Maybe I'm misunderstanding here...
One method you put the desired cylinder at TDC and adjust intake and exhaust on that cylinder, the other method you put #1 at TDC and adjust the valves specified because those lifters are on the base circle of the cam.
The are the same as you said. It's probably quicker to do it in batches instead of one cyl at a time, perhaps that's part of the change? Time is money!
