[Duncan campbell]

Just a quick one - I'm due to head out to Spain for a month next year (fingers crossed) and part of the deal is I have to do an online CAD course whilst I'm out there. So I need to have good internet connection from 10am to 4pm (Spanish Time) Monday-Wednesday to do this course... any beta on where I'd easily find this? There is Goma2 in Cornudella but that is closed on Mondays and then closes at 1pm.

I guess one option would be to get a dongle - would I be better off getting one in Spain?

I've been out to Spain a few times for extended periods but work has been the last thing on my mind so I'm not too hot on the best way to go about this.

Thanks in advance UKBers

[SA Chris]

This is run by a mate of mine who lives there, I can message him?

https://www.basquemtb.com/

[Adam Lincoln]

Cafe Vernet in Margalef has pretty decent wifi but has the issue of closing on, i think Mondays.

Hotel Terradets open all the time and has good wifi. Could always move over that way on days you need it.

Failing that sure you can fine somewhere in Lleida.

I use my phone and tether to it when in my van and watch iptv without any issues. Not throttling or data caps. This was before we left the EU though so will find out next month if thats still the case. Having spoke to o2 on phone sounds like i should still be ok. Just used it for the same thing in america for 3 months and its been fine.

[jwi]

I have done remote teaching from Spain. I would not do it without a backup SIM card and a solid data plan. Zoom consume about on GB per hour

[Adam Lincoln]

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[Paul B]

Just a quick one - I'm due to head out to Spain for a month next year (fingers crossed) and part of the deal is I have to do an online CAD course whilst I'm out there. So I need to have good internet connection from 10am to 4pm (Spanish Time) Monday-Wednesday to do this course... any beta on where I'd easily find this? There is Goma2 in Cornudella but that is closed on Mondays and then closes at 1pm.

Standard AutoCAD or C3D/Revit? I ask as working off the former using some kind of a dongle I think I could get away with but for the latter two I think you might end up in a whole world of pain.

Work provide me with a silly Alienware laptop and sat in the same room as our server yesterday some operations allowed me enough time to go and make a brew whilst it contemplated life.

[Duncan campbell]

Just a quick one - I'm due to head out to Spain for a month next year (fingers crossed) and part of the deal is I have to do an online CAD course whilst I'm out there. So I need to have good internet connection from 10am to 4pm (Spanish Time) Monday-Wednesday to do this course... any beta on where I'd easily find this? There is Goma2 in Cornudella but that is closed on Mondays and then closes at 1pm.

Standard AutoCAD or C3D/Revit? I ask as working off the former using some kind of a dongle I think I could get away with but for the latter two I think you might end up in a whole world of pain.

Work provide me with a silly Alienware laptop and sat in the same room as our server yesterday some operations allowed me enough time to go and make a brew whilst it contemplated life.

Standard AutoCAD - It is the essentials course as I haven't used CAD before - its been many years since I've worked on a computer at all to be honest!

This is run by a mate of mine who lives there, I can message him?

https://www.basquemtb.com/

That could be useful - Ill try and figure out somewhere a bit closer to where I'll be climbing, but thanks for the offer - if it gets closer to the time and I'm a bit stuck I may well give you a shout!

Thanks for the replies so far - another option would be hiring a cheap airBnB with wifi for those 3 days - which might be the lowest stress option and allow for me to be somewhere I can concentrate.

[Paul B]

Standard AutoCAD - It is the essentials course as I haven't used CAD before - its been many years since I've worked on a computer at all to be honest!

We did a course in LT at Uni and I didn't use it for quite some time (latest job) and despite CAD now having 'ribbons' more akin to what you find on other pieces of software, I still find myself tending back towards text commands. It's amazing how far you can get with "PL" and a few other basic commands. I'm having to deliver my first project in C3D this week and the learning curve is STEEP!

I'm being nosey now but why the change? I moved from a massive consultancy (global) to a specialist (~5ppl) where there basically isn't enough time/margin/CAD work to warrant using technicians. Initially I was pretty skeptical but I quite like it these days.

