| There has been an ever growing battle among | | | | component in the computer itself. |
| teaching professionals, businesses and even students | | | | Those who argue the other side of this tricky coin, say |
| as to what is more important, being book learned in a | | | | that if a student were to try hands on without the aid |
| subject or having some practical hands on experience. | | | | of formal book knowledge, he would certainly have |
| We're not going to try to answer that question in this | | | | someone there to show them just how to install that |
| article, only present both sides and allow you, the | | | | hard drive. The overseer would explain to him along |
| reader to come to your own conclusions. | | | | the way the main points that he would need to know |
| With computers, unlike many other subjects, such as | | | | in order to do the job correctly, without all the technical |
| accounting, where without theory you simply can't | | | | stuff that is usually 90% useless in most situations. |
| make the correct journal entries, there is a growing | | | | However, their more compelling argument for hands on |
| number of people without formal training who have | | | | over book knowledge is this. That same student, with |
| very productive careers in the field of computers. In | | | | all the book knowledge in the world, has still never |
| spite of this, there are those who argue that these | | | | physically handled a hard drive. In theory, he knows |
| workers will ultimately not be able to keep up with the | | | | what's going on electronically and understands about |
| ever-changing technology because they have not had | | | | grounding but until he actually gets his hands on a drive |
| formal training and don't know how to read and | | | | and tries to place it into that computer, he has no idea |
| understand a technical training manual. | | | | if he'll actually be able to handle the task. Maybe his |
| Those who believe that understanding the theories of | | | | hands will shake. Maybe he has poor eyesight and |
| computers, whatever the discipline, is more important | | | | can't see well enough to make the right connections. |
| than actual hands on use this as their argument. A | | | | Maybe he has trouble hooking up wires. Some people |
| student who simply gets a hold of a computer and | | | | just aren't mechanically inclined. |
| begins working on it is working in the dark and only by | | | | Even in the field of programming a computer, a person |
| trial and error and chance stumbles onto the correct | | | | may have complete knowledge of the language he is |
| procedure for whatever it is they are trying to do. | | | | programming in, but without actually writing a program |
| In some disciplines, like data entry, this may not be too | | | | in a real business environment he has no idea of the |
| difficult. After all, most data entry programs have | | | | complexities of a real life business application. That is |
| menus to guide the user along, and specific text boxes | | | | why so many computer based products have |
| for each form of input that is required. A person with | | | | patches upon patches of bug fixes, because many |
| basic reading skills could probably walk his way | | | | programmers working their first job simply aren't ready |
| through a data entry screen and manage to perform | | | | for what's involved. |
| simple data entry tasks. | | | | No doubt the argument of book learning versus hands |
| But what happens when the student tries to tackle a | | | | on will continue until time itself stops, and while no |
| more complex task like installing a hard drive in a | | | | actual answers are given here, it is hoped that this |
| computer. Without understanding the basic theories of | | | | article will give the reader something to think about |
| electricity and grounding, it is quite likely that the student | | | | when taking one side or the other. |
| will end up shorting out the drive and possibly every | | | | |