Hi Matthew,

The textbook would have to be CAD platform independent. There are far too
many variations in CAD programs out there to address each one's unique
method of operation. (Actually there is a CAD specific committee that is
investigating CAD certification for specifically requested CAD programs that
want a IPC certification for their operators... I think it is still in
review as a potential area we can help designers with. I'm not sure what the
progress is on that activity at this time... but you are correct in
suggesting the CAD system part of a designer's training should not affect
the content of this book.)

Any good textbook that could be used in a classroom setting should have
reasonable chapter content and exercises and a chapter test at the end of
each section. I have put together a list of chapters that could be broken
out into subsections and perhaps we could get some assistance with content
and review as we go along. This is no small project, but it will be greatly
appreciated and useful for many years to come. I don't think we have all
agreed to take this project on yet as a group, but it is on the table for
discussion. I am afraid of actually how much information there is out there
and finding a reasonable focus for each subject that doesn't overwhelm the
reader but hits the main important points of the topic in sufficient breadth
to give the student good command of the subject... that seems to be the real
challenge.

Our IPC DC study guides for CID and CID+ are helpful in getting a framework
for content, however the format of the 3 day workshop doesn't lend itself to
the semester based classroom situation. I was thinking the best way to
approach this is to break it into separate progressive headings and give
them to different individuals or teams of individuals to work on and then
assemble them and refine them into the final text. What do you think?

Best regards,

Bill Brooks
PCB Design Engineer , C.I.D., C.I.I.
Tel: (760)597-1500 Ext 3772 Fax: (760)597-1510
http://pcbwizards.com


-----Original Message-----
From: Matthew Lamkin [mailto:[log in to unmask]]
Sent: Thursday, September 30, 2004 1:33 AM
To: '(Designers Council Forum)'; 'Brooks,Bill'
Subject: RE: [DC] "Sitting on the Dock of the Bay...."

It should even appeal to more than just schools esp given the lack of good
books on the subject.

I'd hope that its available to the UK too & that its not specific to using
particular programs.

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