Training with White Star Software
We have been in the computer training business since 1979 — even before Progress was a gleam in anyone's eye. Progress is now several languages in one — procedural 4GL, SQL, event driven, GUI, object-oriented, Web Enabling, SOA, messaging, XML Parser, .net interactive...
Consequently, we have designed our training materials based on our experience of what works best: a case study approach to programming, a modularity of our course materials, frequent, practical reinforcement of what has been presented, and an ongoing conversation about what is relevant and important for the class to learn.
Tailoring the Class to Your Needs
First and foremost, we work with you before the class data to make sure the curriculum fits your needs. Since the Progress environment is so big, we spend time with you identifying what your specific requirements are. Do you want more emphasis on importing data, reports, customizing an existing application, GUI programming, Smart Objects? We have a menu list of topics we send you to select from. Whatever your objectives, we determine the best mix of course topics ahead of time, and prepare and print our course notes specifically for you.
Click on the link below to download a PDF of our current "off the shelf" classes. There are currently over 20 of these and we are constantly adding new material to our repertoire, so if you don't see what you are looking for, please ask. It's probably already in the pipeline or we can develop new material to suit your requirements. Remember too that we can take material from multiple courses and combine it to make your very own course that exactly fits your needs.
Follow up
We have found too, that after a course completes, many customers benefit from follow-up mentoring sessions which reinforce the material and help developers or administrators put into practice the lessons learned. We want you to get the best value possible out of your hard-pressed training budget and additional "mentoring days" are a truly cost effective way of achieving this.
We prefer to have each student fill out a short questionnaire about two weeks prior to the class, in which they talk about their experience set as well as their objectives for the class. That way, we know what to anticipate when we arrive in the classroom, and the student has given some thought to what they want to get out of the sessions.
In addition, we encourage the students to bring to the classroom examples of issues or problems that they need to resolve. We can make the examples used in the class be very pertinent to the environment, and show the students how to approach a specific set of tasks using Progress.
Working with Your Data
If possible, we will work with your database. If it is MFG/PRO, MXP, Symix or Fiserv, we have class materials based on these environments. If it is another system, or your own structure, we will still be able to build our class around your data structures, if you want.
Our case study approach is based on the simple premise that programmers solve problems, and while the theories of how things work are important for a conceptual overview, people learn best what they need to know most. We cover programming from a programmer's perspective: how to write maintenance applications, reports, data entry screens, menus. Rather than presenting the programming environment in pieces, we start with a complete application as our objective, and build that application during the training session.
Learning an application environment is a lot like putting a puzzle together. There are a lot of pieces, but you have to know what the 'big picture' looks like before you start. In our opinion, most training is about arranging the pieces face up on the table and letting you figure out how to put them together. We start with what the picture looks like, and every piece we present fits into this picture.
Code Samples and Labs
Programmers learn a lot by looking at functional code and figuring out "how did they do that?" Not only do we give you the picture to start with, we help you build it, so the architectural principles of a good application are built in to our examples. We design our course materials so that they are a reference manual for the 'week after'. It pleases us most to hear that a student has been able to go back to their terminal and begin to construct their own applications using the knowledge, and more importantly, the tools we've left them.
One of the principles of learning theory is that of reinforcement. In vernacular, otherwise known as "use it or lose it". We feel that if students do a simple set of exercises frequently, what has been presented will be reinforced. In addition, the labs serve as reference material when the students need to solve the problem after the class is over. The examples are designed to be relevant and insightful: simple ways to reinforce and integrate what the student has been working with.
Never Overlook The Basics
When it comes to "modern Progress" (V9 /OE10), we feel it's a little too easy to get involved in events, attributes and methods, links, containers and pages, and lose sight of the important issues: how to deal with transactions, application modality, writing solid, reusable code, and the understanding of the key principles and benefits of the object-oriented approach Progress provides (whether or not you are using smart objects.) We're applications developers, too, and we feel like we've gotten beyond the surface of the new programming paradigm. We can show you the steps in building robust, reusable code objects, and how to get them to interact.
In more advanced sessions we teach such things as how to isolate performance problems and various ways to debug code. We teach principles too, such as different kinds of reusability, and object-oriented concepts like building object classes, encapsulation, and inheritance using the technology you already know. But we always come from the point of view of day-to-day problems which programmers have to solve.
We Pay Attention to You
Our theory about course modularity is that the students themselves know what they need to learn, and we try to provide just that. We ask our prospective class members to send us a summary of what they know and what they need to learn. At a higher level, we often ask the director or manager to give us their perspective on current projects and future directions. We can then select and assemble the materials in our course books based on this input. The course materials for each class we can be customized for that particular class.
In addition, during the class itself, we make sure that each student takes the time to verbally explain what they want to learn during the session, and we write down these goals. From time to time, we will digress from the prepared course materials in order to pursue a point that comes up during the class. Our students have obtained some of the greatest insights from these spontaneous coding and problem-solving sessions.
Value for Money
We are fully aware how hard it can be to stretch your hard come by training budget to allow for all your training needs. Whether you need training for one person or an entire development staff, we can deliver standard or customized material at your location, in your timescales and at rates which reflect our low overheads. Call us for a quote. You might be pleasantly surprised.
