Written or Video Tutorials??
 

Which do you prefer? My husband goes straight to YouTube if he need to learn how to do anything new, from car mechanics to re-roofing houses. His dad is the exact same: YouTube is the go-to. Myself personally, I way prefer a written tutorial. I don't need to click pause and refresh if I didn't understand exactly what was said the first time. I can reread over and over and I can easily keep the page open or bookmarked for later reference. And I absolutely hate the classic YouTube "First off, make sure you have unplugged your device..." Ten seconds later, the person says the same thing " So make sure your device is unplugged, and then you grab this thingy here... Ummm, let's see... Ah, here we go... " :D Yep, it would have been far clearer if I could have read it with proper names!

So, anyone else? Which do you prefer?

i learned to read a very loooooong time ago.
i do not like - at all - the current trend of "dumbing everything down" to a video or audio format.
we are being molded into a culture of vidiots.

that said, there is value in a written tutorial, to which i can refer conveniently, accompanied by a video demonstration.
having written a few tutorials myself i know you can't photograph every single step and something important can get left out.

let me read .... my books, my news, my "whatever."

I do both, but I like written instructions too. Sometimes a video tutorial is great.

I watch the videos but find they often waste my time with slow introductions, hand movements, and amateur video skills. Get to the point already!

I do like written instructions. There is an art to writing instructions that are clear and concise so one can follow along. Think how often patterns have mistakes or leave us confused.

It is also important that instructions are easy to read. Bullet lists and numbered steps are more visually pleasing than paragraph structure with sentences all lumped together.

It's great to have choices!

Prefer written for most things.

Patrice, please tell us how you really feel LOL !

this is how I feel also.

I like both. I like to have written as a reference point, but I have come to the realization that I am more of a visual learner. If something in the written directions stumps me I watch a video to clarify.

I read all the time but when it comes to instructions I love visuals. Youtube has been a huge help to me in everything from quilting to home repairs.

I like both. I still read paper books but also read on my iPad. For tutorials I don't mind a video if it is clear, and sometimes one that is written with pictures is better. Depends on what is being taught and who is doing the teaching.

Most of the time, by just looking at the multi-lingual pictures that come with that Ikea thing, I can have it all put together before he even finds the correct video on youtube.
However, most videos can be paused, reversed. speeded up, fast forwarded, and they can show me exactly what it should look like when it's done. Or what it should look like from the inside...at the half-way point.
I like written instructions, but I really like pictures & videos too.
I once went to a class to learn something new, and we just watched a video. Then discussed it...answering any questions. Not what I was hoping for.
Maybe both have their place in my world.

For quilting, I generally prefer written instructions but I also enjoy some videos.

For home improvement projects, a video is better for me. It can be hard for me to visualize the steps when I'm not familiar with the terminology and methods used, and a video really helps. Often I watch several before starting a project, because different people have different methods, and some of them leave out vital steps. That's one of the pitfalls of amateur videos, but the same can be true of written directions.

I prefer written tutorials. I will watch a tutorial once, but I find them boring and full of irrelevant chatter. A written tutorial can be kept with the project and is readily available and requires no additional equipment.

I much prefer written tutorials.

same here.

I prefer the written word. Videos help sometimes.

I am a very visual person. When following instructions, I would rather look at the pictures and then, when all else fails, I will read the instructions. I am an impatient person and to have to read the instructions for 3 minutes or just look at a picture and get the same idea in 3 seconds, works much better for me.

Also, I find that reading instructions can be very ambiguous and therefore very confusing. As they say, "a picture is worth a thousand words."

I like to have both available, too.

Sometimes I just do not "get" what the person means from a written page -

On the other hand, it's easier to write on a piece of paper than on a screen if I want to add some notes to the tutorial.

I much prefer a written tutorial. While I enjoy watching the MSQC videos(and others), to actually follow the instructions I like them printed out also but MSQC only offers a transcript that is one run-on paragraph. Hard to follow. I could copy, paste and divide up on a word document I suppose but haven't tried that yet.

I need pictures with written instructions, or a video I can pause. Just call me a “brain damaged videiot”. Lol.

it depends--if it's something mechanical, like fixing my long arm, then I like the video. If it's a quilt pattern, I want well written instructions including good pictures.

I prefer written but like to be able to check a video if I'm not sure. Or ask a friend who has done what I'm trying, that's even better. :) Some of the MSQC videos are printed in the Block mag. or you can gt a download pattern.

Both have their places in my learning experience. I do wish more MSQC videos would also have printed directions. I don't like to have to take my own notes. LOL

A lot depends on how well a tutorial is written, and some things are a lot easier to show than to tell. If there's a good video I'll watch it and then take notes that I can refer to. I don't really have a preference, as long as they cut to the chase and don't fumble around too much or, in the case of a video, have very annoying and repetitive music cluttering up the presentation. Quilting is a visual art, and watching a good video with plenty of examples can be much more inspiring than a written lesson with simple line drawings. Videos are especially useful when they're demonstrating some new equipment that I have never tried. For example, my serger came with a VHS tape, and I don't know how I would ever have figured that thing out without it.

Years ago I taught myself to knit and crochet from how-to books that had black and white pictures. I believe the same process would have been 10 times easier watching a Craftsy class. Also, I believe that watching someone doing a skilled task, such as FMQ, gives a person a feel for the timing involved that you could not convey with any number of words.

It occurs to me to add that in recent decades there has been considerable research in the area of learning styles, and there's no need to shame people with words like "dumbing down" for responding better to visual instruction than to written or oral. Learning styles differ. The important thing is that as long as people have curiosity and a desire to learn they have opportunities to do so, now more than ever before. Some of us had the benefit of seeing our grandmothers or mothers using a sewing machine or at least sewing on a button, and a lot of that observation may have taken place before a child was taught to read. It definitely makes a difference in their receptiveness to learning skills to have input using several areas of the brain.

