There is a small local printer who released a book “Mastering the Digitrax Zephyr” by the name of Madision Mountain Publication the ISBN is 0-9788976-0-9 here in Arkansas.
I thought the book was very good and particularly filled with color imagery that helps you understand the “Behavior” of the Zephyr.
I find this book helpful even if I am a Chief user because it is into DCC without burying people in “Tech Babble” too much.
This is another venture of Loy Spurlock of Loy’s Toy’s, defintiely one of the better DCC dealers. He also runs DCC Camps where you can lear about all aspects of DCC.
–Randy
I have only purchased one thing from Loy’s and that was a grade crossing controller last month. I was very impressed with the turn around and most pleased with a free DCC guide that came on a CD with my purchase. I thought that this was a very nice touch and actually quite useful.
IMHO, both Loy’s and Tony’s are class acts. They both get my “thumbs up!”
I’ve seen books on E-Bay about understanding Digitrax products going for $60-$80. I hope I wouldn’t need to spend that much just to run their products.
Unnecessarily expensive.
This book was about 15.00 and some change retail.
Some things you cannot buy. For example, I complained at the store about my lack of understanding about 4 digit addressing. Out came a DT400 and demo session. A few moments later I knew how to 4 digit address at least on QSI decoders.
Some things you gotta be shown how to do and to do it yourself with a teacher helping as you learn. You cannot get that out of a book sometimes.
Safety Valve-I didn’t know what that book cost originally. I was just shocked when I saw the bids. I can read some things over and over and not get it. All it takes is someone to take 2 minutes to show me and it all clicks.
The book selling on ebay for ridiculous prices is the old Digitrax Big Book of DCC. It’s out of print, supposedly a new version is in the works but no ETA has been given. That book originally was priced around $20, I picked upa copy on ebay before the feeding frenzy and only paid $15. If I can get $80 for it I should probably sell it. There’s a lot of useful information in it, but it also is somewhat outdated since it doesn’t cover any of the new products. But hey, no one ever accused ebay bidders of restraint.
–Randy
Based on all the prior discussions threads recommending a DCC system to new users one would think that a Zephyr was a simple, easy to understand and use system. If so, then why is there a need for someone to publish a separate book on how to “master” a Zephyr? Poor Documentation???
Never one to miss an opportunity to twist the knife. [;)]
No. Think of it in the same terms of someone who buys a Corvette, makes a few modifications/additions, and then enters road races in a “stock” class.
Although the factory manual that comes with the Corvette gives you all the information you need to drive to Church on Sunday, it doesn’t cover all the possible ways the car can be used.
You should peruse a book store sometime. Books that go into additional detail about something, past what’s covered in the owner’s manual, are quite common.
Steve
Recent Digitrax manuals are greatly improved over their old ones.
I really don’t see how anyone could buya Zephyr and NOT get it to work, the instructions tell you step by step, hook these wires to the track, press these buttons, loco will move. What it DOESN’T tell you (and the Chief and EMpire Builder manuals do, which raise the “it’s so complicated” cries) are all the technical things that it CAN do once you get past the basics of selecting and running trains. That, I guess, is where Loy’s book comes in. The Zephyr may be a starter system, but as a command station is also has nearly all the features of the DCS100 found in the top of the line Chief set. Two books is a good way to go - the basic “how do I use this thing” manual and the “gee look at all these other cool things you can do” one. Those not interestedin more than the basics can skip the second book and not worry about it.
–Randy
But its a small knife.[swg]
Seriously, I haven’t seen the book other than the ad for it. My guess is that the book is more about using other DCC components than about using the system itself.
I remember when people did not know how to program a VCR Clock.
And today we are streaming over fiber optic line for everything to the house, TV, phone, internet etc and making it happen with a frankenstein network of cables, parts and doo dads.
The Digitrax Zephyr is a simple box. The throttle and direction switch is there to help the newbie make the transistion from DC to DCC. It has soo many buttons and opens a sort of Dante’s 12th level filled with possibilities that are yet to be learned by the user.
I say that manuals are needed and books written in a way we can understand are priceless.
That Corvette Manual is woefully inadequate. I throw a few around from time to time at my work and frankly you need to actually get IN the thing and take it out and RUN it to learn it. I personally dont do corvettes. There are other vehicles that fit my style which involves great deal of traction and top end driving.
I have had several VCRs in my lifetime. Hitachi, Toshiba, Pioneer, and each came with a manual that remained close-by its parent component. When She asked to to tape such-an-such a program, I would have to re-acquaint myself with the inevitably unique procedure as I went through the manual. After a series of these, say over a couple of weeks, I relied much less on the manuals. It was only ever the newest machine that meant I had to use the manual. Yet, when it came to an unusual function change, such as re-setting something, out would come that manual since the procedure was not familiar to me.
This is how we should look at the (fill-in-the-blank DCC manufacturer’s) manuals. We don’t need them after we have learned their most useful information. Then, there are the self-help discussion groups, and how-to for dummies, and a plethora of other handi-pams for those who need more than what the manual offers, or who need its information expressed in other terms.
I found the Digitrax manual to have some questionable instructions, but I persevered and overcame what was either an artifact of my own cognitive and perceptive functions or what were the limitations imparted by the authors in their self-expression.
Personally, I admire those who see a need and who go to the trouble to fill it, whether or not they hope to derive some income from that effort. It contributes to what we call civilization.
My father-in-law has problems programming his VCR, and he’s had the same one for over 3 years now. He also sometimes manages to tape programs in Spanish (inadvertantly activing the SAP audio). Yet he can run trains with my Zephyr just fine with no coaching. And no, the manual ISN’T sitting next to it, he’s never even looked at it. I just showed him which buttons to push a few times and he’s been on his own ever since.
–Randy
The point is if the system is so easy to use then why did someone feel there was a need to publish such an aftermarket book. If the system is easy to use and master, unlike a VCR, then why would the author go through the time, cost and effort to write and publish a book? It would seem like ease of use doesn’t equal high sales of the aftermarket book; difficult to figure out = need for aftermarket book. Or to put it another way, if VCRs are so difficult to use why aren’t there aftermarket books and discussion groups on how to program them ? I know - two different animals, I wasn;t the one or started the comparison.
I see your point, jktrains, and your question is pertinent. I do know, on the other hand, that many folks leave their VCR clock unprogrammed because the instructions are confusing or confounding. My experience with the Digitrax module was at first somewhat daunting, but that was for a person brand new to both the hobby and to DCC, in general. It could be that more seasoned modelers would “get” the instructions…I dunno.
It would be interesting to hear from the author of this how-to.
As for the lack of how-to’s for VCRs, they came on line (so to speak) when there was no culture of discussion groups and how-to’s. The Dummy line came along during the computer age, perhaps in the early 80’s? Now, we have a broad culture of self-help, from dieting to birthing, to raising kids, mastering Windows, and now, apparently, how to run a Digitrax Zephyr. Go figure! [:D]
-Crandell
As has been explained several times in this thread, the basic manual that comes with the Zephyr covers it’s basic functions, which is all most folks will ever use. The aftermarket book goes into more depth and is targeted to those folks who wish to dig deeper into the Zephyr’s many abilities.
And yes, a VCR is a different animal. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t aftermarket books or discussion groups devoted to them.
Steve