8 ms·

Manualslib – Database of More Than 2.6M Manuals

417 points by dabber 9y ago

bungie4 9y ago
Bookmarked!
disconnected 9y ago
Uh, I hate to be that guy, but isn't this just one big copyright lawsuit waiting to happen? I think you can find most of these online in their respective manufacturer's sites for free, but I'm not entirely sure they would be cool with people lifting them and slapping them on another site. IANAL, of course.
- tyingq 9y ago
  Appears to be hosted in the Netherlands. Assuming US companies are the most litigious, probably reduces that risk.
- exhilaration 9y ago
  They've got it covered: https://www.manualslib.com/dmca.html https://www.manualslib.com/dmca.html and https://www.manualslib.com/abs/ https://www.manualslib.com/abs/
- skrebbel 9y ago
  Just wondering, why would vendors do this? I mean, I'd be looking for a manual here if I owned a product made by them. Why would vendors willfully screw their own customers (and nobody else)?
mynegation 9y ago
Copyright worries notwithstanding, it is a great resource. The first thing I do unpacking anything new is searching the internet for a manual (usually PDF) and saving it to my Dropbox. I keep paper manuals around for a while but recycle them after the end of warranty period to reduce clutter. I wish every manual was mandated to come with QR-code or at least short URL to its own electronic version.
- toomuchtodo 9y ago
  As long as that QR code or short URL points to the digital version in the Internet Archive.
  - mynegation 9y ago
    Even better. Or IPFS hash. Though modern goods rarely live much longer than a typical URL
banku_brougham 9y ago
i just used this for a new washing machine. the Electrolux support site requires one to provide the exact model number to search manuals--no browse, no index. rather than go downstairs to read the number off the machine i searched the web and found manualslib. so to the point besides being annoyed by crappy manufacturer websites: should i be worried about exploits buried in pdfs? isnt it possible to hide rootkit attacks in a pdf?
- marvel_boy 9y ago
  > should i be worried about exploits buried in pdfs? isnt it possible to hide rootkit attacks in a pdf? Just open it on a Safari or Chrome browser instead of a native pdf viewer.
  - c3833174 9y ago
    Firefox too
  - skrebbel 9y ago
    Thank you for explaining to me why Windows 10 opens PDFs in Edge by default.
vesinisa 9y ago
Incredible.. I was literally yesterday looking for a manual for my 80's boat motor of unknown model. A quick lookup and visual approximation allowed me to match the model on the manufacturer's site and download the series user's manual from here. The PDF has been OCR scanned and allows searching. This is way easier than ordering the manual from a reseller. Copy to cloud, and now I have online copy of the manual always in my pocket.. I understand it is copyright infringement, but still super-useful. And I might still order a physical copy if the digital copy proves helpful.
- kpxxx3 9y ago
  Lol god fuck copyright infringement. What idiot company in their right mind would pursue that? Manuals are a cost sink and a resource like this is simply a cost saver for them. It improves customer goodwill if manuals are accessible by any means. Unlike trademarks and patents there is no detriment to them if they don't enforce.
Mister_Snuggles 9y ago
I've started saving electronic copies of manuals, assembly instructions, etc for anything that I purchase. If there's no electronic copy available, I'll scan the paper manual. In all cases, I'm putting the documents into an instance of Mayan EDMS[0]. Mayan also automatically does OCR on everything that comes in, so even if the PDFs are non-OCR'd scans they're still searchable. This is part of a larger project to significantly reduce the amount of paper that I'm keeping, which is why I'm using a document management system as opposed to a Dropbox folder. My goal is to divide the mounds of paper into things I need to keep for a long time (e.g., tax documents), and things that I can shred after a year (e.g., bills, receipts, etc). In all cases, I want the documents searchable and backed up. [0] http://mayan-edms.org/ http://mayan-edms.org/
- Declanomous 9y ago
  Which scanner are you using? I've been trying to eliminate paper for a while now. I keep digital copies of everything I can download, but using a traditional flatbed/all-in-one scanner to digitize things that I on have on paper would take forever. I'm terrible at organizing paper, and it's like a plague.
  - Mister_Snuggles 9y ago
    I'm just starting out, so I'm using an all-in-one flatbed scanner because I have one available. It's really slow, especially when I up the resolution enough that OCR works usefully. My plan is to step up to something like a Brother ADS-1000W[0] or ADS-1500W[1]. I also hear good things about Fujitsu ScanSnap scanners, but those are USB only. If you step up to Fujitsu's fi series you can get a network interface, but I think they're more expensive than the Brother models I'm looking at. Regardless of the brand and model, the required features are that it has a document feeder, scans both sides of the page, and that it can save the output to a server without needing a computer to mediate it. The Brother scanners have WiFi and can save directly to an FTP server - Mayan can pick up PDFs from a filesystem directory, so it would be pretty easy to have stuff go right from the scanner into Mayan. [0] https://www.brother.ca/en-CA/Scanners/11/ProductDetail/ADS1000W https://www.brother.ca/en-CA/Scanners/11/ProductDetail/ADS10... [1] https://www.brother.ca/en-CA/Scanners/11/ProductDetail/ADS1500W https://www.brother.ca/en-CA/Scanners/11/ProductDetail/ADS15...
