Doing It Right: The Fundamentals of Better Diving

[headhunter]

So... I received my copy of Doing It Right: The Fundamentals of Better Diving and have now read it from cover to cover.

This is an excellent book that I would highly recommend as a primer to anyone, whether or not they are interested in becoming DIR divers. That said, I think the book does a great job of providing a cursory explanation of the nuts and bolts for the DIR philosophy.

Also, I would recommend that anyone who is not yet certified or newly certified read this book. I believe that it increases a new diver's general awareness of various issues and helps you take a realistic look at skills as they relate to diving in general. The skills mentioned should probably be a part of any diver's repertoire, whether they are DIR or not.

For me, philosophically, it was like reading a new and improved version of the training that I received in back in the '70s and '80s. I don't know if those instructors are still diving, but if so, I could imagine them diving DIR today.

I'm sure that this is "old news" to those of you who have been DIR for years, but it is new to me and I'm posting this for those who may be "wondering" about DIR (like I was).

I look forward to attending the DIR-F class when that becomes possible for me in the near future.

Bottom line, it's a great read!

Christian

 

[FFMDiver]

Good to hear.
Just wish it were available in pdf like "Getting Clear" & "Cave diving" are so we wouldnt have to wait.

 

[O-ring]

The new DVD set is pretty decent too..

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

The book is a good overview ... but it's a bit light on detail. At times it reads more like a brochure than a tutorial. And it doesn't even touch at least one fundamental ... gas management ... other than to mention what various levels of diver should be able to do.

I agree that for a newer diver it contains some valuable information. But if you want the good stuff, take the class.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[O-ring]

The book is a good overview ... but it's a bit light on detail. At times it reads more like a brochure than a tutorial. And it doesn't even touch at least one fundamental ... gas management ... other than to mention what various levels of diver should be able to do.

I agree that for a newer diver it contains some valuable information. But if you want the good stuff, take the class.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Agreed. It's the exact same scenario for cave and tech.. The books are a primer on information and concepts, but ALL the good information definitely comes from the class. You get zilch out of reading the books other than the background information you need to successfully follow what's going on in the class. The material presented in the class has very little to do with what is in the book..

 

[MAK52580]

I have read the book, cover to cover several times, and also have the DVDs, which I agree are pretty good as well...just finished the final one last night. It is also not only good for the beginner diver in terms of general awareness and skills, it will also save you lots of money down the road by not buying useless or substandard gear. This is what I am dealing with right now and it definitely hurts in the pocket the second time. Luckily I will make some of my money back from the crap I'm getting rid of on eBay.

 

[MHK]

I think it's important to recognize that our books and DVD's are not meant to act as a stand alone authoritative readings that are designed to be the total picture. We believe firmly that our books are complimentary to our educational classes. In that regard we differ from many agencies in that we don't sign off on the concept of remote learning wherein the student need never meet with the instructor for the academic portion of the class. PADI has gone so far as to endorse the concept of doing any follow up questions via telephone to allow flexibility.

I'm not going to get into the merits of that learning scenario other then to say I strongly disagree with such a teaching concept in scuba diving so in many respects we are, once again, going against the industry model. If you view this book as a compliment to our classes, then I'm confident you'll get more then your money's worth. If you are looking to this book to be a stand alone exclusive source for our academic portion of training, then I suspect you'll feel as though we come up short.

Hope that clarifies the point, but I'm available for follow ups.

Regards,


Michael Kane

 

[headhunter]

The book is a good overview ... but it's a bit light on detail. At times it reads more like a brochure than a tutorial. And it doesn't even touch at least one fundamental ... gas management ... other than to mention what various levels of diver should be able to do.

I agree that for a newer diver it contains some valuable information. But if you want the good stuff, take the class.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Not having taken the class yet, I view the book as a primer which gives me some "pegs" to hang future information on.

This would be like using a math primer to learn to add and subtract. It gives you a foundation upon which to build and may mention higher math before you actually learn more about multiplication, division, geometry, algebra, trigonometry and calculus.

Bob, as a recent DIR-F participant, would you say that this is a fair statement about the book?

Christian

 

[PatH]

I think it's important to recognize that our books and DVD's are not meant to act as a stand alone authoritative readings that are designed to be the total picture. We believe firmly that our books are complimentary to our educational classes. In that regard we differ from many agencies in that we don't sign off on the concept of remote learning wherein the student need never meet with the instructor for the academic portion of the class. PADI has gone so far as to endorse the concept of doing any follow up questions via telephone to allow flexibility.

Michael Kane

In any course of study it is nice to have a comprehensive textbook which goes beyond what is taught in the class in both breadth and depth. In the case of the GUE texts they tend to be a teaser for the class. This is a shame as it would be nice to have a comprehensive textbook to flush out the training rather than a brochure to introduce it. The DVDs are good. I think this is one of GUE's few weaknesses.

Pat

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Not having taken the class yet, I view the book as a primer which gives me some "pegs" to hang future information on.

This would be like using a math primer to learn to add and subtract. It gives you a foundation upon which to build and may mention higher math before you actually learn more about multiplication, division, geometry, algebra, trigonometry and calculus.

Bob, as a recent DIR-F participant, would you say that this is a fair statement about the book?

Christian

I tended to see the book as more an intro to the mindset of DIR than the actual methodology. Sure, it went over the gear configuation rather well, and addressed the "why" of DIR adequately, but was rather short on the "how" part.

I do believe this was more the intention than an oversight. As I found out, there's a good deal more to the Fundamentals course than is in the book ... gas management being the most obvious example. This is the "value added" that makes the $$ for the course worthwhile.

Of course ... once you're done with the class, you also get to pay the "sweat equity" to actually acquire the skills you now realize you don't have ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)