[remus]

What does the course actually involve? Are you just gonna be reading through material and doing exercises? Or is it video conferencing sorta stuff?

If there's gonna be video conferencing Id be inclined to go with the airbnb option as at the very least you'll burn through a lot of data being on a video call for 6hrs/day (you'd definitely want a spanish SIM, roaming SIMs are limited to ~14GB/month or so from memory.) Margalef could be a good shout if it works with your climbing plans, I was chatting to a guy who owns an airbnb out there a couple of years ago and he was saying how they've got fiber installed to encourage people in, so should be a decent chance of finding somewhere with a good connection.

If it's gonna be reading material and maybe some short calls I think a dongle + SIM could work. Main thing is to do a bit of driving around beforehand to find places with good reception. Anything less than strong 4G gets pretty annoying to work on in my experience.

Other thing to bear in mind is that if you're working in the van you'll need enough power for your laptop. Should be ok with a decent solar setup in spain but worth doing some back of the napkin calcs to make sure you won't be thrashing your batteries.

[ali k]

another option would be hiring a cheap airBnB with wifi for those 3 days - which might be the lowest stress option and allow for me to be somewhere I can concentrate.

Yep that’s what I’d do. And I’m not known for opening my wallet when I don’t have to! But if it’s absolutely essential you have to log on then I’d probably still want a backup option in case the internet turned out to be shit.

Having recently done a month or so of remote training on Zoom there’s no way I would have wanted to do it in a shared space or in the back of a van stressing about connection and battery life.

[Duncan campbell]

Standard AutoCAD - It is the essentials course as I haven't used CAD before - its been many years since I've worked on a computer at all to be honest!

We did a course in LT at Uni and I didn't use it for quite some time (latest job) and despite CAD now having 'ribbons' more akin to what you find on other pieces of software, I still find myself tending back towards text commands. It's amazing how far you can get with "PL" and a few other basic commands. I'm having to deliver my first project in C3D this week and the learning curve is STEEP!

I'm being nosey now but why the change? I moved from a massive consultancy (global) to a specialist (~5ppl) where there basically isn't enough time/margin/CAD work to warrant using technicians. Initially I was pretty skeptical but I quite like it these days.

Nosey parker!! Good question though - The simple one being that although I was happy doing Rope Access a friend offered me a job working for a company that designs and builds hydrogen fuelled generators, seemed interesting and to be honest the biggest draw was feeling like I was doing something constructive towards the decarbonisation of society (however naive/whatever that sounds). I'm still not 100% sure it was the right decision as I did really love doing rope access work and don't love computer work, but always good to try something new. Also I don't only work in front of a computer and its nice being home every evening. The ropes will still be there if I decide to go back.

[Duncan campbell]

another option would be hiring a cheap airBnB with wifi for those 3 days - which might be the lowest stress option and allow for me to be somewhere I can concentrate.

Yep that’s what I’d do. And I’m not known for opening my wallet when I don’t have to! But if it’s absolutely essential you have to log on then I’d probably still want a backup option in case the internet turned out to be shit.

Having recently done a month or so of remote training on Zoom there’s no way I would have wanted to do it in a shared space or in the back of a van stressing about connection and battery life.

the more i think about it the more this is probably the best option

[Paul B]

Nosey parker!! Good question though

Sounds interesting, best of luck! If for any reason it doesn't work out, there's always a shortage of good CAD technicians and I've seen those who specialise in 3D stuff (both C3D and Revit) making a ridiculous amount on a contract basis. We even had one engineer decide he didn't like the stress of directly managing project work moving into C3D work and he's far happier (and also VERY good).

[Adam Lincoln]

Ive just had a thought. I have a mate in Cornu who rents a small room out on a per night basis. Could be an option if you want to flit back and forth between van and house.

[James Malloch]

another option would be hiring a cheap airBnB with wifi for those 3 days - which might be the lowest stress option and allow for me to be somewhere I can concentrate.

