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1. Turn on machine: large switch, right side of cabinet
2. Confirm blower is running: ducting will obviously be moving air
3. Turn on computer: if it isn't already
4. Wait ~10s before opening Lightburn: a background process needs to configure the laser first
5. Open Lightburn, wait for homing cycle: the machine will automatically “home” itself i.e. confirm the position of each axis by driving motors to reach endstop sensors

1. Pick a coordinate system: you probably want to use absolute coordinates. See the official docs
2. Cut selected graphics (or not): sometimes it's helpful to enable “cut selected graphics” in Lightburn, sometimes not. Best to double check if it's enabled before a surprise either way.
3. Focus laser to workpiece: use the move tab in Lightburn with the plastic focusing puck or macros from the console tab to jog to the right height for common material thicknesses
4. Test power/speed: Pick some starting values by cutting a material test pattern or referencing one from the laser material library
5. Align design to workpiece: make sure everything fits as expected in x/y axes using Lightburn's frame button

1. Send it: Run your job in Lightburn
2. Don't go far!: You need to keep an eye on the laser during the entire job. When lasers catch things on fire, they tend to do so quickly.

1. Wait ~5 minutes: Make sure the chiller has had time to cool down the tube, and the blower has fully evacuated any remaining fumes
2. Turn off machine: large switch, right side of cabinet

• If Lightburn switches to the console tab and displays red error text in the console output, probably GRBL (the controller's firmware) has thrown an alarm. There is a macro called “Reset” on the console tab that will reset the alarm and re-home the machine.