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Intro to OOP for Mobile Device Computing

Oct 21st, 2011 by

As we approach the end of 2011, I thought I’d share some of our new programs with you and talk about changes we’ve made to existing popular programs going forward.    Today, I’m going to focus on Mobile Device Computing. 

Demand for mobile applications continues to grow at a pace where demand outstrips supply.  For many people looking for a career change or others already in the IT field but in non-programming positions, we developed a program to help adult learners (students) transition into the Mobile Device Computing field.

What began as a course based around the C language and Object Oriented Programming concepts has now evolved into an expanded program (number of hours) focusinig on Objective C language, OOP concepts and some hands-on experience with X-code.   For students interested in Android Application Development, we created a separate track to include Java modules instead of Objective C modules for students continuing on to the  iOS / iPhone Application Development program.  Together, these changes will provide a very strong foundational knowledge and targeted preparation for a successful entre to our Mobile Device Computing programs.   See our website for details!!

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“Digital Reinvention” – Advancing Your Career

Jan 27th, 2011 by

Jim Irvine - Program Manager

Over the past few years, I’ve had the opportunity and pleasure of meeting many students who have taken the initiative to “reinvent” themselves through our progams. In some cases, these students were faced with layoffs and now had the time and support to go back to school to acquire new skills or enhance existing ones. In other cases, students knew they needed to continue learning to keep their job skills relevent while remaining fully employed.

There have been a great number of truly talented, bright and motivated students that have come through our Adobe Web Design, Web Application Development, CMS Web Application Development, Mobile Device Computing (iPhone, Android), Project Management programs and others. We were recently contacted by Rachel Morgan of The New York Observer Magazine looking for some interesting stories about adult students going back to school to upgrade their job skills. I selected a few students and put together a brief personal biography of each student. The student that was ultimately selected spent a significant amount of time and effort in our programs acquiring a whole new set of job skills.

The article appeared in The Educated Observer – Winter 2011. The Educated Observer was a special insert to The New York Observer Magazine.

I’ve attached a copy here : The-Educated-Observer-Winter-2011[1] 6  - it’s a great article. I find it to be inspiring and hope you enjoy it too.  Congratulations to Mark!

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Posted in General, Mobile Device Computing, Web | No Comments »

Technology & Education for 2011

Jan 21st, 2011 by

Jim Irvine - Program Manager

Greetings and Happy New Year – albeit it a belated one as we approach the end of January already. Upon returning to work after our holiday break, we’ve been as busy as ever ramping up for our winter and spring programs.

One significant event I was keeping my eye on in early January was the CES (Consumer Electronics Show) held annually in Las Vegas. The CES is the time and place where vendors and manufacturers unveil their latest and greatest wares to the world and consumers get a peek at what‘s to come in the near future.

Apple has continued to push the technology envelop with great success. With a market capitalization of 300 + B (B for Billion) dollars and quarter after quarter revenue growth, you can be sure, there are many companies out there looking for their share of the “pie”.

First on that list is Google. With the development of the Android OS for their mobile platform, Google has been experiencing great success gaining market share in mobile device computing or the smart phone space.

Launched in April 2010, the iPad was, yet again, another game changing technology introduced by Apple. There were dozens of companies at the CES promoting their new tablets to compete with the iPad. Many of these companies have partnered with Google to license their tablet OS (Operating System) “Honeycomb”. We will continue to see tremendous entrepreneurial and business opportunities to support both application development and content development for mobile device computing and tablet based computing – iPhone, iPad, iAd, Android, Honeycomb and many of the tablets licensed to use the Honeycomb OS.

We’re offering very comprehensive programs to enable students to advance their job skills in each of these platforms. It’s an exciting time to get into the field. We’ll be adding a third technology platform soon – RIM’s (Research in Motion) Blackberry. Visit our website for more details and course outlines, schedules and pricing.

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Posted in Mobile Device Computing, Technical, Web | No Comments »

New Red Hat Certification changes

Nov 18th, 2010 by

As Red Hat prepares to release their next software enterprise version which is scheduled to become “GA” – Generally Available early 2011, they’ll be making some positive changes to their highly regarded certifications. 

