#97 - To Train or not to Train

Many of you read in my August Newsletter that this will be the last year of my doing training in the PCSS Training Center. The reason being the move to Vista outdating all my training center PCs. I thought I might elaborate here on my thought process and the technology that drove the decision.

I have 5 PCs of various ages that I use in my classes. Some of the PCs were upgraded from Windows 98 without much issue. Some were purchased new for the Training Center, but only about 1 per year. By acquiring the computers over time I was able to put together a nice training center that met the needs of my customers. They all have Windows XP Pro and the complete set of Office 2003 programs. They are tied in by Ethernet to my network so they have Internet access. I also have an HP printer/scanner/copier that I use in most in the classes.

So that's where I am. The introduction of Windows Vista and Office 2007 raises the bar on what equipment I have to have to teach. To run Vista properly you must have 1GB of memory (2GB is much better), high end graphics and a fairly big hard drive. None of the 5 PCs meet that criteria or can even be upgraded to that very easily. Then comes the issue of what flavor of Windows Vista would I put on the PCs. I get licencing for 10 copies of Windows Vista Business version (also Office 2007)as part of my Microsoft Partnership. There are 3 other versions of Vista flying around out there. Then I thought about would my existing printer/scanner/copier work with Vista? As of today the answer is no. Still waiting on HP to come up with a Vista Driver for it.

By my own estimates (and remember I get the dealer discount!) I would have to invest well over $4000.00 to be where I need to be to have the Center up to new standards. I would also have to invest a lot of time and sweat in setting the systems up. Now when you consider I charge $74 per class and there are about $20 per class in materials, you can see it would take several years to pay for this investment. Logic indicates this wouldn't be most prudent. So here I am willing to train at your site come the fall of 2008. If you are interested in the last series of classes please let me know.