This is an interesting concept! Education classes can be rather expensive and if the course doesn’t fit your needs, the price is even higher. Now you can try a class for free to see if it gets into the depth that you need or at the pace that you need. Experience the benefits of instructor-led online (ILO) and self-paced training with our no-charge class samples and trials. These popular no-travel training formats offer the same rich content and labs as our classroom courses. Check them out: Personal Tidbit: Yesterday I spent the afternoon at the IBM IOD Virtual Conference and virtually attended several sessions. I like the fact that I can sit at my desk with my computer and headphones and take in the content from amazing speakers. If you haven’t tried it yet, try one of these classes and see how useful they are. You may prefer this type of education to any other once you give it a try. Susan
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 Can you think of a better way to learn? Whenever, wherever, at your own pace or with peers... without traveling. Now with three different options, you can really find the perfect way to keep your skills at the top level! Self-paced
virtual courses (SPVC) are online courses that include the same quality
course content, exercises and hands-on labs as our classroom courses.
These courses can be taken any time of day or night allowing students
to study when and where they want. Start your training by watching a
recorded instructor. When ready, log into the lab environment to
complete your hands-on lab assignments working with IBM software.
Self-paced virtual courses are the perfect training method for students
who can't travel or prefer the flexibility of self-paced training. Featured courses:
Online
courses allow you to learn at your own pace and on your schedule with
training that is completely self-contained from your desktop. Most
courses provide introductory and overview training that serves as the
foundation for more technical and follow-on training. Courses include
expert instruction but do not include hands-on labs. NOTE: All of these courses are less than $500!
Featured courses:
Instructor
led online (ILO) courses are taught by a live instructor with whom you
can interact and ask questions using Voice Over IP (VOIP). Courses are
taught on a specific day and time, some of which may even be scheduled
after business hours to minimize time away from work. Most courses are
exactly the same as their classroom equivalent, including the course
duration, content, hands-on labs and student materials.
Just about every course listed above has a book that can be used to supplement your learning or as a reference after you've finished the course. See our Information Management Bookstore for a list of the current and upcoming books.Susan   
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Have you tried taking an ILO (instructor-led online) training class yet? With travel budgets disappearing, but the need for training never ending, learning from your home or office makes perfect sense. What do you get with ILO?You'll get the high-quality content and personal interaction that you expect from a classroom course with the convenience and cost-savings of online training with instructor-led online training (ILO). With speakers, microphone or headset, you join a virtual classroom where you interact with the instructor and fellow students as if you're in a traditional class setting. Now is the best time to experience the live instruction, hands-on labs and exciting group dynamics when you enroll in an ILO class. If you want to see how this works, view a demo and enroll today.Keep on learning! Susan
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I just came across this whitepaper The Value of Training and I think this should become required reading for anyone making financial decisions for a company. Unfortunately it is too common and too easy to cut skills development and training budgets in the hopes of improving gross margins. But, as this whitepaper points out quite effectively, this short-sightedness will cause higher attrition, higher support costs, and the risk of falling behind in technological advances. But if money's tight, what can you do? - The IBM Education Pack helps you save money on a variety of training options, and until March 3, the discounts are higher than normal.
- IBM developerWorks, PlanetDB2.com, and ChannelDB2.com are filled with training ideas that are free or less expensive. These include articles, tutorials, videos, podcasts, webcasts, free e-books, virtual conferences, and so on.
- Books continue to be a very low cost way to build skills. Check online bookstores to find the best price for printed books, but also consider e-books. IBM has a company-wide subscription to the online book engine Books 24x7. What a great way to ensure that all employees have access to a wide variety of the latest published books.
- ILO classes can cut down on training costs by allowing employees to call into a classroom setting rather than having them travel to a class. ILO classes may be less expensive, but they still provide the high quality content and instructors that you expect from an IBM training class.
- Certification is another thing that should never be ignored. Going through the certification process, an employee will learn many new things and they will have proof at the end that they are skilled in that area. Also since certifications are job-role based, you can ensure that you or your employee are targeting the skills that are needed for your job. There are many training options for gaining the skills to get certified including classes, books, and tutorials. Best of all is that there is a "Assess and Save" promotion going on right now that allows you to save 50% of the exam fee.
