TDI class books, a waste of money?

[David P]

Im considering taking advanced nitrox/deco from my lds. So I picked up the TDI advanced nitrox book that will be used for the class. I was very disapointed with information given. There was so little info that was not already in their basic nitrox book... I was told that the majority of the info is either in the deco book and in the lectures. So I picked up the deco book the other day. I could almost post all the usefull info in one post here on SB! "...nitrogen may be an inert gas, but it can 'ert you quite a bit..." stupid **** like this and no real info. Ok so I learned what "the chokes" is, I havent heard of that before, but most of the book is saying, some divers use a back plate with wings, some divers use double tanks, your TDI instructor will talk to you about all the clips and knots you might need...Honestly the only thing in this book that I thought was almost usefull was the navy deco charts in the back of the book. Oh yeah, the book says charts arent used that much anymore, most people use computers. At about $45 per book, Im pissed and considering sending a not so nice email to TDI! Not that I would expect any kind of reply from a company whos class literature is is filled with stupid jokes and talking about how theres two types of wetsuit divers... those who do and those who lie. They forgot to put in "piss in their suit"!!!!!

 

[matt_unique]

Best class I have ever taken was Deco Procedures. The books are light but as always it boils down to the instructor and what you will learn from him/her. The Adv. Nitrox book offers great explanations for the formula's.

--Matt

 

[David P]

I agree that the advanced nitrox book has good coverage of the eq. but so does the basic... I understand, and appreciate that it boils down to a good instructor, but then why take $45 for what boils down to a pamphlet that I cant imagine would even be good for a refresher after takeing time off of diving...
"oxygen window" not mentioned, how to calculate decos using higher O2 not mentioned,using ean50 or 50/50 for blow off gas, litteraly JUST mentioned.

 

[do it easy]

I did think that the Advanced Nitrox was another version of the basic Nitrox, but keep in mind that the distinction is arbitrary- the formulas don't change when you go from 32% to 100%. However the risk does change, and the class addresses this. In TDI basic nitrox, no dives are required. I believe that Adv Nitrox requires a few dives to basically demostrate that you can shoot a lift bag and maintain bouyancy enough to avoid oxygen toxicity.

The deco procedures book may not be a whole lot to look at, but there is a lot of good information taught in the class. "Local" diving varies considerable, so the equipment chapter is vague.

Some people complain about the Navy tables being outdated, but I thought that they are there for illustration only. I think that most people would plan their dives using the newer software and using gases other than air.

In short, I would recommend the class.

 

[Hyper-limits]

Im considering taking advanced nitrox/deco from my lds. So I picked up the TDI advanced nitrox book that will be used for the class. I was very disapointed with information given. There was so little info that was not already in their basic nitrox book... At about $45 per book, Im pissed and considering sending a not so nice email to TDI! Not that I would expect any kind of reply from a company whos class literature is is filled with stupid jokes and talking about how theres two types of wetsuit divers... those who do and those who lie. They forgot to put in "piss in their suit"!!!!!

I agree with you both the advanced nitrox/deco procedures books are pretty lean on informations. But I can believe you payed $45 for those. I payed $29.99 can. for mine
which is like $25 US. By the way both course were very good too bad they can make a better book for them.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

I was not impressed with the text books or the use of US Navy tables in my combined deco procedures / adv nitrox course. But we used 50% during the dives and the instructor knew is stuff and filled in the gaps. He also recommended the IANTD encyclopedia of tech diving as an additional text.

 

[trevinkorea]

Where can I pick up the IANTD encyclopedia of tech diving.

I'm not planning to use the information until I've taken a course but it might make for some interesting reading.

I'm also curious. How does the IANTD book compare to the PADI manual in terms of completeness, ease of understanding and examples that incorporate the theory.

 

[Don Burke]

As I recall, the TDI books I have were twenty-something each.

They are not exactly tomes, but I have spent considerably more on books with less information.