Okay...will give it a shot...I actually have the Olympus C740..so the models should be pretty close...yours is just the newer one I'm guessing.
I agree with all of your comments...manual book? Ha! It's a joke! There are so many blasted settings and configurations that I still haven't figured them out and I've owned mine since December 2002...I'm thinking if I push the right combination of buttons I'll find a kitchen sink...lol
I have a bad time with the "shake thing", but for fireworks and night parades I have found success when I use the night setting...the one with the crescent moon and star...have the flash on...camera decides to use it or not...and a mini tripod (about 7 inches and the legs are flexible...cost about $10 -$15, purchased at a local camera shop). Granted, every shot isn't great, but I have enough memory cards that using the maximum best settings I get about 300 shots on a 256mb card. For daytime shots, I use the auto setting and let the camera do it's thing with good results or the setting that looks like a runner on the dial...can't remember what it's really called, but it's for fast motion. The tripod helps in most cases as long as it's set up on a well balanced surface and you use a steady hand to press the button to take the shot...not quick and jerky motion.
What I did for the fireworks shots last Christmas was...found an open spot between Casey's and Crystal Palace were the wrought iron fence is kinda clear facing the castle. I attached the tripod and flexed the legs so they wrapped around the top of the wrought iron fence and I held it tight with my left hand...quite steady. Then I used my right hand to snap the shots. Because I have several memory cards (total capacity is about 700 shots) I just kept shooting and got some pretty good ones.
Here is one I shot of the Holiday Wishes in December...
And here are a few from our recent DL trip...Genie from the Aladdin show taken from the nose bleed section (hand held so a bit fuzzy)
Electric Parade (sat the tripod on a garbage can)
a shot of DCA's park taken from the Paradise Pier section (camera balanced on railing around the lake)
I don't know if this will help...hope so...but I think the best advice is to just practice...take as many shots as you can and then see what you have. I typically take 600 shots on a week long trip and only about 200 are saved. Because I don't take a laptop with me I wait till I get home and load them onto my computer and decide which to keep. I don't know if there might be a community college or similar, but ours offers a continuing education course on digital photography. If not even taking a film photography class can help because the basics are the same...just need to have a film camera for the class.
Best wishes for some great shots with your camera! (It took me a few years to really start liking mine.)