Our tendency is to be like Jeff Noble’s handyman and ignore instructions altogether. But as Jeff can vouch–if you didn’t read the instructions you’re probably missing something. Still our tendency is to avoid them because they are usually confusing and lengthy.  The thing is, they can be pretty useful if they are presented in a way that isn’t overwhelming.

Contextual instructions are an interesting resolution. They are hidden when there is no need for them and when needed they appear in bit-sized pieces that are easy to stomach. They also seem to entice user to read them since they appear based on some action the user takes. Normally when I look at instructions I go into 3-year old “I don’t want to eat my vegetables” mode, but when you come across nicely handled instructions, like the examples below, it’s like a Flintstones vitamins — painless.

Example 1:

Example 2:

Example 3:

Many sites place certain menu items such as “Settings”, “Help” and “Sign Out” in the upper right hand corner of each page.