# CHAPTER 1: Getting Started

High productivity and the ability to obtain results quickly is almost always the main goal for most users. One way to increase productivity is to hasten the process of finding the necessary tools to be productive. The reader will find that manuals are valuable resources when working with a software product. It is clear that there is a need for meaningful and accurate documentation which presents the information in a useful and effective manner. Therefore, it is important that Empress users are able to refer to the correct Empress manual in a quick and effective manner.

In order to find appropriate information from various Empress documentations, this manual is provided to guide you through the Empress manual set and the accompanied documentations.

Empress distribution comes with a single CD-ROM for a platform. Once the CD-ROM is mounted, the first document that you are most likely to read is the install.htm file which is invoked automatically by the command `install.sh`. This install.htm provides detail installation instructions.

Once Empress is installed, the manuals can be viewed:

- for UNIX users:

  - Under URL:

           file:/Empress_installation_path/docs/index.htm

  - It can also be invoked through `empress` command.

- For Windows users, there will be an icon for the Empress Manual Set.