When I first start to use an application, there’s always that initial “how in the world do I use this thing?” period. That’s a tough one to get through.

Then there’s the next step: you’ve got the hang of the most basic of the features, and sort of, kind of get how this application works. But how do you get from there to black-belt, ninja-style domination of an application?

For me, there are a couple of tacks that have always helped me to get to know an application, and learn my way around its nooks and crannies. Here they are:

Read the Blog

Almost every new startup these days has a blog associated with it. The blog is where the company tells you about new features, new uses, cool things coming down the pipeline, and all kinds of other useful information.

The blog, and the comments, are a great source of information for little-known tips and tricks for using the blog, as well as a way of interacting with the company, asking questions and making comments. For just about any application you use, give the blog a look; if you become a frequent user, the blog becomes your best friend.

Ask the FAQs

Another mainstay of almost any application is a set of Frequently Asked Questions, or FAQ’s. This is where you’ll find the answers to things like “how to I install this crazy thing?” and “why did it set my computer on fire?” There are a lot of minor issues and snags people come across in using an application, and the FAQ’s are able to answer many of them.

FAQs are also a great place to find how other people might use the application, to give yourself an idea of what else you might be able to do with it.

Google It

It consistently amazes me how many people give up on something without Googleing it. Whatever it may be, live by this motto: “if at first you don’t succeed, Google the bejeezus out of it.”

Try Googleing “how to use yourapplicationname” or “yourapplicationname tips”, and you’ll be shocked at the wealth of information that comes up in the .024 seconds it takes to run a Google search. You’ll find tons of cool features, tons of different uses, and a new look into just about any application.

Click Around

This is my favorite way to figure out how to use an application. Look around any given page, and every time you see a link (as long as it doesn’t say something like “download virus HERE”), click it. Who knows where you’ll go?

Doing this helps you find cool features, help, how to navigate around, and just about anything else. Take about 10 minutes, and go on a clicking spree. See where they take you, and go nuts. You’ll hit more than a few dead ends, but you’ll go some pretty neat places as well.

Figuring out how to make the most out of an application can be difficult when you’re first getting started. Lucky for us, there are a lot of resources for learning how to use it, and some easy ways to get the most out of your applications.

How do you learn the ropes of a new application or software?

Photo: y-a-n