Bottom line... don't sacrifice training budgets in these tough times. Keeping your employees skilled will help you weather the storms. Susan[ Read More]
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Yesterday I mentioned the first-ever Information Management Virtual Event that begins Feb 25th: "Data in Action - Solutions for an Efficient Environment". Today I will give you a listing of all the "green" options that are available to you. - First... audio books. I've been asked to look into recommending some audio books that we can showcase at conference bookstores this year. I'm sure your first reaction is "not for a technical book"... and I would agree with you. But we can all benefit from a good business book or two. Most of us have ipods or something similar that we can use to listen to these audio books. I've selected 4 titles that I thought would be good to try at the conference:
Let me know what you think... and if you have others to suggest. You can download just about anything from this site: audible.com. The titles listed above were found on amazon.com. - On the same lines are podcasts. For starters, I would suggest that you take a look at the collection listed on channeldb2.com: podcasts, but also check out DB2 Chat with the Lab, Author podcasts, and IDUG podcasts.
- If you would prefer to read, there are many books that can be read electronically. All IBM Employees have a subscription to the electronic books found on Books 24x7. You can get to this site via employee home pages. I've found that many schools are going this route as well, so if you are in school, see if they offer you a subscription to Books 24x7. All IBM Press books are on this site as are books from many publishers.
Safari Books Online is another electronic book engine. Again, all IBM Press books are here as are Pearson Education and O'Reilly titles. If you are looking for a personal subscription, the prices for Safari are pretty reasonable... and if you're lucky you can find a free trial to Safari Online. - If you prefer smaller pieces of information, then developerWorks is for you. developerWorks has an amazing amount of content for you to read / learn electronically and for free. You'll find articles, tutorials, and more.
- Classroom education has also become "green". I've quite often mentioned ILO courses before, but if you need a reminder, ILO = Instructor Led Online Training. This kind of training fits into modern life so perfectly. With the world focusing on "green" options, is there anything more green than attending a class to upgrade your skills while staying at home? With the financial pressures that the world is currently under, everyone needs to do their part to reduce costs, but keeping skills up to date remains CRITICAL. ILO provides the same excellent transfer of skills that you've come to expect in classroom training, but it eliminates the most expensive part of taking a class: traveling.
ILO also keeps getting better. This time with new scheduling options:
* ILO Select provides targeted information in a packed lecture of three hours or less, at a much lower price than full training courses.
* ILO Flex Time offerings enable you to experience the full scope of ILO from anywhere in the world over several days so that you can balance both work and education.
These two new ILO options give you the ability to enhance your skills when and where it is convenient for you.
And lastly, more ILO classes are being added all the time. See the list of featured classes below, but make sure you check the ILO website to keep current on the latest courses that are available.
