Secondary air filter--composition?

According to the check list in my owner's manual, both the primary and secondary air filters are to be replaced at one year or sooner if you have to clean the primary a lot. So I went by the dealer's to pick up one of each, and the gal who does the parts says "practically no one changes the secondary" and there have been OTT threads discussing the pro's and cons of not changing the secondary. So I didn't buy the secondary this time.

However I was interested to read in the WSM that it said Do not touch the secondary element except in cases where replacement is required. Well it is not possible to get the primary off and on again without the primary touching the sides of the secondary due to the hood being in the way of a straight on access.. Do you think there is something about the secondary that would lead to it not functioning properly if the sides have been touched? It is blue instead of white like the primary.

An example of something like that is projector bulbs and microscope light bulbs that burn out faster and don't give an even illumination of you get fingerprints on them.

Or is this another case where something got lost in the translation?

Thanks guys, Bulldog's interpretation about not messing up the seal on the secondary (unless you have a nice new one there to replace it) makes sense to me.

On my tractor the angle is such that you have a little wrestling match to get the primary out. It has some notches in the foam sealing surface, but a flashlight inspection of the space where it sits did not reveal any differences, so I could see no preferred orientation in replacing it. There seemed to be some pressure on it from the cover to help make a seal. If the foam surfaces are important in making a seal, then that would be a good reason why they recommend replacing the primary after 6 cleanings or 1 year whichever comes first. That foam stuff might not last too long even if the filter itself is ok.

There isn't a turbo on my engine, but if there is one, does it take air from after the secondary filter, and if so, does it need a stronger filter because of increased pressure? Sorry if this is a stupid question, I don't have a clear idea of how turbos work on these new engines.