Sony A6000 -- knobs (dials)

The one on the back has a button in the middle and acts like 4 different buttons if you press on the top/bottom/left/right. But you can spin it also for various reasons.

On top you have the ever present "mode dial". I much prefer a mode button (like the Canon 1D bodies have) as it is not something that I change all that often, but we need to use what we have. Here are the modes:

P - what I use most, let the camera do what it thinks is best.
A, S, M - what "real photographers" use
MR - memory recall, something you can save and invoke
Movie
Sweep Panorama
SCN - scene selection (for morons)
i Green - intelligent auto
i Gold - superior auto

Then there is that mysterious dial that is unlabeled at the right side of the camera. I never use it. What could it be for, what can it do??
Sony calls this the "adjustment wheel". In S or A mode it sets the shutter or aperture. In manual mode (M) this adjusts shutter speed.

You read all kind of confusing nonsense about how to use M (manual mode). It is actually simple and well designed. You use the mystery knob at the top right of the camera to control shutter speed. You spin the dial on the back of the camera to control shutter speed.

I'll note another bit of excellent design. When in S or A mode, you can use either the mystery dial or the dial on the back of the camera to set the shutter speed or aperture. In those modes they both do the same thing.

Sometimes you learn more by experimenting with your camera than by reading manuals or poorly written online articles.

Exposure in Manual Mode

If you have picked a specific ISO, you get a thing that works like a meter. In the EVF, you get a scale along with a little arrow that shows the "meter" reading (just like an old school film SLR if you ever used one).

Note that you can set a desired shutter and aperture, then roll through various ISO settings to find one that gives the desired exposure. Of course you could just as well set auto ISO and let the camera do this, unless you want the control of deliberate under or over exposure.

There is also a mode called "MM" i.e. metered manual. It couples shutter and aperture, so you can change either one, and the other changes to maintain the proper exposure. If you want deliberate under or over exposure, you have to use exposure compensation. It is a mystery how to get into or out of this mode.