What should a laser operator keep in mind when making adjustments to the laser settings?

Laser settings in general are always a compromise of productivity (speed) and quality. Take a scientific approach to tuning laser settings and only adjust one setting at a time, and then evaluate the result. Adjusting multiple settings at one time can counteract each other and lengthen the settings tuning process. Keep a log of settings with notes on the results so you can easily see trends in the results and finetune settings.

   —Coherent