The Middleware Company, provider of enterprise Java training and consulting, today announced that they are offering a free Phillips TiVO machine (valued at hundreds of dollars) for developers registering for the popular EJB for Architects training courses by April 30, 2002. EJB For Architects is the place to learn as what's new in EJB 2.0, design patterns, best practices, and how to build large-scale EJB systems.

Visit: http://www.middleware-company.com/tivo.html


Press Release
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AUSTIN, Texas--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 20, 2002--The Middleware Company, the leading provider of enterprise Java training and consulting, today announced a special promotion for Java developers: Register by April 30, 2002 for any of our famous EJB for Architects training courses, and get a FREE Phillips TiVO machine (valued at hundreds of dollars)!

    "At The Middleware Company, we love TiVO," said Ed Roman, CEO of The Middleware Company. "Many of our employees cannot be without it at this point. It's a whole new paradigm shift for people to watch TV. With TiVO, you never watch advertisements again. There is always something good on TV, so there's no more channel surfing. It frees up your schedule so that you are no longer a slave to the showtimes of your favorite TV shows, since TiVO records them. We are so excited about this that we want to make this available to our students as well as a reward for completing an intense and advanced 1-week training class."

    EJB for Architects is an experience not to be missed. Developers will learn as what's new in EJB 2.0, design patterns, best practices, and how to build large-scale EJB systems. Developers take it to increase their value as a developer in today's economy, or to become a better Enterprise Java programmer, so that they can succeed on an upcoming project.

    Availability is very limited and seats are going fast! This Offer expires April 30, 2002.

    If you are a developer interested in this class, or if you know others who would benefit from it, please visit our Web site at: http://www.middleware-company.com/tivo.html

    About The Middleware Company

    The Middleware Company specializes in advanced enterprise Java technology training and consulting. Founded in 1998 to assist corporations migrating to the Java platform to improve the success of e-Commerce projects, it helps among the world's largest organizations including BEA, Oracle, Borland/Inprise, Cisco, Nextel, MetLife, Sterling Commerce, Standard & Poors, and many others to reduce risks and sustain cost-efficiency by building proficiency in a Java expertise. Instructors are expert architects with deep development experience and strong server-side skills, as well as notable thought leaders in the field. Services include on-site training in Java, EJB, J2EE, and XML-based Web Services, architecture consulting, and open enrollment courses held worldwide. Courseware licensing is also available. The Middleware Company also built and maintains TheServerSide.com, the leading online J2EE community.

<quote>
    "At The Middleware Company, we love TiVO," said Ed Roman, CEO of The Middleware Company. "Many of our employees cannot be without it at this point. It's a whole new paradigm shift for people to watch TV
</quote>

Floyd, this is not April 1st yet :-)

--
Cedric
(I actually love TiVo myself but I can't help finding this announcement very funny)

April 1st, 2002 - For immediate release! Philips to offer a free "EJB for Architects" training course (valued at thousands of dollars) to every buyer of a Tivo box! "Whoever said EJB would never get mainstream was a fool", declared Ed Roman, CEO of The MiddleWare Company. "Thanks to this proactive leverage of synergies in an increasingly competitive business landscape, mankind shall be led into a whole new paradigm for attending trainings".

:-)

A.

Any plans to roll out this course in Bangalore. Gifts or no gifts, I am sure it would be a sell out.

Thanks
Venkat

We don't have plans right now to enter into Bangladore.. mostly for financial reasons. How much do you think people would pay for a course there? Also how would we get the word out?

Ed,
   It always boils down to Money....doesn't it? Well, I am not sure what could it be. For eg., Sun charges approx Rs 16000/= (ie., Approx 300+USD) for their basic course in Java. And it is 20,000 Indian Rupees (Approx 400 USD) for J2EE course.

Conversion Rate 1USD = Approx 50 indian rupees.

Hope it helps. I am not much of a financial guy to predict what it shld be.

Anyway.... I do hope that you can make it sometimes in the near future.

Good luck./

Thanks for the input. We are going to do a survey very soon and find out where people want these courses held, and we'll make sure that Bangladore is in there.

-Ed

Hi, Ed:

I am living in Toronto, and I'd like to register for this course. But it seems not possible for me to take the scheduled April session in Toronto. My question is: Do you have another session scheduled for Toronto in the next half of the year? If any, please tell me when and where.

Thanks a million!

Tommy Li
tommy.li@cantire.com

We don't currently have another Toronto course scheduled to my knowledge.

