C# WPF Training Course for Geeks

Question

I have recently considered going on a training course for WPF so I did a quick search and at the top of the list was this training course from Learning Tree.

It seemed like possibly what I wanted however when I looked at the price I nearly choked. £1700 for a 4 day course. As if that wasn't enough I was greeted with this tempting photo of "Participants programming with XAML"

So for £1700 I can share a 15" monitor with another "participant".

Basically what I want to know is, are there any courses out there for geeks by geeks? I would much rather pay some independent guy (or gal) £1700 for a day of their time than pay this generic glossy company. Is there perhaps a service for matching people up for this kind of learning?

I'm in London by the way.

Answer 1

A while ago I came across the website of an outfit called Iterative Training, who worked with IDesign.net to provide advanced training courses in WCF WPF and the like. The former don't seem to be around any more (hence no link), but the latter are and seem to still be doing those training courses - multi-day affairs in continental European capitals.

The reason this is relevant is because IDesign are made up of people such as Juval Lowy and Brian Noyes, who from their writings seem very much the kind of people who would provide actually advanced training courses.

I have no affiliation with them other than thinking their offerings sound good.

Answer 2

What you've got to ask yourself is "What can these people teach me that I can't learn by myself?"

Like most devs I've met, I'm self taught. I either learnt on-the-job or at home, just 'messing around'.

The self discovery of new concepts always seems to be more effective than being taught.

With the vast resources of the web at your fingertips I don't think paying to learn common, well documented practices like WPF is justified (unless you've got loads of spare cash, in which case why bother?).

The only time I'd consider going on one of these types of courses is if a) the skill was too specialised and obscure that the resources weren't available on the web, or b) someone else was paying.

Answer 3

totaltraining.com offers a lot of courses including expression blend which you'll likely use to design wpf or silverlight applications. They charge a 20 dollar/month fee I believe...? I've seen a few lessons and it's an excellent start! I just wish I had the time and energy to watch all lessons they have over there.

Answer 4

just try to take some advance courses at a local college or university. I am not sure about your area, but where I live this is very possible, though you couldn't do just WCF(not that specific), and its usually over a couple of months but its a lot cheaper

Answer 5

There are a number of WPF/Silverlight tutorials on the net that can get you up to speed with the technology. I don't know what your requirements are but if you are looking to get MCTS cerified in WPF Application development then we have a course at Firebrand Training that may be of potential interest to you. It's a 5 day course taught by instructors who have real world experience in WPF/Silverlight development. The course will help you prepare for the MCTS Exam 70-502.

In two weeks we'll be launching the .NET Framework 4.0 version of the course.

Hope this helps Jay