Learning from User Groups

If you're looking for a variety ofeducation and training opportunities, consider joining your local Windows NTuser group. User groups are a great way to learn about NT and associatedhardware and software. Volunteers who work with NT daily usually run themeetings, which provide you with an informal way to meet and swap notes withother NT users in your area. Because users with various levels of experience andknowledge attend, user groups are useful for the novice and expert.

Although these groups don't provide formal education, you can hear fromvendors of NT products and services and learn about the latest developments inthe growing NT domain. Each group provides a variety of activities to helpeducate its members. Activities vary depending on the members' needs; check withyour local user group for a calendar of events.

Activities
User group activities let you learn about new software features andfunctions and plan for future software and hardware implementation. For example,22 NT user groups in the US and Canada participated in the NT 4.0 Preview Tourin early 1996. Microsoft sent copies of NT Workstation 4.0 beta software toattendees.

Some user groups work with a local Microsoft office, and sales engineersattend meetings to demonstrate products and answer questions. Other vendors cometo show prototypes or beta editions of new products, demonstrate new versions ofproducts, and solicit user group members' comments. This interaction benefitsboth the user group members and the vendors.

A popular segment at many user group meetings is the openquestion-and-answer time. Members can ask about NT's features or configurations,dates for upcoming software releases, or related applications. In response, youget input from other group members. Questions range from very basic to verytechnical.

Support for Training
Many user groups also provide members with training. Often, a user group canconnect you with other members studying to become Microsoft certified or withlocal training companies that offer Microsoft certification classes. Forexample, the Rocky Mountain Windows NT User Group has chapters in Denver andColorado Springs, Colorado. Meeting topics have included Windows NT Domains,Trusts, and Groups; NTFS File Security; and Windows NT Server Users and Domains.Microsoft is offering incentives for members in the Rocky Mountain region totake and pass the Microsoft certification exams. So some members of these usergroups are looking into forming a study group to help prepare for these exams.

Local authorized training companies sometimes host user group meetings attheir facilities and provide a sample of what their courses teach. User groupsoften arrange discounts for their members with these training companies, eitheron a standing basis or as a one-time offer.

Dr. Roy L. Beasley, vice president for certification for the AdvancedSystems User Group (ASUG) in Washington, DC, is working on a cooperative programbetween ASUG and Howard University. In October 1994, ASUG suggested that theDistance Learning Lab (DLL), a component of Howard University's ContinuingEducation Program, organize a self-study group for local computer professionalsinterested in becoming MCSEs. For the next 18 months, the group met for two tothree hours a week to study the Microsoft Press NT Workstation and NTServer self-study guides and the Windows NT Resource Kit.

Microsoft recently recognized Howard University's continuing educationprogram as an AATP. Accordingly, the DLL is reorganizing the study group'sweekly sessions into official Microsoft courses. Group members who are MCSEs orMCPs will teach these sessions. The user group charges a modest $100 tuition forthe next two sessions: NT Workstation and TCP/IP. These courseswill meet once each week for 10 weeks.

User groups offer many advantages for very little cost to members. Somegroups have low annual dues, and some have none. In either case, user groups area wonderful training resource. To find a user group near you, check the usergroups listing on page 78 or check the Windows NT Magazine Webpage at http://www.winntmag.com.