By Bill Needle
May, 2000
So, Tom said there'd be no snow in Ottawa for the first Boot Camp North April 6-8, 2000 huh?! He figured that fellow presenter, Foster Coburn, would have no problem crossing the Canadian border en route from Arizona. He also figured that he could talk to the full class of 24 attendees without having to raise his voice. And, the Anzai kids would not try to stuff a peanut butter sandwich into the innards of Foster's new Dell mega laptop. Well, let's just say that only one of the above was found to be untrue by the end of the week. Read on and we'll tell you all about the inaugural Boot Camp North in the nation's capital.
First, What is an Ottawa?
Before
we get into the classroom, let's tell you a bit about Ottawa which has been described as
one of the most beautiful capitals in the world (at least this is what our tourism and
political leaders say!). Less than an hour's drive from the American border, Ottawa enjoys
the attributes of a major center for the visual and performing arts, as well as other big
city attractions. Yet it still maintains the accessibility, atmosphere, and charm of a
smaller city, in addition to access to parks and wilderness areas located within and
around the city.
Ottawa lies within Canada's Capital Region which is an area comprising two provinces (Ontario and Quebec) and two main cities (Ottawa and Hull), creating a region much like Washington in the United States. The region comprises 27 municipalities (11 on the Ontario side) and covers an area of 4,662 square kilometers (1,800 square miles). The region includes bordering cities such as Nepean (where the Corel Learning Center is located) and neighboring Hull, Quebec. That's “Ull” to all you anglophones out there–the “h” is silent as in “I'll _ave a _amburger and a _otdog, _old the onions”.
The Capital Region is Canada's fourth largest metropolitan area at 1,109,752, however, Ottawa itself is 323,340 (“Ull” has a population of 65,000). The region represents 3.1% of Canada's population (29 million) and 9% of Ontario's 9.5 million people. As it is situated on the border of Quebec and Ontario, Ottawa has developed as the result of a blend of English and French cultures; almost half of the residents are bilingual. Added to this mix is a growing ethnic diversity inspired by the city's German, Lebanese, Italian, Polish, Dutch, Portuguese and Asian populations, among others.
Now if you're still not impressed with out statistical findings about Ottawa, here's some more ad naseum facts:
Geography: Latitude: 45.25 N
Longitude: 75.43 W
Area: 4,662 sq. km./1,771 sq. mi.
Climate: spring average: 11C (52F) (OK, mark this down as we'll find out the real
story soon)
Winter average: -10C (43F)
Summer average: 21C (70F)
Fall average: 8C (46F)
Average House Price: $133,084 Cdn (1998)
Employment: Labor Force: 586,500 (1998) Average Household Income: approx. $56,000. Cdn.
What is that saying about the Canadian Mounted Police? “They always get their man.” Well, this also seems to apply to the Canadian Immigration workers at the Ottawa Mcdonald-Cartier Airport. Tom and daughter, Emily, went to pick up Foster en route from New Jersey at the Ottawa Airport. Flight an hour and a half late, but Tom was forewarned via email by fellow presenter Pete McCormick so no problem. Arrive at the rescheduled time and no sign of Foster. Flight has landed and all passengers seem to have exited the Customs area. No Foster. A quick chat to a customs officer (why do the ladies wear shirts that are two sizes too big anyway?!), indicates that there is no account of a Foster Coburn. Well at least he hasn't been caught bringing in illegal DVD contrabands into the country...
A chat to the Immigration officer indicates, yes, a Foster Coburn in a “meeting” with some of their people. Could it be:
(a) He's trying to sell them an autographed copy of the Official Guide to CorelDRAW 9®.
(b) They're discussing the possible playoff match-up of the Phoenix Coyotes versus Ottawa Senators hockey teams.
(c) They need help finding out the location of the Extrude Roll-Up in CorelDRAW 9 (trick question).
(d) They can't understand why an American is needed to teach a Canadian software program, CorelDRAW®, let alone in the same city as the Corel Corporation headquarters.
(e) None of the above.
If you answered (d), you are correct-a-mungo! Ninety minutes of rapid-fire questions and answers passed and Tom was thinking that he was in for an all-nighter preparing for all the presentations without a sidekick. After all, Tom still hadn't seen Foster who was behind closed doors. After much discussion in their meeting, Foster agreed to pay a fee (fortunately $Cdn) with a promise to arrange a work visa the next time. Hello? Did Canada and the United States not sign a Free Trade Agreement? Hello anyone home? Shish!
