Online Nitrox and SDA??

[peterbj7]

Are you familiar with the IANTD material?

I've been following this thread with interest, though I thought it had died. Nitrox is one subject that could be reasonably learned with private study, though there are some aspects that are best talked through face-to-face and of course there needs to be an interactive examination session to be sure you don't just know the material but understand it.

I'd say you may well know the subject very well, but you haven't been subjected to any verifiable objective test of that knowledge. So I'd like to see you complete one of the "recognised" agencies' nitrox exams.

 

[ffdiver]

Sure. Im up for taking any of the other agencies test. Im just not all about paying 150 usd for a computer only nitrox course...as in the SSI course. I had before taken PADIs discover EAN elearning course and passed that without problem, I just took way too long to do the practical portion which at the time meant doing two dives on EAN. I will look around for my PADI stuff and see if I have a nitrox test which I will more then gladly self administer. I can PM you my results.

 

[DandyDon]

Going through my PADI and other materials it looks as if this class SDA, is much more conservative.

And it bases such on what? "More conservative" in itself is not a reason for anything. One can take any prudently safe idea, make it more conservative and run for office - but it doesn't make the idea a good one, altho many voters are fooled that way.

As where PADI MOD for nitrox 1 is 110 ish, SDA teaches not to use 32% deeper then 99ft for 1.2 exposer. And the tables that you can print out from the website are very conservative. Even with 21%.

111 for 32 at 1.4 ppo I think. Again, what is the basis for their "more conservative" suggestions? Perhaps it's based on not having any evidence so they take accepted ideas and dumb them down? I'd hate to dive with a buddy who wanted to use those charts. 1.2 is good? How about 1.1 must be better? Okay, at 1.0 - stay on the boat and you'll be fine.

The course does cover math and all the calculations that you need, it doesn't go into the CNS clock very deeply but does cover it.

I think you just supported the Quakery argument here...?

Its very surprising how many people feel badly towards an online nitrox course. Yes, I feel that the knowledge of an instructor or experinced diver is worth a million bucks, but as one poster said almost everything you need to know about nitrox can be found in a book. As a teacher myself, I know how "I" learn, and I took this course with my learning habits in mind. I feel that I got a lot out of the online course. Just remember with most courses online even in college, you get what you put into it.

I will be going to Puerto rico in about a week, hopefully I will be able to get some EAN dives in also. Hopefully if I do get some trouble for the card my PADI sponsored DM card will help move things along. Resorts have no issue throwing new divers my way even though the never saw me dive hopefully they should have no issue filling my tank with my desired O2 content.

Haha, I hope you do present your SDA Nx card and let us know. You might get away with it? One thing good about Padi, my card can be accessed online and everyone accepts it, even if that's about all I can say good about 'em.

 

[ffdiver]

Don't get me wrong, Dandy. I am not saying that this class is better or worse then any other nitrox class out there. I just pointed out that SDA follows more conservative tables. Too conservative for me, but just pointing that out.

The reason I said what I did about the math is that there are some "recongnised" angencies that don't teach the math behind nitrox at all. They rely on computers only. Which according to the majority of people posting on this thread seems to be a better route then learning with a lesser known "agency".

This place might very easily be a scam, I can't defend someone on their shady buisness practices, but I can defend the class as being good. If you did a full comparison between SDA and other rec agency classes, I think it would hold its own.

Why this "agency" chooses to use 1.2 as its highest pp02 is beyond me. The class teaches you what you need to learn but ultimately it is up to the diver to choose which risks they are willing to take and accept. Personally, I will be using PADI or IANTD tables.

Dandydon, if you would like to see the course let me know I can email you the link for the class and you can look into it all you like.

 

[DandyDon]

Don't get me wrong, Dandy. I am not saying that this class is better or worse then any other nitrox class out there. I just pointed out that SDA follows more conservative tables. Too conservative for me, but just pointing that out.

The reason I said what I did about the math is that there are some "recongnised" angencies that don't teach the math behind nitrox at all. They rely on computers only. Which according to the majority of people posting on this thread seems to be a better route then learning with a lesser known "agency".

This place might very easily be a scam, I can't defend someone on their shady buisness practices, but I can defend the class as being good. If you did a full comparison between SDA and other rec agency classes, I think it would hold its own.

And that's probably because it was simply plagiarized from the other.

