Chris,

I have three questions for you:

1. Would you pay this amount out of your own pocket for this training (again, I'm not questioning the quality of this training)?

2. Do you think the tuition is expensive for a regular developer willing to learn Spring?

3. How many people are in your group?

> the names of the instructors are not advertised

I beg to differ, in the case of Spring at least. As they note on their training site (http://www.interface21.com/training), you "get your training directly from the people who built the Spring framework." I can back this up, we are being trained right now by one of the principal Framework contributors and one of the authors of Pro Java with Spring. It's hard to beat that kind of experience in a trainer.

> the names of the instructors are not advertised

I beg to differ, in the case of Spring at least. As they note on their training site (http://www.interface21.com/training), you "get your training directly from the people who built the Spring framework." I can back this up, we are being trained right now by one of the principal Framework contributors and one of the authors of Pro Java with Spring. It's hard to beat that kind of experience in a trainer.

>Could the rationale be "you get what you pay for?"

I do not think so. I have no doubt that they have experienced instructors, but I also know the training business as an insider (meaning I understand the expenses). What makes any training more valuable then others? Instructors. Since the names of the instructors are not advertised, I can assume that they are not any better than the ones from IBM, SUN or Microsoft.

The only other thing that can make this training more valuable than others is massage or lap dancing for the attendees :)

They charge the premium, because they can (thank you, B.C.). I hope competition will balance the cost soon.

I think it's like airline business class tickets...they're just aimed at a different (read: corporate) audience than the more commoditized program. They're also more intensive and hands-on.

I started a Core Spring training course today (paid in full by my employer - thank goodness) and it's truly one of the most excellent learning experiences I've had.

Could the rationale be "you get what you pay for?" ;-)

I agree with Yakov on this. I was just checking the prices for learning the Red hat linux and training courses for RHCE(Red Hat Certified Engineer) . Its just crazy . Its just ridiculous. How different are these guys from Microsoft(I am not a Microsoft supporter,infact I work on Open Source platforms myself) , its just that they keep marketing themselves as holy "Open Source Vendors" and then charge so much for their training and support. I really look forward to going to India for getting training for RHCE or RHCT(certified Technician) sometime soon,if things just keep going like this.

I decided to sign up for JBoss, Hibernate and Spring training classes and checked the prices offered by the vendors of these products. Let?s go to Hibernate.org. Four days JBoss training would cost me: in New York $3250, in London 2150 pounds, in Paris 2500 euros, I found the great deal: in Cape Town the early bird tuition is only $1600 for four days of JBoss! Check the prices for the air tickets, and kill two birds with one stone: visit South Africa and learn the basics of JBoss.