Unfortunately, HMI Advanced my be the single worst piece of software ever written in the history of mankind (with ProTool being #2).
I can give you some hints that will make your life a little easier. You can open the mmc.ini file with any text editor and set the display size larger (this helps on laptops that use something like 1920x1200). Also, it helps to use a dual monitor setup during development so the application and its corresponding blizzard of icons on the task bar can me moved out of the way (I heard that this may have been fixed in the latest version though).
Also, dig around in the various menus and take notes of where everything is when you accidently stumble onto things that you may need later. Of particular importance are the com settings- they can be set either in the mmc.ini file, or within the mmc screen.
If you go to the Siemens web site, you will find some pdfs that are helpful. But, the best way is to sit down with it and start exploring. It will take a while, but you'll get the hang of it.
