Model-Glue Training In DC Recap

Published By: Doug Hughes on Feb 8, 2008 at 10:40 AM

Times Viewed: 1088

Categories: Alagad

Today is my first day back in the office after four intense days of teaching my Enterprise Model-Glue with ColdFusion class in Arlington, Virginia. This was the first time I gave the class in front of a general audience, but not the first time I’ve given the class. Overall, I was pleased with how it went and I think the participants were too.

The group of attendees had a wide range of experience, expectations, and intentions. For example, there were a few people who already used Model-Glue but wanted some formal instruction. There were others who used other frameworks already, or none at all. A couple of people were there more to learn how to support the frameworks in various capacities rather than learning how to implement them. Most people had at least some level of understanding of what we went over coming in.

The title of the course was Enterprise ColdFusion with Model-Glue. I obviously provided training on Model-Glue. But, most of the attendees were surprised by how much focus was given to other topics such as the usage of CFCs, Object Oriented Programming, Design Patterns, unit testing, ColdSpring, Reactor and much, much, more. Why all this focus on things other than Model-Glue? Well, that’s really what makes up the “Enterprise” in Enterprise ColdFusion.

The hardest lesson taught was that Model-Glue is not only fairly simple; it’s also a very small part of the picture. Focusing on Model-Glue does not, by itself, do much for you. Where a developer needs to focus is on their application’s model. This is, after all, where the magic really happens. By building a cohesive and well-encapsulated model you will ease the maintenance of your application over time. In turn, you save money and lower total cost of ownership.

The feedback I received was overwhelmingly positive and I can't wait to do it again.

By the way, if you’re in a corporation, I’m happy to come on-site to provide your team with training. Just send us a message and we’ll get the ball rolling.

In your expert opinion, where should I hold the next general audience class?