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Oh, I think those comments are worthy of some discussion. First off, I do think that there are classes out there that don't really teach you much ... but I wouldn't call them the majority. It's easy for an experienced diver to look at a recreational class and decide that most of the stuff it teaches is common sense ... but most experienced divers have forgotten how little common sense they had when they took those classes. Furthmore, neither ScubaBoard nor any other diving forum is a reasonable substitute for a well-taught scuba class. In part because the majority of what gets posted is opinion ... and the reader has to be experienced enough to be able to separate the legitimate information from the bovine waste product ... and although there are some spectacularly educational posts on ScubaBoard that cover topics in a way you'll NEVER see in a recreational training manual, an internet conversation is simply not a good substitute for personal interaction with someone who knows how to dive and how to teach diving. There's just no substitute for real-time feedback on what you're doing.Personally, I think most recreational dive certifications are "fufu cards" - but to each his/her own. IMHO, This falls under the category of experience vs wanting to do too much too soon. Most of the stuff that people learn in these courses, you could/would pick up in due time with experience, and honestly, forums like ScubaBoard, where we can learn from other's experiences, without necessarily having to pay someone for a certification card.
The real problem with recreational training is that it's waaaay too easy to become a scuba instructor, and you have waaaay too many scuba instructors out there who, themselves, barely know how to dive. And sadly, now those same instructors and the agencies they represent are pushing "discover tech" programs to get people in doubles ... where they can teach them the same bad habits they taught them at the recreational level.
I agree with you about the value of mentors ... they're worth way more than a class at times. But again, it's almost the luck of the draw finding one who actually (a) knows what he's doing and (b) has the ability and patience to pass it on to a less experienced diver.
All three ... classes, forums, and mentors, have something of value to add ... the trick is sorting out the gems from the silly stuff ... and you can find both apenty in any of those learning venues ...
... Bob (Grateful Diver)