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Does a flashlight need an 8 page manual?
One of the presents I got for Christmas this year was a flashlight.
It is a Black and Decker Snake Light that uses LEDs rather than traditional bulbs to provide the light. The flashlight has a flexible center section that allows you to bend it into various shapes to make lighting whatever you are looking at easier. It uses two "C" batteries and works pretty well.
When I was unpacking the flashlight and installing the batteries, I noticed a warning on the back of the packaging:
"To reduce the risk of injury, user must read and understand instruction manual."
I was a little surprised that a flashlight -- even a Snake Light with LEDs -- needed an instruction manual.
I was even more surprised that I could somehow injure myself or others with this tool.
After all, it's just a flashlight. How bad could it be?
Perhaps, if I dropped it on my foot and I happened to be shoeless and sockless, then possibly I could give my big toe a bad bruising.
While I often don't read the manuals for the tools that I buy, I felt compelled to read this one. To find out what hazards I could encounter by improperly using my Black and Decker 17 LED Cordless Work Light / Flashlight.
The manual is 8 pages long.
For a flashlight.
All right, like many product manuals you see these days, half the pages are in Spanish so really the instruction manual is 4 pages long.
But still, it's for a flashlight.
So, what critical instructions were included in these 4 pages?
Basically, it detailed all the extreme and very bad things that could occur if I decided to abuse those two "C" batteries that came with the flashlight.
For instance, I now know not to take those batteries and throw them in a fire. Something bad would happen, but I don't know what exactly. The manual doesn't say.
What's funny is that I have never -- in my entire life -- ever considered chucking batteries into a fire. The thought has never ever crossed my mind.
But now that I know something bad could happen if I dropped those batteries into a roaring fire, I feel the urge to do so.
And considering that I have a pile of limbs in my backyard that needs to be disposed of, I actually have a reason to start a fire. But first I need some kindling, something quick to burn that will get that pile ablaze.
What can I possibly use? Wait, I know.
How about an 8 page manual.
For a flashlight.
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