If you do not like reading manuals (who does?) but wish to give Recoll a try, just install the application and start the recoll graphical user interface (GUI), which will ask permission to index your home directory by default, allowing you to search immediately after indexing completes.
Do not do this if your home directory contains a huge number of documents and you do not want to wait or are very short on disk space. In this case, you may first want to customize the configuration to restrict the indexed area (for the very impatient with a completed package install, from the recoll GUI: → , then adjust the Top directories section).
Also be aware that you may need to install the appropriate supporting applications for document types that need them (for example antiword for Microsoft Word files).