At least Foster's Boot
Camp Box O' Goodies
passed through Customs OK.
Stats, Who Needs 'Em?
Part of the preparation of Boot Camp North is to forecast the weather and pass it on to the attendees before the event. Well, the statistics indicated high average temperature in early April in Ottawa is 11°C or 52°F and the low above freezing. We were so confident that we stated on the Boot Camp North web page:
“The snow will have melted by then so there is no need to bring any winter gear”
Mu-ha-ha-ha. Mu-ha-ha-ha. Joke was on us when we woke up the next morning and were greeted with some of the white fluffy stuff. Foster commented that the grass took on a different color overnight.
Snow looks great, huh?! It looks pristine with a hint of romanticism in the movies. This vision dissipates when one has to scrape, swipe, and remove the snow from a car's window and headlights. Not very nice, too, when you've put away the snowshovels, winter boots, and mitts for another year in a display of optimism. Argghhh!
Foster scraping for his
dinner. Now is he smiling
or grimacing about the snow?
And was this a one-day phenomenon? Nooooooooo, it snowed straight through the week and stopped...why...after Foster flew out. Hmmmm. Could it have been...Naawwww.
And Now, Introducing...Never get Foster to order breakfast. His idea is
to get fancy doughnuts so that all the attendees overdose in sugar before the
first session gets underway. OK, it wasn't his fault. The Tim Horton's version of fancy
doughnuts is 
to top each eclair with enough
whipped cream to add an extra base at the local ski hill. Let's just say that there were
enough leftovers for the Anzai
kidlets, babysitter and her brother, and the garbage man. I think we'll stick to plain
ol' muffins, hold the sugar...
Mmmmmmm or Yuck?
Joanne Wells, Director of Learning from Corel Corporation gave the Opening Speech to thank Tom, Foster and the attendees for attending the very first Boot Camp in Ottawa. An introduction and thanks to Tanya Lesage, Training Partner Program Manager, and Fiaaz Walji, Training and Certification Manager for Corel Corporation was given for their hard work in pulling off a highly successful Boot Camp North. Way to go people!
In attendance were 12 Americans, 9
Canadians, and two special attendees from Akureyri, Iceland, Fanney and Vala (no
problem coping with the snow!). We also
had people from the West Coast (Seattle), East Coast (Nova Scotia, Florida), and two
attendees from Ottawa (Hans and Roberto). And a cross-mix of occupations from Military to
graphics to government to a bicycle decal designer (Yo, Geoff!).
Fanney Ingvadottir,
Foster & Tom, and Vala Stefansdottir
(with Hedy Lamarr-dottir in the background).
Once everyone recovered from the fancy doughnuts, the sessions for day one went off without a hitch. Lunch was served by Olga's who catered delicious deli sandwiches, desserts, chicken wraps, and a fruit plate. Next time we'll tell them to come a little sooner though. At one point, it looked as if we'd have to re-route everyone's appetite to the nearest takeout venue.
 |
Roberto Guido from Statistics Canada leads the way to the dessert tray. Didn't you have enough of those fancy doughnuts Roberto? | Polly Marriott, Hans
Foerstel, and Tim Delaney discuss world politics and bezier curve strategies. |
 |
A nice surprise addition was a draw for three
students to accompany Foster, Tom and some of the Learning
Department staff to attend an Ottawa Senators hockey game in
the Corel luxury box. Now, we're talking one of those “boxes” on the first level
that comes with a private washroom, leather couches, TV/VCR, bar, waitress, and Corel® World Design
Competition prints on the wall. Fortunately the tickets came up when it seemed that no
one at Corel wanted to see the unmighty New York Islanders in action against the Sens. Pick me! Pick me!
Chip Maxwell, Tanya
Lesage, Fiaaz Walji (staff of the Corel Learning Department)
and a grinning (not grimacing) Foster.
The Corel Centre is located west of Ottawa in Kanata. The new home of the NHL Ottawa Senators officially opened its
doors on January 15, 1996. Formerly known as “The Palladium”, the 18,500 seat
multi-purpose sports and entertainment complex was constructed in 18 months, at a cost of
$170 million (Cdn $). A new arena-specific four lane interchange was built to provide
access from Highway 417 (the Queensway) at a cost of approximately $30 million (the
Senators had to pay for the interchange and make this fact known to the government
whenever possible).
Recognize that logo on the building?