The RHCT (Red Hat Certified Technician) will be replaced by the new RHCSA certification. (Red Hat Certified System Administrator – RHCSA)  Red Hat will be offering a certification with a title that is more aligned to usage in the marketplace and reflective of system administration skills. 

The competency model of RHCSA is quite similar to that of RHCT.  However, there are some Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE) competencies that will now become RHCSA and vice versa.  Anyone currently holding the RHCT (RHEL 5.0) certification will automatically obtain the RHCSA certification.  RHCT from earlier releases must update their certifications.

Until the release of Red Hat Enterprise Linux 6 (RHEL 6), a certification holder remained current for two major releases.  With the release of RHEL 6, a new three year calendar-based current window will be in effect for Red Hat Certified System Administrator (RHCSA) and Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE) certifications earned or re-certified on RHEL 6.

Pace University (Computer Learning Center) is the ONLY Red Hat Academy in the NY Metropolitan area, New York State and Connecticut.

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Mobile Device Computing – jobs

Nov 18th, 2010 by

Over the course of 2010, I had the pleasure and opportunity to host several NYC iPhone Meetups at our downtown campus.  What stands out in my mind most about these meetings, is the number of quality job opportunities available for iPhone developers.  Simply put, there are more jobs out there than there are candidates to fill them.  I left the last meetup feeling very inspired about the energy level and business activity going on in New York City. 

For those of you interested in “getting in the game”, I’m excited to provide the opportunity for you to acquire the skills in mobile device computing.   Currently, we offer programs in iPhone Application Development and Android Application Development.  We’re in the process now of adding a third program for the Blackberry platform.  I’m confident we’ll be offering one of the most complete and comprehensive mobile device computing programs in the metropolitan New York area or country for that matter !

And lastly, for many of us who lack programming experience, we’ve started a course for non-programmers to obtain the basic skills and foundational knowledge.  This course will provide the prerequisites to transition into one of the mobile device computing programs.  (Introduction to C Family and Object Oriented Programming)  Stay tuned !

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Defrag should be an essential part of computer maintenance

Jul 20th, 2010 by

Technical Support Specialist / Webmaster / CompTIA Instructor

Defragging, also known as Defragmentation and Defrag, should be an essential part of regular computer maintenance.   Briefly, it is the process of taking file fragments that are scattered across a computer’s hard drive and rejoining them together into contiguous blocks of data.  This process can speed up your computer and extend the life of your hard drive.  The reason files and programs are fragmented is because the hard drive is spinning at a high rate of speed as you install programs or copy data to it.  Average hard drive speeds are 5,400 RPM, 7,200 RPM, and 10,000 RPM.   

Approximate time it takes to Defrag:  the first run can take anywhere from a half hour up to a couple hours; however, the time to Defrag will significantly decrease if you Defrag regularly   

When to Defrag:  after you install or uninstall programs, and after you add or remove pictures/music to your computer   

What to do before Defragging:  empty your Internet history and cache, run “Disk Cleanup” utility, uninstall non-needed programs, and run “Chkdsk” (more blogs to come detailing these utilities)   

Frequency:  run Defrag every 1 to 2 months, or after you install or uninstall programs   

Click on the following links for instructions on how to Defrag on a Windows 7 or XP computer:   

Windows 7 – how to Defrag  

Windows XP – how to Defrag  

NOTE:  it is always prudent to backup your data before running maintenance on your computer.   

Ron

Posted in Technical | 6 Comments »

Welcome to our new blog!

Jul 8th, 2010 by

Welcome to PCLC’s new blog

Jim Irvine - Program Manager

Welcome to our new blog!  We’re excited to connect with our past, present and future students.   We invite you to follow us for useful and valuable information on the technologies and subjects that matter to you most.

Continuing education and professional development is our business.  We offer a variety of programs in technology, project management, business analysis, mobile device computing and many others.  Our instructors are creative, experienced and passionate about teaching others.  You will get to know many of them as they write about subjects you’re interested in.

We invite you to follow us regularly and look forward to your comments.

The subject areas we teach include:

And more to come !

To see our web site, go to http://pclc.pace.edu

Posted in General | 4 Comments »