Enjoy being green :) Susan[ Read More]
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One of my favourite topics to blog about is ILO = Instructor Led Online Training. Why? I think largely because I believe that this kind of training fits into modern life so perfectly. With the world focusing on "green" options, is there anything more green than attending a class to upgrade your skills while staying at home? With the financial pressures that the world is currently under, everyone needs to do their part to reduce costs, but keeping skills up to date remains CRITICAL. ILO provides the same excellent transfer of skills that you've come to expect in classroom training, but it eliminates the most expensive part of taking a class: traveling. ILO also keeps getting better. This time with new scheduling options: * ILO Select provides targeted information in a packed lecture of three hours or less, at a much lower price than full training courses. * ILO Flex Time offerings enable you to experience the full scope of ILO from anywhere in the world over several days so that you can balance both work and education. These two new ILO options give you the ability to enhance your skills when and where it is convenient for you. And lastly, more ILO classes are being added all the time. See the list of featured classes below, but make sure you check the ILO website to keep current on the latest courses that are available. Featured Courses * 3E060 - (FREE) Basics of the Data Studio Environment- ILO Select * 3N120 - SQL Workshop - ILO Flex Time * 3N610 - Advanced DB2 SAP for Administrators - ILO Flex Time * 3S490 - HADR High Availability Disaster Recovery Implementation - ILO Select * 3S410 - Introduction to Data Sharing - ILO Select * 3S301 - Managing Informix DS Using the SQL Admin API and Scheduler - ILO Select * 3L242 - DB2 9 for LUW Multiple Partition DBA Workshop - Classic ILO * 3E120 - SQL Workshop - Classic ILO * 3L201 - DB2 9 Database Administration Workshop for Linux - Classic ILO * 3L211 - DB2 9 Database Administration Workshop for UNIX - Classic ILO * 3L231 - DB2 9 Database Administration Workshop for Windows - Classic ILO Susan[ Read More]
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Check out this new ILO course: Managing IDS Using the SQL Admin API and Scheduler ILO course (3S301)In this course, learn about the features of the Informix SQL Administration Application Programming Interface (API). Learn how to write SQL statements to perform a variety of system administration tasks, and will see different ways in which the Administration API can be used. Also learn about the Informix Dynamic Server (IDS) Scheduler and how to create tasks to be performed at regular times or intervals. You will also learn how to create sensors to gather system information into tables over time. Examples will be presented on how tasks and sensors can be used.View this course in other countries Note: This is an Instructor Led On Line course. Please do not make travel arrangements for this course. Your system should have a microphone and speakers for interfacing with the instructor and other students. After you receive confirmation that you are enrolled, you will be sent further instructions to access audio, video and remote labs. This course is eligible for the IBM Education Advantage Program. Audience This is an intermediate course for Informix Dynamic Server System and Database Administrators. PrerequisitesYou should have: IBM Informix Dynamic Server System Administration (IX810) or (IX811), or 6 months experience with IDS system administration. Skills taught * Distinguish between the task and admin functions * Write SQL commands to perform administration tasks * Create and schedule administrative tasks * Create and schedule sensors to collect system information * Analyze the information collected by sensors Course Outline: I. The sysadmin Database II. SQL Administration API * API functions: admin and task * Admin API commands and options * Administration command examples * ONMODE examples * Admin API scenarios III. Built-in Database Scheduler * Creating and scheduling a task * Task examples * Creating and scheduling a sensor * Built-in sensors * Sensor examples * Task and sensor scenarios Details:Course code: 3S301 Skill level: IntermediateDuration: 0.5 days Delivery type: ClassroomCourse type: Public only Public price: USD $199.00 plus tax Make sure you check the course catalog regularly for new Instructor Led On Line courses as they launch. Susan[ Read More]
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Sherri Gladu from my team is the Program Manager for the e-learning courses and asked me to share this information with you. There are 5 new ILO courses recently added to the schedule that you may be interested in: 1) DB2 for Linux, UNIX and Windows Quickstart for Experienced Relational DBAs Sept 23-26 or Nov 5-8Learn how to perform, basic and advanced, database administrative tasks using DB2 9 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows. For details and to enroll: On the Instructor-Led Online Training page, go to the Course Catalog and search for 3L481G. Recommended books: If you are interested in this course, you should also consider owning one or more of these books: * DB2 9 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows: DBA Guide, Reference, and Exam Prep, 6th Edition* DB2 9 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows Advanced Database Administration Certification Study Guide2) DB2 for LUW Performance Tuning and Monitoring WorkshopSept 23-26 or Dec 2-5Learn how to tune for optimum performance the IBM DB2 9 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows relational database management system and associated applications written for this environment. For details and to enroll: On the Instructor-Led Online Training page, go to the Course Catalog and search for 3L41G. Recommended books: If you are interested in this course, you should also consider owning one or more of these books: * DB2 9 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows: DBA Guide, Reference, and Exam Prep, 6th Edition* DB2 9 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows Advanced Database Administration Certification Study Guide 3) DB2 9.5 for Linux, UNIX and Windows Transition from DB2 V8.2Sept 30 - Oct 3 or Dec 15-18This course is designed to provide you with technical information about the functions and features in two DB2 product updates, DB2 9.1 and DB2 9.5 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows as well as information on some product changes that became available in DB2 Version 8.2.2. For details and to enroll: On the Instructor-Led Online Training page, go to the Course Catalog and search for 3L310G. Recommended books: If you are interested in this course, you should also consider owning one or more of these books:* Understanding DB2(R): Learning Visually with Examples (2nd Edition)* Beginning DB2: From Novice to Professional (Expert's Voice) * DB2 9 New FeaturesChat with the Lab: Consider joining the webcast DB2 9.5 - Upgrade Benefits and Best Practices on Sept 19. 4) Using Omegamon XE for DB2 Performance Expert on z/OSOct 1-3This course teaches you how to effectively use Omegamon to monitor DB2 performance, and to identify, isolate and resolve performance bottlenecks. For details and to enroll: On the Instructor-Led Online Training page, go to the Course Catalog and search for 3B640G. 5) DB2 9.5 for Linux, UNIX and Windows Transition from DB2 9Oct 2-3 or Dec 17-18Get the technical information about the new functions and features available in DB2 9.5 for Linux, UNIX, and Windows for current DB2 9.1 database systems. For details and to enroll: On the Instructor-Led Online Training page, go to the Course Catalog and search for 3L311G. Recommended books: If you are interested in this course, you should also consider owning one or more of these books: * Understanding DB2(R): Learning Visually with Examples (2nd Edition)* Beginning DB2: From Novice to Professional (Expert's Voice) Chat with the Lab: Consider joining the webcast DB2 9.5 - Upgrade Benefits and Best Practices on Sept 19. Remember... If you work for IBM and want to take one of these courses, you must register via the internal learning site. I hope you enjoy this information. Thanks again to Sherri for helping me pull all this together! Susan[ Read More]
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Now that "back to school" season is upon us once again, here are some back to school options for you as a professional. And ... you don't need to leave your desk or spend an entire day... or read a huge book. And best of all... no money required. The first is the 3E060 Basics of the Data Studio Environment - Instructor Led Online The list price for this is $199, but we will be offering it for a "limited time" at NO CHARGE. If you sign up and then don't show.... there will be a charge.It is a two hour lecture on the basics of the Data Studio Environment. It is offered at different times to allow different GEOs to take advantage of this lecture. Dates for delivery:* Tuesday, August 26 (9am to 11am EST)* Tuesday, Sept 23 (6pm to 8 pm EST)* Tuesday, Oct 21 (1pm to 3pm EST)* Tuesday Nov 18 (9am to 11am EST) Course code for AP = 3E060/PRKUCourse code for EMEA = 3E060/PRKT The second on is the 3N120 SQL Workshop - Multi Week Instructor Led OnlineAgain, the list price for this is $199, but we will be offering it for a "limited time" at NO CHARGE. If you sign up and then don't show.... there will be a charge.This class is exactly the same as the 3E120 SQL Workshop; however it is offered in 4 one hour segments spread out over multiple weeks. The focus on this class is to get those students who were not able to attend a full day of classroom or online training, but maybe able to make room in their schedule for part of the day or their evening hours. This is our pilot for this kind of schedule. We will schedule more of these in the future based on feedback. Dates for delivery:* Tuesday September 16 (6pm to 10pm EST)* Thursday September 18 (6pm to 10pm EST)* Tuesday September 23 (6pm to 10pm EST)* Thursday September 25 (6pm to 10pm EST) * Tuesday September 30 (12pm to 4pm EST) * Thursday October 2 (12pm to 4pm EST) * Tuesday October 7 (12pm to 4pm EST) * Thursday October 9 (12pm to 4pm EST) Course code for AP = 3N120/PQXZ Course code for EMEA = 3N120/PQYA Sign up and show up!Susan Thanks to Sherri Gladu and Bob Bernard for this information. [ Read More]