Yep that’s what I’d do. And I’m not known for opening my wallet when I don’t have to! But if it’s absolutely essential you have to log on then I’d probably still want a backup option in case the internet turned out to be shit.

Having recently done a month or so of remote training on Zoom there’s no way I would have wanted to do it in a shared space or in the back of a van stressing about connection and battery life.

the more i think about it the more this is probably the best option

Might be worth looking for a month-long booking if you go down the Airbnb route. I’ve looked in the past and some have really big discounts (I’ve seen 50%) for longer term bookings. If you need something for 3 days, unless you get agreement then the checkin/check out times mean you might need to book 4 nights anyway to get the full time you need during the day…

[Duncan campbell]

Ive just had a thought. I have a mate in Cornu who rents a small room out on a per night basis. Could be an option if you want to flit back and forth between van and house.

That could be perfect. I'll just see what everyone else is doing but I might drop you a message as I mostly want the freedom of being in the van but need to make sure I have internet for this course.

Nosey parker!! Good question though

Sounds interesting, best of luck! If for any reason it doesn't work out, there's always a shortage of good CAD technicians and I've seen those who specialise in 3D stuff (both C3D and Revit) making a ridiculous amount on a contract basis. We even had one engineer decide he didn't like the stress of directly managing project work moving into C3D work and he's far happier (and also VERY good).

Interesting knowledge about freelance CAD technicians...

[sdm]

Just a quick one - I'm due to head out to Spain for a month next year (fingers crossed) and part of the deal is I have to do an online CAD course whilst I'm out there. So I need to have good internet connection from 10am to 4pm (Spanish Time) Monday-Wednesday to do this course... any beta on where I'd easily find this? There is Goma2 in Cornudella but that is closed on Mondays and then closes at 1pm.

Standard AutoCAD or C3D/Revit? I ask as working off the former using some kind of a dongle I think I could get away with but for the latter two I think you might end up in a whole world of pain.

Work provide me with a silly Alienware laptop and sat in the same room as our server yesterday some operations allowed me enough time to go and make a brew whilst it contemplated life.

Standard AutoCAD - It is the essentials course as I haven't used CAD before - its been many years since I've worked on a computer at all to be honest!

It is worth noting that AutoCAD versions 2019-2021 (haven't used 2022) require a stable internet connection to function. It doesn't need to be fast but it needs to not drop out.

If your connection/WiFi/dongle etc keep cutting out, AutoCAD licensing will throw a wobbly and crash AutoCAD.

You can work fine with it fully offline but once it has a connection, it needs to be stable.

I'm not aware of a fix for this. I didn't search very hard for one but it was frustrating when I needed to use AutoCAD for a bit from an Airbnb with a weak WiFi signal over the summer.

[Duncan campbell]

Good Knowledge sdm, ill make sure anywhere I book has a decent connection then! Thanks for the tip 

[spidermonkey09]

I spent an evening in the Cornudella refugi place absolutely caning their internet and it seemed speedy. Might be worth a look, pretty sure you could sit in that bar all day if you were staying there and would be cheaper than an airbnb.

[Duncan campbell]

Brill thanks Jim!

[Ballsofcottonwool]

Nosey parker!! Good question though

Sounds interesting, best of luck! If for any reason it doesn't work out, there's always a shortage of good CAD technicians and I've seen those who specialise in 3D stuff (both C3D and Revit) making a ridiculous amount on a contract basis. We even had one engineer decide he didn't like the stress of directly managing project work moving into C3D work and he's far happier (and also VERY good).

Where are these jobs?  I spent 3 years trying to get a job as a draughtsman after doing a year long HNC at college( Autocad 3d) and learning SolidWorks in my spare when my kids started school and I was going back to work after being a Househusband for 5 years.

[Paul B]

We're currently hiring for a start (specifically for Revit/C3D) but the rest I mentioned were working in DnB water utility frameworks around the NW and more recently the Midlands.