle: “differes”

 

Page 82, left side, near bottom: “LLeica”

 

Page 82, right side: first word (“Bei”)

 

Page 82, right side, middle: “smarphone” and German “Passwort”

 

Page 85, right side, bottom: “whifirmware”

 

Page 86, left side near bottom: “exthat”

 

Page 94, left side, near bottom: German (“oder”)

Edited by Learner
Link to post
Share on other sites

Hmm. By and large, I don't read the instruction manual as if I were doing an editorial review so I haven't really noted where all the typographical and word usage problems are. I also have some German language and often don't notice the occasional mixed language use in the text.

 

I find the CL manual about average in its content: It has so far provided all of the detail I needed to understand how the controls and settings work, so I can't agree with it being a frustrating experience. By and large, it seems a far better thought out manual than the one that the Leica SL shipped with regarding context and usability. 

 

So I praise Leica's tech writers for producing an improved instruction manual experience in the CL, and suggest that the documentation department ought to improve their editorial effort to eliminate more of the typos and word usage/language irregularities before publication. 

 

Yes, I was a technical writer and editor myself before I retired. :D

Link to post
Share on other sites

Learner ....... you are in a minority...... apart from my original M9 I have never read a Leica manual and have referred to one on a handful of times in the last 10 years.

 

Most Leica cameras need little if any reference to the manuals ..... and once you have had one you will find most of the functions and menu options follow a similar, fairly logical pattern.

 

The CL manual follows an illustrious past where similar typos and obscure baffling statements are par for the course. 

 

Put it back in the box with all the other bits you are never going to use and consign it to a cupboard/basement/loft where it belongs ....  :rolleyes:

Edited by thighslapper
  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

I usually read the Leica manuals in German, their translations are a bit better than LFI, but nor by a wide margin. Hey! :) Now you can be sure that the camera is made in Germany :lol:

  • Like 2
Link to post
Share on other sites

I usually read the Leica manuals in German, their translations are a bit better than LFI, but nor by a wide margin. Hey! :) Now you can be sure that the camera is made in Germany :lol:

Well, at least the manual is made in Germany.  And the CL manual is correct except for some errors in telling you what the wheels do, which is irrelevant in Firmware 2.0 where you can swap them.  The SL manual was much worse.

 

I tend to enjoy the lost bits of German that someone didn't get around to confirming the translation of.

 

Now for real Leica errata, check out the technical specifications on the SL's new 16-35, where the two engineering drawings have a different number of glass elements.

Edited by scott kirkpatrick
Link to post
Share on other sites

Somewhat miraculously, the "errors" I pointed to yesterday have been corrected. It could well have been that they were corrected before yesterday because I was working on a pdf I had downloaded at least two weeks ago.

 

Either way, I am very pleased that Leica has made the corrections.

Link to post
Share on other sites

I don't agree with the anti-manual brigade...

 

Yes, there are those who instinctively know what to do with a new camera. Then, there are the plodders like me who appreciate a well-written manual.

 

That said, I understand why Leica no longer issues manuals as a matter of course; rather the user is invited to request a manual.

 

It might be a good idea to produce videos of the more complex aspects of camera operation / setting. Of course, this might be cost prohibitive.

Edited by Learner
Link to post
Share on other sites

Leica Miami (and David Farkas through Red Dot Forum) often do a nice job producing video tutorials for various models. Their video on S system menu/controls also serves well for those seeking to better understand the similar SL interface.

 

Here’s one related to the CL...

 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=txEwe6Qx5Fc

 

Jeff

Edited by Jeff S
  • Like 1
Link to post
Share on other sites

  • 1 month later...

Grrrr!

 

I have just finished reading the 96-page English manual (“Instructions”) for the Leica CL … A frustrating exercise to say the least. The text is awkward and hard to follow. I often found myself scratching my head and muttering, “What the heck does this mean?”

 

Clumsiness aside, there are numerous spelling mistakes and, inexplicably, a fair amount of German text that survived translation. 

 

At this time, I won’t get into the awkwardness of the text or the plague of minor annoyances throughout, but I will point to untranslated German and misspellings, all of which would have been detected by an English word-processing spellchecker.

 

I hope that Leica corrects the online pdf and adds an addendum regarding the effect of Firmware 2.0 on the initial text.

 

I’d like to know what others think of the manual. Please chip in ... What errors have you found? In particular, let readers know if you have come across processing / technical errors. Be sure to state precise locations.

 

Here's what I spotted on my read-through ...

Remember these jottings relate ONLY to spelling errors and German text:

 

Page 2, left side, halfway down: “cahngeable”

 

Page 3, left side, bottom line: German text

 

Page 5, left side, last two bullets: German text

 

Page 14, left side, bottom line: “comptuer”

 

Page 20, left side, next to bottom para contains German

 

Page 20, right side, 8th line from the bottom: “butto” 

 

Page 24, right side, middle: “fuctions”

 

Page 28, right side, middle: “selectt” + the German“Erweitert” ... What is TID_3717?

 

Page 29, left side, middle: “Selectt” + bottom line: “GSelect”

 

Page 32, top: “availabe” + “GSelect” + 4thline from bottom: “GSelect”

 

Page 32, right side, middle: “für”

 

Page 32, right side, bottom line: “GSelect”

 

Page 34, left side, bottom: “GSlect”

 

Page 36, middle: “funtion”

 

Page 36, near bottom: “electroninical”

 

Page 36, bottom line: “GSelect”

 

Page 36, right side, 4th bullet: German sentence

 

Page 38, right side, top: “automatical”

 

Page 46, left side, first bullet: “Correpsonding”

 

Page 48, right side, middle: “shower” should be “slower”

 

Page 51, left side, 4thline: “containig”

 

Page 54, right side, second header: German

 

Page 55, left side, 4thblock of text: German (”ist”)

 

Page 56, left side, 2ndand 3rd bullets: German (“wählen)

 

Page 59, right side, in the last para before the “Notes” header: “influende” and “chaged”

 

Page 63, right side, middle: German sentence

 

Page 75, left side, middle: “isettings”

 

Page 81, left side, middle: “differes”

 

Page 82, left side, near bottom: “LLeica”

 

Page 82, right side: first word (“Bei”)

 

Page 82, right side, middle: “smarphone” and German “Passwort”

 

Page 85, right side, bottom: “whifirmware”

 

Page 86, left side near bottom: “exthat”

 

Page 94, left side, near bottom: German (“oder”)

 

Mmmm, I got mine in Germna, and must say, it's very well written.

Link to post
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

×
×
  • Create New...