theklub 9y ago
I made something like this for car manuals but got scared of a lawsuit and shut it down. It was really popular anyway but I learned a lot about cars in the process.
ryandrake 9y ago
This looks like a great resource. I buy a lot of used tools on Craigslist, and of course, nobody ever keeps the manuals. So it's always the same time-consuming task: 1. Go to the manufacturer's web site, if they still exist, and see if they have a manual there 2. Search Google for "MODEL# pdf". Wade through pages of pond scum search engine spam and paid sites for a half hour. Apparently, enough people search for manuals to make this profitable. 3. Do some web research to find similar product model numbers (maybe 8029A manual would cover 8029B too?) and repeat 1-2 above. 4. Start searching through forums and other hard-to-index parts of the web. 5. Check torrent sites? (now I'm getting desperate!) It's crazy how tough it can be to find a user manual. In many cases, I end up finding one scanned by another end-user and posted online to be helpful. It's also a shame that 1/2 the comments here are about copyright. I can't see how taking a site like this down would in any way benefit a manufacturer whose manual is available. Unless the manufacturer is trying to make money selling their user manual, in which case to hell with that shitty company.
- maaaats 9y ago
  I feel like I experience your point 2 more and more often last years. I cannot fathom how Google serve so much spam for a lot of searches lately.
- standan 9y ago
  To go one step further, we had created the site https://www.allthingsmine.com https://www.allthingsmine.com and the ios/android app which basically auto looks up the manual in online manual sites. In addition, it points to youtube videos for the product, provides specs if the product is available in our database. Also users can also store their purchase receipts, price etc and get notified of price changes and view the trend if the product is sold by retailers such as Amazon, BestBuy, Walmart etc. Will point to manualslib.com if it is comprehensive.
  - y4mi 9y ago
    you should improve the UX if manuals is the focus of your app it sounded interesting so i downloaded it. there was a prompt to add items to a wishlist after starting it... i was only able to monitor the price of the added item afterwards. there was no mention about any user feedback, youtube videos or manuals anywhere i could find after a cursory look.
xbryanx 9y ago
What a phenomenal resource. I'm really surprised at how comprehensive and fast it is. Anyone know how they support something like this? There's got to be a bit of cost associated with the hosting and processing. Are they selling a commercial version of their software platform?
skrebbel 9y ago
Just out of curiosity, does anyone know where they source their manuals? The "about" page describes them as developers, not hardcore collectors or warezy types. I mean, most sites like this are about sharing, but this one just provides content freely and that's it. I couldn't find an "upload" button. Great for us though, but I'm still curious :-)
- pyre 9y ago
  > I couldn't find an "upload" button. There's an upload button on the top right of the page for me. Clicking it asks me to login / signup. It's not exactly hidden.
- deleted 9y ago
  [deleted]
- cjhanks 9y ago
  Quite a bit of it looks scraped. I searched for a manual I have been after for a while and found the same PDF (which I found on google) which appears to be a manual but isn't.
devrandomguy 9y ago
The manuals have a big watermark right through the center of each page, which isn't even translucent; it completely obscures the content behind it. See https://www.manualslib.com/manual/464698/Honda-Civic.html?page=33 https://www.manualslib.com/manual/464698/Honda-Civic.html?pa... for a random example, where the watermark completely obscures the model number of the Honda Civic's automatic transmission. Is there some way to pay to remove the watermark? Is that how this works, these manuals are effectively just free previews?
- cdash 9y ago
  I just downloaded the pdf for free and there was no watermark. Looks like this only exists in the web preview.
  - alacombe 9y ago
    there is still a watermark at the bottom left corner of the downloaded content, so they do modify the original documents. Not good.
    - rhizome 9y ago
      Does it block content?
      - dabber 9y ago
        I downloaded two. One had no watermark at all the other has the manualslib URL on the bottom left not blocking any content.
        rhizome 9y ago
        That seems reasonable.
- stronglikedan 9y ago
  The magnifying glass in the upper right bypasses the watermark.
gesman 9y ago
ManualsLib watermark plastered over every page is distracting - however I understand the purpose. PDF rendering looks crippled from quick check on some pages. Otherwise - looks like promising repository.
pawanpe 9y ago
good job!
arjie 9y ago
I love you. You are a good person. A wonderful person. This is a problem I've had for ages when buying old hardware. Thank you, thank you, and thank you.
zmix 9y ago
I just checked, whether I can find a service manual for my SONY BDVN-7100WB, but only user guides, nothing for technicians. :-(
peterburkimsher 9y ago
I can see some in French and Spanish. Is there a way to sort by language? I think this would be a good data source of bilingual text for my Chinese translator app.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
armstrong 9y ago
It's perfect!
armstrong 9y ago
https://manualsbrain.com/ https://manualsbrain.com/ looks better. What do you think guys?

