Research Your Device
Do some preliminary research on your device. Your goal here is two-fold:
First, you’ll want to learn a bit about your device so you know who might want to repair it. In other words, identify your audience.
Second, you’ll want to find a handful of trustworthy sources from which to gather reliable information about your device.
The internet is a great source of information, and it’s all at your fingertips. Here are some tips as you dive into your research:
Look for product pages on the manufacturer’s website. You can learn a lot from official service and support pages.
Do your best to find sources that contain unique information that is relevant to a technician or user who needs to repair the device.
Try to find sources that include troubleshooting information for the device.
Search forum-based web communities to clue you in to any recalls or widespread issues that affect your device.
Major retailers often feature product ratings and customer reviews that could be helpful here as well.
Reputable consumer product review sites such as CNET, DPReview, and GSMArena can also be potential information resources.
Finally, don’t forget to check good old Wikipedia, with its detailed articles on many long-lived or iconic products (like ThinkPad or Furby).
The information sources you find now will come in handy later in the project. Try to find at least three links—this would be the bare minimum. Of course, the longer your list of sources the better… as long as they are all reliable and trustworthy. So remember to favor source quality over quantity during your preliminary research.