Tom was getting a congested throat. No problem. Lots of liquids and it'll be alright, right?!
Day Two as in “Two-ur”
Guess what we woke up to. Yes, the beginning of 25 centimeters of snow. I'm dreaming of a white... Ack! This is supposed to be spring, not the stuff you see on the windshield below.
We still don't know if that's a grimace or a smile. Nice wheels by the way!
Day two was an action-packed day that included a tour of the Corel Carling (main building) at noon with keynote speeches by the CorelDRAW PDM (Product Development Manager), Tony Severnuk, and the Corel PHOTO-PAINT® PDM, Steve Albert. Brand Manager for DRAW and PHOTO-PAINT, Denise Zutrauen, provided a brief presentation and was followed by a 15 minute Q&A period following these keynotes.
The group was split into 2 groups of 13 and were guided through 4 areas of the Carling building. Members of the Training & Certification team volunteered as tour guides. The following areas were visited:
Oh, oh. Tom's voice was getting deeper and deeper during the day's sessions. So much so that he started thinking about auditioning for a local do-wop quartet. Duke, Duke, Duke of Earl, Duke, Duke... Manly yes, but the people in the back row didn't need a baritone to go along with the monotone voice. Speak up!
After the seminars it was time to go to Tucker's Marketplace for a
scrumptious meal. This restaurant has been around 
the Ottawa area for the past few
decades and has the greatest food selection in town. The attendees, some spouses, and
several Corel employees commented how good the food was. Mark it down for the next Boot
Camp!
Tucker's Marketplace in the Byward Market (downtown).
A must if you want plenty of good food!
The crowd at Tucker's Marketplace.
D
ay Three: The Final ChapterTom's voice was at a point that he could give a seal barking lessons. He managed to squeak (no pun intended) through his sessions on the final day of Boot Camp North. Aside from Foster's and Tom's sessions, many attendees had the opportunity to take a Corel Certification exam of their choice (CorelDRAW or PHOTO-PAINT) at no charge ($50 US value). They were given three different time slots to take the exam. While the Boot Camp sessions are not designed to prepare students for the exams, several attendees were able to see what the test entails and a couple were given coupons to retake the test at a later time. (Tip: Read through the exam guidelines and prepare by going through training courseware such as our Anzai! step-by-step manuals).
At the end of the day, evaluation forms were handed out. The first page asked for feedback regarding the Boot Camp (see summary of comments below). The second page was Corel related; they were asked how they use CorelDRAW and PHOTO-PAINT in the workplace and what improvements they would like to see.
Unsolicited Comments from Attendees
“Excellent material coverage. Trainers were knowledgeable and clear.”
“Thought the location, trainers and course were top notch. Appreciated the opportunity to tour Corel and meet the staff.”
“Having Boot Camp North in Ottawa allowed me the opportunity to attend (my employer would not have allowed me to go to Arizona).”
“The entire experience was rewarding and surpassed expectations.”
“Excellent! Will definitely attend another.”
“I have waited a long time to see something like this in Ottawa.”
“I felt the Corel employees to be exceedingly pleasant and helpful.”
“Really glad you had this in Ottawa and that it included Corel tour and people.”
“Excellent presentation, & documentation.”
“Food excellent, as were location and facilities.”
“Corel tour great!”
“The best course manual I have seen.”
All in all, Boot Camp North #1 proved to be a most successful event. The experience was rewarding for all parties involved and generated enough enthusiasm to plan a second event August 17-19th (just announced May 4, 2000!). If you want to partake in a fantastic learning experience at a hospitable location, then visit the Boot Camp North Main Page. CU up North!
We leave you with a picture outside Tom's backyard on the last
day of the Boot Camp.
All together now... Ewwww...Ahhhh!
Download the Boot Camp North Course Outline (in PDF format).
For related articles and step-by-step tutorials, please visit Articles & Tutorials.
Ottawa. The capital of Canada not the capital of Ontario. We have the Parliament Buildings not some C Me Tower. We have a real Mayor, not a furniture salesman. I sit beside real fans, not some corporate stiff who doesn't know the first thing about the game. Go Sens Go! (Note: This is a unpaid advertisement made possible by a person who has obviously spent way too much time sitting in the Corel Centre during the Ottawa-Toronto NHL playoffs.) |
Corel, CorelDRAW, Corel PHOTO-PAINT, Corel VENTURA, and CorelWORLD are trademarks or registered trademarks of Corel Corporation or Corel Corporation Ltd.
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