417 points by dabber 9y ago

Bookmarked!

Uh, I hate to be that guy, but isn't this just one big copyright lawsuit waiting to happen? I think you can find most of these online in their respective manufacturer's sites for free, but I'm not entirely sure they would be cool with people lifting them and slapping them on another site. IANAL, of course.

tyingq 9y ago
Appears to be hosted in the Netherlands. Assuming US companies are the most litigious, probably reduces that risk.
exhilaration 9y ago
They've got it covered: https://www.manualslib.com/dmca.html https://www.manualslib.com/dmca.html and https://www.manualslib.com/abs/ https://www.manualslib.com/abs/
skrebbel 9y ago
Just wondering, why would vendors do this? I mean, I'd be looking for a manual here if I owned a product made by them. Why would vendors willfully screw their own customers (and nobody else)?

mynegation 9y ago

Copyright worries notwithstanding, it is a great resource. The first thing I do unpacking anything new is searching the internet for a manual (usually PDF) and saving it to my Dropbox. I keep paper manuals around for a while but recycle them after the end of warranty period to reduce clutter. I wish every manual was mandated to come with QR-code or at least short URL to its own electronic version.

toomuchtodo 9y ago
As long as that QR code or short URL points to the digital version in the Internet Archive.
- mynegation 9y ago
  Even better. Or IPFS hash. Though modern goods rarely live much longer than a typical URL

banku_brougham 9y ago

i just used this for a new washing machine. the Electrolux support site requires one to provide the exact model number to search manuals--no browse, no index. rather than go downstairs to read the number off the machine i searched the web and found manualslib. so to the point besides being annoyed by crappy manufacturer websites: should i be worried about exploits buried in pdfs? isnt it possible to hide rootkit attacks in a pdf?

