DVD/CD training...anyone else go this route?
 

I just got my set of ClassOnDemand's Vegas 4.0 tutorial DVDs yesterday. I must say "Spotted Eagle" is a darn good teacher....a very important aspect in any video training series. I can remember paying top dollar for MCSE training at a local college and getting a bore of a teacher!
Anyway I just wanted to see if anyone else here has gone through the training DVDs offered by Class On Demand and how proficient they were after completing them.

I've long been a fan of Lynda.com training CDs...it's helped me in my Photoshop, After Effects, and Flash skills. The only downside about the DVDs is the resolution. The screens tend to look a bit blurry, though thats compared to the Lynda cds which were done via a screen capture on a Macintosh...which yeilds very sharp vivid resolution. I'm looking forward to finishing DVD 1 tonight and tinkering around in Vegas with my newfound newb knowledge. :)

I have gone through DVD #1. DSE presented the information well. I didn't agree 100% with his setting choices but that is the reason why they are settings - he can set his up to suit him, I can set mine up to suit me.

What settings in particular did you not agree with? Were they key settings that adjusted the workflow in a big way?

They are just user preference. For example,

I want my space bar to start playing and then stop where the cursor currently is - NOT go back to where it started. I check that option - he doesn't.

I don't like showing the clip name in the thumbnails.

I don't normally use scene detect. I specify in advanced capture the sections of tape I want captured.

I've seen lots of people have problems that were solved by turning off the "minimum clip length". Besides, I often shoot clips I WANT that are that short.

I also do not set the "maximum clip length". If I did, it would have to be higher as I use 83 minute tapes.

These are the biggest ones that stand out in my mind I would have to review the tape again to be more specific. It's just a matter of workflow. Pick the settings YOU like - not the ones DSE likes and not the ones I like.

I've used Lynda.com training CD's as well. I do enjoy them. The After Effects CD is helpful too with tons of information. Though Bruce Heavin speaks SOOOO slow on the the DVD's and he repeats himself constantly which gets quite annoying after awhile. The 8 hour DVD's could have been trimmed to 4 hours if he spoke normally.

Yeah Bruce does have a funny voice- kinda like that teacher from South Park, "Mmmm'Kay class...Mmm' KAY." lol
I own all of Lynda.com's Photoshop cds, Learning Flash MX (trilogy), Animation Principals, Illustrator 9, and Learning After Effects. All are very good titles and the resolution on the CDs is very crisp and easy to read- unlike Class On Demands DVDs. I can't even watch the Vegas Class On Demand DVDs on my computer because the image is sooo blury. Looks better on the television. The only other thing I think it lacks it the addition of project media that he works with to follow along- though you could use your own. Other than that I'm quite happy with Class on Demand's product. I stopped ordering from Lynda.com when the last batch of CDs I ordered were home burnt CD-Rs with crappy paper stick on lables. Very unprofessional. They could at least print the CDs if they are charging 150$ a cd!

Yea it seems that lynda.com is going a bit downhill in that regard. They also cut out a lot of their classes recently as well. I wonder if they're having financial troubles. That's too bad.

I went out to Ojai California two years ago to take a Flash Intermediate course at Lynda.com with Shane Rebenschield. I met Lynda and everyone else and they are all great people. I learned so much from that class and I was eager to take the After Effects class but they cut it out.

I have the photoshop cd as well and I just couldn't get through it because Bruce got on my nerves after about 2 hours.