Remember the old adage “those that can-do, those that can’t teach”? Well, if that’s true there must be a lot of people out there that tried using computers and found that they couldn’t. These days even the local 7-11 is probably running a training seminar on the Lotus 123 in the back room. Computer training is the new “in thing” for the seminar presenting crowd to promote. Not a day goes by that I don’t get some slick advertisement in the mail about “The Last Word on dBASE III” or some other program. Most of these ads list the six cities these seminars will be presented in and on what days. The cities are always: New York, Atlanta, Houston, Los Angeles, Denver, and San Francisco.

The cost of the seminar is always at least five hundred but never over nine hundred and ninety-five dollars and it isn’t itemized until the last page; on the registration form; (and it isn’t in very large print either). I certainly wish I could command that kind of money for training about a software program that costs less than $300.00 at most discount stores. What I can’t figure out is who would pay that kind of money to attend these seminars. I certainly hope it isn’t some of our elected officials, but I have a sneaking feeling that’s who these seminars are aimed at.

Why Can?EUR??,,????'???t Johnny Use His CADD Program?

Where then are you supposed to turn when you realize that learning that new CADD program isn’t quite as easy as the salesman in the computer store made it sound? Fortunately there are several very good sources for training and most of them will not require that you sign up for financial aid The very first place to look for training is the store or consultant that sold you the computer and/or software originally. Most of these companies and professionals realize the need for good, down-to-earth training for their customers and a good percentage will offer some basic training as an added benefit for buying from them. This is one of the negotiable items you should ask about prior to plunking your greenbacks down on the counter. You should realize, however, that training is not the main reason these companies are in business and they generally are not equipped to do a large amount of in depth training to large numbers of people.

A Substitute Teacher May Be The Answer

Because of that fact, however, many computer sales operations have teamed up with a local consultant that they can steer you to. These professionals do training either full or part time, but don’t usually have an actual place of business that they utilize to do their training. Rather, they usually arrange to use a back room at the store and may be able to accommodate from 1 to 10 students at one time. The cost of this type of training can vary widely, and you should get a very good description of what you can expect prior to signing up.

Another good source of general training is your local Adult Education organization. This may be through the Community College, or other public educational system. These courses are given by local people that use the software or equipment in their daily professions. They may be taken by almost anyone in the community that wishes to learn more about the subject of the course whether it is computers or cake decorating. Although it is rare that Adult Education offers courses that would cover something as specific as CADD for landscape architecture, they do often offer beginning level computer introduction courses that would be ideal for someone just starting to learn about computers.

If you desire to get further into the general use of computers, sign up for an introductory class in computer programming at the Community College. These courses, in such great sounding subjects as: Turbo Pascal, Cobol, and Prolog, are taught to students that are planning to go on to four years institutions to major in Computer Science and to students who want to do some programming on a part time basis for work or fun.

Many times the Community College will also offer courses in CADD. This is especially true if the College has a vocational institute or program for drafting instruction. One drawback to this kind of training is that it is usually offered only in the evening. Also, unless your Community College is financially sound, the equipment and software available may not be state of the art.

How To Be A B.M.O.C. (Big Man On CADD)

For those who are close enough, enrollment in a couple of actual University courses is another option. This is a very good way of getting into the real meat of computers, but be forewarned that there may be a lot of theory and less actual “hands-on” experience with the machine. Some of the latest computer innovation in design and drafting has come from the University programs that are starting to stress computer use. The cost of taking an actual, for-credit course at a University can be substantial, so it would be wise to check out other options first.

When All Else Fails...

If you have gotten this far and still haven’t been able to get the kind of instruction on that Whiz Bang CADD program that you need, you might want to consider retaining the services of a professional trainer who specializes in that software package. In smaller urban, and rural areas, this may present a problem since those specialists are generally located in the larger metropolitan centers. You might, however, be able to contract with one to come and do an intensive course over a period of just a few days if you could guarantee several paying students.

Another way of gaining computer system expertise, that those of you in larger organizations might consider, is to hire it. If you want to begin to integrate computers into your practice and don’t want to slow yourself or your existing staff down to do so, why not hire a Landscape Architect with computer experience and let him or her drag you kicking and screaming into the Information Age?