April 29

Computer Training Around Town
Sun Review April 29, 2000

The world of computers can be confusing at the best of times. If you are spending more time trying to figure out how to work your computer rather than getting work done, you may want to consider taking a course or two. For hardy self-disciplined souls, a self-paced online tutorial might do the trick. The rest of us may discover that attending a computer course is one of the best investments we've ever made.

OUC Continuing Education offers scheduled courses and certificate programs, and customized training for larger groups or businesses. Their latest course offerings will be published in mid-August. If you want to apply to a certificate program, be sure to fill out your free application as soon as possible to ensure your seat. OUC takes applications year-round, and there is also a wish list for any courses you'd like to see offered in the future. Call the Continuing Education office at 503-2650 for more information.

Community Futures Development Corporation also offers computer training. Throughout May you can attend classes in Computer Basics, the Internet, and Microsoft Word & Excel. Look for special Seniors courses in Keyboarding and the Internet during the summer, and in the fall, budding accountants can crunch the numbers with Simply Accounting, AccPac and QuickBooks. Call Sharon at 545-2215 for more information.

CTAC (Career Tech Achievement Centre) celebrated their anniversary in style this Friday with the opening of their brand new High Tech Lab. Not only can CTAC assist you in career planning and job searches, but you can also get access to computers to develop your resume or upgrade your computer skills - all free of charge. CTAC has four different computer labs and offers workshops such as Computer Basics and Internet Job Search. You can call ahead to book independent computer time or simply drop in. CTAC is located at 3107 29^th Avenue and is open from 9am-4pm Mon-Thurs, and 10am-4pm on Fridays. Phone 542-5748 for more information.

For youth ages 13-29, the best bet is Connections Career Centre, located at 3309 31^st Ave. Connections offers self-paced tutorial-style online training and testing in PowerPoint, Access and other programs, and is open from 9-5pm every day (except Wednesday - 10:30am-5pm)

Our local Internet Service Provider, Okanagan Internet Junction, is offering free Internet training to all their customers. Call 549-1036 for more information. The Vernon PC Users Club meets every 2nd and 4th Tuesdays at Seaton Secondary school at 7:30pm.

And remember, a course makes a great gift for Mother's Day (and Father's Day too!)

Update on last week's story: the Kodak DC215 Millenium camera featured last week is available at Dr. Electronics for only $525.