The introductory text in the Handbook of the International Phonetic Association. A Guide to the Use of the International Phonetic Alphabet is an instruction manual, not an authoritative textbook in phonetics/phonology. That does not, however, exempt it from an obligation to be explicit and unambiguous. In that respect, the account of the distinction between phonetic and phonemic representations leaves something to be desired. Another issue is the ambiguous attitude to force of articulation (fortis and lenis) in obstruent consonants. Finally, the Handbook should be consistent in the notation of diphthongs and affricates.