Training New Panther Users...

[SuparShadow]

Hello everyone!

I'm sort of the tech-guy on my school's newspaper staff and we recently upgraded all of our computers (3 iMacs, 2 PCI PowerMac G4s, and 1 Dual 800 PowerMac G4) by installing RAM and updating to Panther.

We're currently running QuarkXpress 3.33 under Classic (OS 9.2.2) on Panther. We're hoping to make the switch to InDesign CS sometime in January so we can ditch OS 9 and move full-time to Panther.

Anyway, all six of our computers have just undergone fresh installs and so my partner and I are planning on training the people on staff (about 20 or so people, total) to use the computers and get more comfortable with OS X and how everything works.

Most of these people are very computer illiterate or come from an all-Windows background (or used Macs in like, 3rd grade, and had terrible results.)

Anyway, I was hoping somebody could give me some suggestions on how I should go about training everyone to use the Macs. I was hoping there was some sort of "Getting Started on 10.3" Quicktime movie or something they could use, but I can't find anything.

Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

 

[FuzzyBallz]

Training? What training? You don't need training for Mac OS. It's a point and click system. You do however have to setup 2 accounts on each system, Admin and User, and set the privilege on User to running program only. Computer illiterate people, and computer illiterate people who think they are not, tend to have a facination w/ installing crap and messing w/ system files when they are not suppose to. So, to save yourself some time from reinstalling systems due to user error, setup duo accts on all systems and you're set.

 

[Sunrunner]

There are quite a few good books out there that cover that topic, though not too many for panther yet. A search over at amazon.com should get you something good...

 

[snickelfritz]

Teach them as many keyboard shortcuts as possible.
By itself, this will improve productivity, even for experienced Mac users that are still tethered to the mouse.

Also, I have used a Java application called "Viewlet Builder" from Qarbon.com for constructing application tutorials.
It's very easy to use and ideal for your purposes. The Qarbon technical support is fantastic.

For example, you could build multiple Viewlets, each demonstrating a specific task or function of the target operating system, contrasted with the identical functions in another operating system, complete with little footnotes etc...

Unfortunately an OSX version is not out yet, but is apparently in the works.

 

[macstudent]

Quark 3.33, ouch