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I recently invested in good headphones... and I'm glad I did. I've already used them for an ILO course, listened to the many podcasts, watched the new IBM commercials on YouTube, watched the videos on ChannelDB2, and will likely find many more purposes. IBM's list of ILO courses is growing steadily. My recommendation... Make sure that you fully test your headphones and mic BEFORE the session. You'll have a much more productive ILO session if you do. Kate blogged about the many podcasts that are available right now, and today the IBM Press newsletter featured many more. Podcasts are available from the following people: Danny Arnold, Dwaine Snow, Sandy Carter, Larry Klosterboer, Sara J. Moulton Reger, Raul F. Chong, Paul Zikopoulos, John Arthur Ricketts, Mike Moran, Tara Woodman, Ellice Uffer, and Scott Spangler. I've been trying to mention as many of the IBM commercials as I can... here is the latest... . this one is called "When it Rains". IDUG also has a growing list of courses and podcasts that you may find helpful. ChannelDB2 contains a broad spectrum of resources including videocasts, podcasts, and more. If you would like to contribute your unique view on the DB2 products, film or record yourself and add the result to ChannelDB2. Enjoy listening! Susan[ Read More]
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Here is what our instructors are saying about ILO: Instructor-Led Online courses truly offer a global learning opportunity. Having the option to take a course on your own terms, in the location of your choice, while still being able to experience live interaction with an instructor is highly beneficial for our global customers."- Joan Dunn, IBM certified instructor, U2 "When you look at Instructor-Led Online, it comes down to one thing: convenience. For the student on the go, online access to a real-time instructor means savings in time and money."- John Zucchero, IBM certified instructor, Informix "Live instructor interaction, high-quality course content, hands-on labs, with flexibility, no travel expenses and real-time skills building with peers… it’s almost a question of why wouldn’t you take an Instructor-Led Online course."- Melanie Stopfer, IBM certified instructor, DB2 The promotions we were running with the user groups were very popular. At last check, there was still room for the IIUG promotion, but one for IDUG members was full. Click the links to be sure. IDUG: Two special online lecture topics will be offered: SQL procedural language February 26, 2008 & DB2 for LUW Advanced Monitoring March 18, 2008. These offerings have been created for IDUG members only! IIUG:This special session will be offered on February 19, 2008 from 11:00am - 12:30pm Eastern and will be taught by Mike Lowe. Also new... a podcast that provides details on this type of education. For me personally, the last two courses that I signed up to take, there ended up being a major snowstorm on the same day. I managed to make it into the classes, but now I wish they had been ILO classes so I didn't have to risk my life by driving in. Susan[ Read More]
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ILO, ILO, ILO.... ILO everywhere! Have you noticed all the hype about this new learning method? Yesterday in a call with our VP going over the results of 2007, it was mentioned that there was a 120% increase in this type of education. And the feedback has be extremely positive. I know that sometimes it is very nice to go away for education so that you can completely focus on the material away from the usual distractions of your job. But how many of us are able to "be away" for any period of time these days? I like to promote self-study education through books... but know full well that not everyone is able to sit and read a book to learn what they need. We all have our preferred method of learning. Classroom education is a great way to be interactive with the instructor and to be driven with a purpose through the material that you need to absorb to learn the new skill. With ILO (Instructor Led Online) Learning, you get the best of all.... live instruction, hands-on labs and group interaction with the convenience and cost savings of online and self-study training. How does it work? ILO courses are taught by a live instructor on a specific date and time. These courses are exactly the same as their classroom equivalent, including the course length, content and student materials. Students receive their course materials in advance by mail. To participate on the day of the class, all you need is a high-speed Internet connection. This allows you to connect to a virtual classroom enabling you to interact directly with the instructor to ask questions or clarify material...just as you would in a physical classroom. Now that you know what ILO is... and hopefully you're interested in giving it a try.... answer the IDUG Instapoll about this topic. You never know, it may be the start of a whole new way of building your skills. Susan [ Read More]
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This one asks: Are you interested in taking instructor-led online training? I've mentioned ILO a few times, so let's see if you can recall! You can find the poll on the bottom left hand side of the IDUG home page. Be sure to vote for this one and the db2 mag poll.... Susan[ Read More]
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