Old Dogs, New Tricks

[darthyoga]

We are getting some pretty spiffy upgrades and looking at new porgrams that will help our company stay in the forefront of design. Very exciting and I'm ecstatic that we are getting a chance to do this.
We have some old timers that know we need these new programs but complain endlessly about learning them. They are the ones who beat ACAD 2008 back into R12 functionality becuase its what they are used to. You get the picture.
How can I help these people to learn the new program so that they have some sort of functionality with it? Is there any way to get them excited enough to want to learn it?
If anyone has any experience out there, please help me. Any tips, tricks or bribes I can use to get them motivated would be good.
Thanks!

[robert.1.hall72202]

Good luck. Those who seem stuck in their ways of doing things, usually are.

Find the most useful feature that would make their job easier and teach it first.
It could help open up some eyes. Do not bore anyone with small potatoes.

I started off with some really useful lisp routines. Thre routines demonstrated that there is life beyond the daily tasks a cad drafter becomes comfortable doing.
You gotta break that eggshell!

[Capt. Computer Crasher]

We are getting some pretty spiffy upgrades and looking at new porgrams that will help our company stay in the forefront of design. Very exciting and I'm ecstatic that we are getting a chance to do this.
We have some old timers that know we need these new programs but complain endlessly about learning them. They are the ones who beat ACAD 2008 back into R12 functionality becuase its what they are used to. You get the picture.
How can I help these people to learn the new program so that they have some sort of functionality with it? Is there any way to get them excited enough to want to learn it?
If anyone has any experience out there, please help me. Any tips, tricks or bribes I can use to get them motivated would be good.
Thanks!

Speaking as someone who jumped from AutoCAD14 to AutoCAD2007& AutoCAD2008.
point out the all the new things that will save them time and effort.

Example:
1)Referencing a whole lot better
2) Table commands for creating real (close to Excel) tables that use formiulas, fields and links.
3) Data fields
4)Layout tabs

These are just a few things. Get them Excited about these and they will more willing to learn. Maybe.
Hope my advice helps. Good luck

[Railrose]

Start by looking to see what tools they use most, then show them ways to make the tools work better.

Oh yeah, free food always helps. ;)

[Mlabell]

Speaking from recent r12 upgrading to 2006, well now 2008 there are a few things that they will not grumble about for sure. Tool palettes, properties window, purge and audit (which could only be ran within the first 2-3 commands of starting a drawing session in r12) quick select (which seems so ridiculous to most of us, but remember when each of us used it for the 1st time? It seemed like the greatest command ever!!) The biggest thing is training, if you are getting the programs, spend the extra cash to get the training. It pays itself two fold in the long run. It will also clear their heads quicker of the stupid "I could do this faster in r12". But most of all good luck, because there will be lots of conquests and headaches on your part, but in the end it will have been fun.:mrgreen:

[robert.1.hall72202]

Start by looking to see what tools they use most, then show them ways to make the tools work better.

Oh yeah, free food always helps. ;)

Someone can buy me lunch :mrgreen:

[darthyoga]

It looks like free food and training will go a long way! Thanks for the input, I hope I can instill the same passion for it as I have, even if it has to comes in cookie form.
Thansk again, I feel better now!