marvel_boy 9y ago
> should i be worried about exploits buried in pdfs? isnt it possible to hide rootkit attacks in a pdf? Just open it on a Safari or Chrome browser instead of a native pdf viewer.
- c3833174 9y ago
  Firefox too
- skrebbel 9y ago
  Thank you for explaining to me why Windows 10 opens PDFs in Edge by default.

vesinisa 9y ago

Incredible.. I was literally yesterday looking for a manual for my 80's boat motor of unknown model. A quick lookup and visual approximation allowed me to match the model on the manufacturer's site and download the series user's manual from here. The PDF has been OCR scanned and allows searching. This is way easier than ordering the manual from a reseller. Copy to cloud, and now I have online copy of the manual always in my pocket.. I understand it is copyright infringement, but still super-useful. And I might still order a physical copy if the digital copy proves helpful.

kpxxx3 9y ago
Lol god fuck copyright infringement. What idiot company in their right mind would pursue that? Manuals are a cost sink and a resource like this is simply a cost saver for them. It improves customer goodwill if manuals are accessible by any means. Unlike trademarks and patents there is no detriment to them if they don't enforce.

Mister_Snuggles 9y ago

I've started saving electronic copies of manuals, assembly instructions, etc for anything that I purchase. If there's no electronic copy available, I'll scan the paper manual. In all cases, I'm putting the documents into an instance of Mayan EDMS[0]. Mayan also automatically does OCR on everything that comes in, so even if the PDFs are non-OCR'd scans they're still searchable. This is part of a larger project to significantly reduce the amount of paper that I'm keeping, which is why I'm using a document management system as opposed to a Dropbox folder. My goal is to divide the mounds of paper into things I need to keep for a long time (e.g., tax documents), and things that I can shred after a year (e.g., bills, receipts, etc). In all cases, I want the documents searchable and backed up. [0] http://mayan-edms.org/ http://mayan-edms.org/

Declanomous 9y ago
Which scanner are you using? I've been trying to eliminate paper for a while now. I keep digital copies of everything I can download, but using a traditional flatbed/all-in-one scanner to digitize things that I on have on paper would take forever. I'm terrible at organizing paper, and it's like a plague.
- Mister_Snuggles 9y ago
  I'm just starting out, so I'm using an all-in-one flatbed scanner because I have one available. It's really slow, especially when I up the resolution enough that OCR works usefully. My plan is to step up to something like a Brother ADS-1000W[0] or ADS-1500W[1]. I also hear good things about Fujitsu ScanSnap scanners, but those are USB only. If you step up to Fujitsu's fi series you can get a network interface, but I think they're more expensive than the Brother models I'm looking at. Regardless of the brand and model, the required features are that it has a document feeder, scans both sides of the page, and that it can save the output to a server without needing a computer to mediate it. The Brother scanners have WiFi and can save directly to an FTP server - Mayan can pick up PDFs from a filesystem directory, so it would be pretty easy to have stuff go right from the scanner into Mayan. [0] https://www.brother.ca/en-CA/Scanners/11/ProductDetail/ADS1000W https://www.brother.ca/en-CA/Scanners/11/ProductDetail/ADS10... [1] https://www.brother.ca/en-CA/Scanners/11/ProductDetail/ADS1500W https://www.brother.ca/en-CA/Scanners/11/ProductDetail/ADS15...

theklub 9y ago

I made something like this for car manuals but got scared of a lawsuit and shut it down. It was really popular anyway but I learned a lot about cars in the process.

ryandrake 9y ago

This looks like a great resource. I buy a lot of used tools on Craigslist, and of course, nobody ever keeps the manuals. So it's always the same time-consuming task: 1. Go to the manufacturer's web site, if they still exist, and see if they have a manual there 2. Search Google for "MODEL# pdf". Wade through pages of pond scum search engine spam and paid sites for a half hour. Apparently, enough people search for manuals to make this profitable. 3. Do some web research to find similar product model numbers (maybe 8029A manual would cover 8029B too?) and repeat 1-2 above. 4. Start searching through forums and other hard-to-index parts of the web. 5. Check torrent sites? (now I'm getting desperate!) It's crazy how tough it can be to find a user manual. In many cases, I end up finding one scanned by another end-user and posted online to be helpful. It's also a shame that 1/2 the comments here are about copyright. I can't see how taking a site like this down would in any way benefit a manufacturer whose manual is available. Unless the manufacturer is trying to make money selling their user manual, in which case to hell with that shitty company.