If you know others who are interested in taking a course in your area then we can create a course in your area.

Is it real? I did regidtered the class already

This is absolutely real.

If you already registered for an upcoming EJB for Architects class, you will get a free TiVO.

If you haven't registered already, if you do so by April 30, we will give you a free TiVO.

Note that many of the courses are happening *before* April 30, so please be sure to check the calendar at http://www.middleware-company.com/advanced.shtml

-Ed

That is so cool. But I took the class late last year. So what about students who attended the class then. Maybe the offerings need to be expanded.....

Vivek

The architects in our company would love to take this course, but when are you going to have something in Dallas? Too bad.

Maybe I didn't get the message, but should this really be a reason for attending the course. I attended the one in Washington and the course is great.

But trying to lure people giving them a TiVo is a bad approach. I can imagine, that a lot of people will go to their boss saying they need the course, because of the free gift, that certainly will be theirs and not the companies one.

Nice marketing move, but in my opinion the course is not in need of such a sham...don't damage your good reputation!

Mirko

Mirko

We ran this course last year and gave away free GPS devices. The results were that the students got a cool gadget that they enjoyed, and they also learned something.

The course filled up better as a result of this, which means fewer cancelled classes. This means less frustration on the students who can only take the course on a certain date.

So our historical evidence disagrees... people like free things. It is a sweetener to take the course, in addition to the high-value that the course provides.

This way, the company gets a better-trained employee who can help projects succeed, and the developer gets a fun gadget as a reward for his hard effots. I think it is a win-win and not a sham.

Does the offer include the lifetime Tivo service?

No, we cover the cost of the machine. Any subscription fees are the financial responsibility of the student.

I'm extremely interested in this course, and I'm trying to drum up enough support to get one offered in Omaha, NE. Is this course as good as it looks on paper?

It's very difficult to find a truly "advanced" J2EE course. Most trainers tend to think just explaining the API for EJBs and JMS is advanced, but I want a lot more than that. I want in-depth discussion of real-life design issues. I want to learn things each day that I wouldn't be able to get myself by reading a book or browsing online documentation. I want an instructor who is truly an expert in his/her own right, not someone who flounders when the really tough questions come up.

Can anyone who has taken this particular course speak to how well it will meet my expectations?

- Dan

Hi Dan,

I took the course this year in Washington. Dion Almaer was the trainer and he was really great.

It was in depth EJB and J2EE knowledge. The course covered advanced patterns and new technologies like JDO and WebServices. Also great were the topics about open source projects like XDoclet, Middlegen, Struts and Castor. You see that the Middleware Company has real project know how and gives back there knowledge as "best practises" to us...thank you for that Ed.

I attended a lot of courses about Java and J2EE and this was the best one of it all...and this with a big distance. I really wasn't sure to attend the course because I am from Germany and 3000$ bucks plus the flight is a lot...even now because the dollar is so strong!

So my advise take the course it was worth every penny.

The only thing I was a little bit disppointed about was, that we didn't get a Mastering EJB or/and the Pattern book...for me this would've been better than this Philips stuff. Anyway, TAKE THE COURSE!

Mirko

Hey Dan,

Glad to see that someone else from Omaha, NE is interested in this class too. I'm planning to attend the one in Las Vegas (whenever I get the approval) since I know they're not coming to Omaha :-(. I actually picked this class after doing much research and figured it would be more valuable than going to conferences this year.
I share you're pain of not having advanced design classes here in Omaha, I actually teach many j2ee classes but they don't cover advanced design issues since they focus on learning specifc technolgies.
It's good to know there are other EJB Archeticts in the Big O! Let me know if you plan to attend the Las Vegas one. My email is sally at prioritytech dot com

Regards,

Sally

I am sure we would be glad to come to Omaha. We have taught in Nebraska before. If you think there are a few people who would want to take the class then someone will come there. I myself am just next door in Colorado :)

Send an email to sales@middleware-company.com

<insert cheesy CO/NE joke>

Colorado and Nebraska should merge. Then Nebraska would have some mountains, and Colorado would have a college football team

</insert>

Actually, Sally, I spoke to Eduardo at the Middleware Company today. I think there is a pretty good chance that they will bring the course here. We just need to find about 6 people who can commit to the same date. After that, they are willing to set it up and advertise in the area to fill out the class.

We can continue the rest of this discussion by email. I can be reached at dholmes at fnni dot com.

- Dan