Usable texts should be extremely clear and functional. The present article focuses on instructions as a genre. Using French braid instructions as an example, the author presents how the form and layout of a text influence its usability. To this end an experiment was conducted on a sample of 32 individuals. The subjects received four versions of the same instructions — in the form of continuous text, in the form of continuous text with fragments in bold type, bullet point instructions and bullet point instructions with illustrations. The objective was to compare various forms of instructions (a form of text often used in everyday life, the clarity of which should consequently be as high as possible) in order to test their usability.