The basic Stage One system can operate as a standard, hand-pushed slider for smooth video shooting. The included friction knobs can be adjusted add/reduce friction to make it easier to make smooth starts and stops when pushing the camera by hand. In general we've found that using light-to-no friction for manual moves works best.
If you have a belt/motor installed it's best to remove the belt from the system before hand use.
To use the Stage One as a manual slider, first attach your preferred camera mounting solution, such as a ballhead, to the cart using the provided 3/8-16 bolt. After having mounted the cart to the slider, now mount your camera and adjust the position to the desired framing. Adjust the friction to the desired level by tightening the friction brake knob on each side of the cart equally. Note that the friction brakes will not completely stop the cart from moving under load.
Where is the friction brake knob?
Nope, I had another look, there's no sign of these 'included friction knobs'.