I am very much an "It depends" kind of person. I was a district trainer for several years, and found that I had to be prepared to offer different tools for different people. Presentations were a combination of visual, videos, verbal, social, and solitary. Handouts were filled with lots of links and resources. Our company provided us with every tool imaginable. I find myself sometimes watching a video over and over, then having that light-bulb "aha!!" moment. Other times I read, and the instructions are spot on. I agree that some videos have way too much fluff, just as some written instructions are too technical. I just keep at it until I find a way that makes sense to me.

I for one have a hard time understanding some written instructions, I'm more a of a "show me" gal, so a video works much better from me. I can muddle through some written instructions without too much of a problem but if I have a choice I would much rather have someone show me or to watch a video to learn.

Exactly... If I had to depend on written quilt patterns, I wouldn't be making quilts. Trying to decipher what those written words mean sucks all of the pleasure from the process, and it takes me an unnecessarily-long time to make a quilt. My brain doesn't work that way, and I have difficulty understanding how others prefer it. I end up feeling stupid.

If I see a video on a technique, my creativity soars...

I do both, but I like visual. Once in a while it is hard to understand a written instruction.

I have some favorite teachers on youtube whose tutorials are extremely valuable to me. It's like sitting in on a class and watching a demo instead of having only the textbook.

Besides, I may not remember where I put the written instructions. I always have my computer or phone
handy for reference.

There are good tutorial writers, and some not so good. Ditto for youtubers. Whoever communicates in a style I can understand is a gift.

I like written tutorial and have a tendency to write and underline/highlight what I want to remember. I also like videos for some things so guess for me either is OK.

I definitely prefer written instructions when it comes to quilting or sewing, maybe that is a result of learning to sew clothing from patterns. I like to be able to go over the instructions and refer to them mid seam if necessary. Until I have a unit or block down pat, I like to have the book open to that pattern so I can ensure I am putting the units together in the correct orientation. I also enjoy looking at quilt pattern books just before falling asleep in bed. Any how to quilting videos I have watched like MSQC or so many others, they simply don't move quick enough for me. I realize they assume they are always teaching a beginning quilter but for the most part I find video tutorials redundant and painfully slow moving. By the time they get to the guts of the issue, my brain has already tuned out.

But the first time I had to retime my Innova I was soooo thankful for the YouTube video they had out there. It made it a lot easier for me but I did review the video at least 3 times before proceeding. Same goes for other home type fixes or replacing parts on an appliance.

For me, I prefer a written tutorial. I also like photos to accompany it if parts of the process are not as easy to explain. I only go for a video tutorial if it is the only thing available.

That being said, I love to watch Jenny from MSQC as an exception. I think she’s just so bubbly and fun to watch.

Feline fanatic, Youtube videos have a slider along the bottom. I just grab that and zoom along to the useful parts. It's incredible how many of the videos have painstaking minutes-that-seem-like-hours of people just sewing seams. We get that part! I also zoom through the signature intro music that several of the popular Youtube people use at the beginning. It's excruciating to watch/listen to that time after time. It reminds me of all the old time TV shows that had catchy tunes taking up space at the beginning and end. We couldn't speed it up back then, so everybody remembers "I Love Lucy", "The Addams Family" etc.. Some we liked. How about "MASH" or "Peter Gunn" or "Rawhide"? (All of those are on Youtube, too, probably. ) I wonder if Jenny Doan got the idea for the squeaky bird from the end of the Addams Family theme. To get us all in the mood to sew Halloween projects, here's the Alfred Hitchcock theme: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zt4N9argVi8

Like many others, preference depends upon the subject.

Once upon a time when I was studying mechanical engineering part of the course was Technical Writing. It was harder than imagined but I still get seriously annoyed at poorly written instructions.
I prefer written instructions for patterns, equipment lists, measurements or anything numerical. For practical instruction, YouTube works well for me.

Video, if done right, is faster, gets straight to the point and no written instruction are necessary. I find videos produced by engineers are the best. As well-meaning as the YouTubers are, some videos are so poorly done, I find myself shouting “Stop bloody waffling” or “Get your hands out the way!”. A good video gives me an opportunity to observe other things such as behaviour of the materials and how a craftsman holds or moves a tool. Written instructions don’t have that subtlety. And don’t forget the importance of sound.

HettyB

Rose- P, I totally agree, video tutorials are not dumbing down at all. They just don't work for me as well as written directions. My husband uses video tutorials all the time and it works for him. I love to watch MQSC tutorials while I wash the dishes, but if it is a quilt I think I might honestly make, I go ahead and buy the digital pattern. :)

Love the instruction video's I learned how to work my Sprinkler system and it's rain sensor system....anytime I need to know I find what I want including how too' on quilting...

I prefer written instructions (which almost always have pictures). Every once in a while I'll want to see something specific and will find a video on it, but I usually find the particular part of the video rather than watching the whole thing.

My problem with videos is that it's hard to figure out if they're worth watching without actually watching them, and they're often very long. Long is fine if they're covering a lot of ground, but often most of the video is spent chatting or showing things that really don't need to be shown (if the video is not about how to cut things out with a scissors, then I don't think it should show the person cutting things out with a scissors, IMHO). With written instructions I can more easily skim through them and skip the parts I'm not interested in.

Just the other day I found a video on something I wanted to see, and it included how to thread the needle (hand sewing) and how to tie a knot in the end of the thread. It must have been intended for someone who had never sewn before, but that makes it tedious if you have. By the time it got to the part I wanted to see I was seven or eight minutes in (which admittedly only took two or three minutes of my time to find).