[OSGeo-Discuss] Training and certification

[Daniel Ames]

I tend to agree with Cameron on this one. There is already the GISci
certification process that we don't want to compete with. Plus which
particular tools from the OSGeo stack would one be required to be proficient
in to be "OSGeo Certified". I think that if a particular project wanted to
create a certification program - perhaps with help from OSGeo - that would
make more sense. One could become "certified in GRASS". But to say you are
"OSGeo Certified" would be hard to quantify/explain.

On Fri, Jun 10, 2011 at 1:08 AM, Cameron Shorter
<cameron.shorter at gmail.com>wrote:

> On 10/06/2011 4:07 PM, Paolo Cavallini wrote:
>
>> Il 09/06/2011 21:38, Tyler Mitchell ha scritto:
>>
>>  Anyone else thinking about this or want to weigh-in on what their
>>> thoughts were?
>>>
>> If this competes with the activities the professionals and enterprises are
>> currently
>> offering, -1. We want OSGeo to support our work, not to compete with it.
>> This would
>> have a number of negative consequences, IMHO.
>> All the best.
>>
>
> Like Paolo, I'm very nervous about OSGeo taking on a training role for the
> same reasons.
> Providing good training is a difficult business, which is provided by many
> of the OSGeo businesses who back OSGeo. If OSGeo starts to act as a business
> by providing such training, then OSGeo will start competing against its'
> core supporters. This has the potential to fracture the very strong OSGeo
> community, which is a bad thing.
>
> And while in principle, the idea of OSGeo providing a trusted, unbiased
> training certification program, I think a very quick review of the business
> case behind it will make it unfavourable. Either the training program will
> be of low quality and low credibility, or it will attach such high cost to
> courses that the courses will be harder to sell.
>
> Creating certification takes a lot of work, which needs to be resourced. I
> might be wrong, but I can't see volunteers stepping forward to build a
> certification program, at least not in the immediate future. Maybe some
> Governments might step up (as has been done for certifying OGC standards),
> but I expect governments will have better things to spend money on. The
> other group who could write a certification program are training
> organisations themselves. But I don't think these training organisations are
> likely to make much extra money with a certification in place. And I don't
> think trainees are likely prepared to pay an extra 30% for their course in
> order to see a "certification" stamp. (And that 30% is just to pay for
> certification development, before OSGeo makes a profit).
>
> I'd like to be proven wrong, but I don't think we are ready for OSGeo
> certification, and I think it is bad business for OSGeo to compete with
> OSGeo companies by providing training directly.
>
> --
> Cameron Shorter
> Geospatial Solutions Manager
> Tel: +61 (0)2 8570 5050
> Mob: +61 (0)419 142 254
>
> Think Globally, Fix Locally
> Geospatial Solutions enhanced with Open Standards and Open Source
> http://www.lisasoft.com
>
>
> _______________________________________________
> Discuss mailing list
> Discuss at lists.osgeo.org
> http://lists.osgeo.org/mailman/listinfo/discuss
>



-- 
Daniel P. Ames, Ph.D. PE
Associate Professor, Geosciences
Idaho State University - Idaho Falls
dan.ames at isu.edu
geology.isu.edu
www.mapwindow.org

*************************************************************************
See you at MapWindow 2011: www.mapwindow.org/conference/2011
*************************************************************************
-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://lists.osgeo.org/pipermail/discuss/attachments/20110610/020b4ff6/attachment-0002.html>