Which tool to choose
For usage instructions of a program almost any AI assistant works, but two details change the quality of the answer.
- If the program is widespread (a spreadsheet, a browser, a well-known text editor), describing it in words is enough: the AI knows the menus and guides you.
- If the program is niche, corporate or very recent, the AI might not know it well. There the screenshot is almost mandatory: the AI reads the buttons it sees and doesn't have to guess them.
For someone who isn't experienced the winning combination is always the same: describe the goal in words, and attach the image of the screen where you stopped. The words say what you want, the image says where you are.
How to do it
On Windows or Mac the method is the same, only how you take the screenshot changes.
- State in one sentence what you want to achieve: "I want to save this document as PDF", "I want to clear the history", not "I can't use it".
- Tell the AI the program and your system: "I use [program name] on Windows" or "on Mac". The same program has different menus on the two systems.
- If you're stuck on a screen, take a screenshot. On Windows with the Snipping Tool or the Print Screen key; on Mac with the keyboard combination for the screen capture. Upload it to the AI.
- Ask for numbered instructions calibrated to your level. The operating syntax:
I'm not computer-savvy. I use [name of the program] on [Windows or Mac].
I want to [what you want to achieve]. Give me the step-by-step instructions,
numbered, telling me at each step where to click and what I'll see next.
If I get a step wrong, tell me how I'll notice.
- If you uploaded the screenshot, add: "this is the screen I'm on now, tell me what to click from here".
- Check: follow the steps one at a time. If at some point you can't find the button the AI mentions, stop there, take a new screenshot of that moment and send it back: "I'm at step 3 but I don't see the button you mention, here's my screen".
A concrete example
Antonio has to send a client a document from his management software as a PDF, but the program is little known and there's no "Save as PDF" option where he expects it. He takes a screenshot of the menu bar and uploads it asking how to get a PDF from that screen.
The AI looks at the image and answers him: in that management software the PDF is obtained from the Print menu, choosing as the printer "Microsoft Print to PDF" instead of a real printer. It writes him the three steps: open Print, in the printers dropdown choose the one that says PDF, click Print and choose where to save the file. Antonio follows, gets the PDF, sends it. He would never have looked for the PDF inside the Print menu.
When it does NOT work (and how to fix it)
If the AI tells you to click a button that doesn't exist
It means it's guessing the program instead of knowing it, or your version is different. Send a screenshot of the real screen right away: "the button you mention isn't there, this is my real screen, tell me what you see and where to go". The image brings it back to the menus you actually have, not the ones it imagines.
If the instructions are for a different operating system than yours
It happens if you didn't say whether you're on Windows or Mac. The menus, the names and the shortcuts change. Repeat the question specifying your system: "I have a Mac, rewrite the steps for Mac". It's the detail the AI forgets most often if you don't reiterate it.
If the program is corporate or custom-made
The AI doesn't know it and can't invent its menus. Here the screenshot isn't an option but the only way: the AI reasons only on what it sees in the image. If even that isn't enough, ask it to explain the general concept to you ("in almost all management software the invoicing is under a menu called this") so you know where to look by hand.
If you follow the steps but the result is different from expected
Stop and describe what actually happened: "I did the three steps but this window appeared instead of the save". Attach the screenshot of the unexpected result. Correcting a path halfway is quicker than starting over.
A tip from someone who actually uses it
Always ask the AI to tell you, at each step, what you should see after clicking. The difference between "click Save" and "click Save: a window will open asking where to put the file" is enormous for someone who isn't experienced. That "what I'll see next" is the safety net: if you don't see what the AI predicted, you immediately know you took the wrong path and you don't go on blindly.
Frequently asked questions
Can I also have the keyboard shortcuts explained?
Yes, and for someone who often uses the same program it's the fastest way to speed up. Ask "give me the five most useful keyboard shortcuts of [program] on [Windows or Mac], with what they do". Specifying the system is important: the key combinations are different between Windows and Mac.
Are the AI's instructions up to date with the latest version of the program?
Not always. Programs change the menus with every update and the AI may know an earlier version. That's why the screenshot is the guarantee: with the image of your real screen, the AI guides you on the version you actually have, not the one it remembers.
Can I ask the AI to create a manual to give to my colleagues?
Yes, and it's one of the most practical uses in the office. You describe the complete procedure to it and ask "turn it into a numbered, clear manual that I can give to a new colleague, with a title for each section". Always reread the result comparing it with the real program before distributing it: the AI might have simplified a step.
Isn't it faster to look for a video tutorial on the internet?
Sometimes yes, but the video has a limit the AI doesn't have: it doesn't answer your questions. The video shows the right path in the abstract; when you get stuck halfway nobody helps you. The AI instead looks at your stuck screen and tells you what to do from right there. The video is a lesson, the AI is an assistant by your side: for real problems the second wins.