maaaats 9y ago
I feel like I experience your point 2 more and more often last years. I cannot fathom how Google serve so much spam for a lot of searches lately.
standan 9y ago
To go one step further, we had created the site https://www.allthingsmine.com https://www.allthingsmine.com and the ios/android app which basically auto looks up the manual in online manual sites. In addition, it points to youtube videos for the product, provides specs if the product is available in our database. Also users can also store their purchase receipts, price etc and get notified of price changes and view the trend if the product is sold by retailers such as Amazon, BestBuy, Walmart etc. Will point to manualslib.com if it is comprehensive.
- y4mi 9y ago
  you should improve the UX if manuals is the focus of your app it sounded interesting so i downloaded it. there was a prompt to add items to a wishlist after starting it... i was only able to monitor the price of the added item afterwards. there was no mention about any user feedback, youtube videos or manuals anywhere i could find after a cursory look.

xbryanx 9y ago

What a phenomenal resource. I'm really surprised at how comprehensive and fast it is. Anyone know how they support something like this? There's got to be a bit of cost associated with the hosting and processing. Are they selling a commercial version of their software platform?

skrebbel 9y ago

Just out of curiosity, does anyone know where they source their manuals? The "about" page describes them as developers, not hardcore collectors or warezy types. I mean, most sites like this are about sharing, but this one just provides content freely and that's it. I couldn't find an "upload" button. Great for us though, but I'm still curious :-)

pyre 9y ago
> I couldn't find an "upload" button. There's an upload button on the top right of the page for me. Clicking it asks me to login / signup. It's not exactly hidden.
deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
cjhanks 9y ago
Quite a bit of it looks scraped. I searched for a manual I have been after for a while and found the same PDF (which I found on google) which appears to be a manual but isn't.

devrandomguy 9y ago

The manuals have a big watermark right through the center of each page, which isn't even translucent; it completely obscures the content behind it. See https://www.manualslib.com/manual/464698/Honda-Civic.html?page=33 https://www.manualslib.com/manual/464698/Honda-Civic.html?pa... for a random example, where the watermark completely obscures the model number of the Honda Civic's automatic transmission. Is there some way to pay to remove the watermark? Is that how this works, these manuals are effectively just free previews?

cdash 9y ago
I just downloaded the pdf for free and there was no watermark. Looks like this only exists in the web preview.
- alacombe 9y ago
  there is still a watermark at the bottom left corner of the downloaded content, so they do modify the original documents. Not good.
  - rhizome 9y ago
    Does it block content?
    - dabber 9y ago
      I downloaded two. One had no watermark at all the other has the manualslib URL on the bottom left not blocking any content.
      - rhizome 9y ago
        That seems reasonable.
stronglikedan 9y ago
The magnifying glass in the upper right bypasses the watermark.

gesman 9y ago

ManualsLib watermark plastered over every page is distracting - however I understand the purpose. PDF rendering looks crippled from quick check on some pages. Otherwise - looks like promising repository.

pawanpe 9y ago

good job!

arjie 9y ago

I love you. You are a good person. A wonderful person. This is a problem I've had for ages when buying old hardware. Thank you, thank you, and thank you.

zmix 9y ago

I just checked, whether I can find a service manual for my SONY BDVN-7100WB, but only user guides, nothing for technicians. :-(

peterburkimsher 9y ago

I can see some in French and Spanish. Is there a way to sort by language? I think this would be a good data source of bilingual text for my Chinese translator app.

deleted 9y ago

[deleted]

armstrong 9y ago

It's perfect!

armstrong 9y ago

https://manualsbrain.com/ https://manualsbrain.com/ looks better. What do you think guys?