Why this "agency" chooses to use 1.2 as its highest pp02 is beyond me. The class teaches you what you need to learn but ultimately it is up to the diver to choose which risks they are willing to take and accept. Personally, I will be using PADI or IANTD tables.

1.2 is aburd. They really teach that?

Dandydon, if you would like to see the course let me know I can email you the link for the class and you can look into it all you like.

Sure, post the link here or PM it to me if you'd like.

 

[redacted]

The reason I said what I did about the math is that there are some "recongnised" angencies that don't teach the math behind nitrox at all.

Yeah. Too bad drivers are not required to understand the math associated with driving a car before they can be licensed.

We probably would not have to waste so much $$$ on highway construction.

 

[mksmith713]

I don't understand why DandyDon wants to bash the SDA course when he knows absolutely nothing about the course.
What about the NAUI course? They're not much different in that they aren't a recognized agency.
As far as I know, there's no such thing as an ACCREDITED AGENCY........there are high RECOGNIZED AGENCIES.....but no such thing as accreditation.

Next issue.
These were posted by DD.
Anyone who has lost money to these crooks could try their Credit Card disputing. I ran a WhoIs lookup on the domain...Registrant: Domain Discreet
ATTN: divesda.com
P.O. Box 278
Yarmouth, NS B5A 4B2
CA
Email: ad5a137d0a141151015eb721f53b9bbd@domaindiscreet.co m

Registrar Name....: REGISTER.COM, INC.
Registrar Whois...: whois.register.com
Registrar Homepage: Register Domain Names at Register.com | Domain Name Registration & Web Hosting Services

Domain Name: divesda.com

Created on..............: Mon, Feb 26, 2007
Expires on..............: Thu, Feb 26, 2009
Record last updated on..: Mon, Jan 07, 2008

Administrative Contact:
Domain Discreet
ATTN: divesda.com
P.O. Box 278
Yarmouth, NS B5A 4B2
CA
Phone: 1-902-7495331
Email: ad5a13790a141151006c053687675097@domaindiscreet.co m

Technical Contact:
Domain Discreet
ATTN: divesda.com
P.O. Box 278
Yarmouth, NS B5A 4B2
CA
Phone: 1-902-7495331
Email: ad5a137e0a1411510134d932e0a0fcc5@domaindiscreet.com

WRONG SDA

The SDA that has the online Nitrox course is based in Lake Havasu,Arizona and are easily reachable by e mail or telephone.
Here's the phone number if you wish to call them.
Someone will answer and talk to you.

928-680-3483

 

[DandyDon]

OK thanks mksmith713. That was from our much earlier discussion of this "agency" that lists affiliated dive shops who have never heard of SDA. We would all prefer accurate information. Maybe you would like to invite them to post here to answer some questions...?

TY

 

[mksmith713]

Why this "agency" chooses to use 1.2 as its highest pp02 is beyond me. The class teaches you what you need to learn but ultimately it is up to the diver to choose which risks they are willing to take and accept. Personally, I will be using PADI or IANTD tables.
QUOTE]

FF, I think they're conservative because they know people as a whole are inherently daredevils and will push limits.
I know I do.
They say MOD's are 80 and 100 feet respectively?...In my mind that means I can dive 100 and 130 feet.
The daredevil analogy maynot be true for all divers but I know alot of people who get a rush by pushing the envelope.

If they teach conservatively, it gives you a nice cushion of safety.
If a diver who takes this course pushes the envelope and dives 32% to 130 feet, in actuality they're still within safe limits.
But if they teach 100' & 130' and you push to 150',OxTox and drown..... well................ does this make sense?

Heck, I'm all for tricking people into being safe while still allowing them to think they're bad ass cowboys..........LOL

Makes sense to me.

 

[ClayJar]

FF, I think they're conservative because they know people as a whole are inherently daredevils and will push limits.
I know I do.
They say MOD's are 80 and 100 feet respectively?...In my mind that means I can dive 100 and 130 feet.

I cannot tell you how unfathomably grateful I am that the divers I work and dive with are not at all like that. Very few of "my" divers display inherently daredevilish tendencies, and for those few that do, we spend more time teaching them *why* the envelope is what it is and what they can do to expand it (different gases, procedures, skills, etc.).

On the one hand, you can teach reasonable limits and the reasoning that went into setting them as such. On the other hand, you can go all the way to unreasonable, arbitrary limits in the blind hope that those people who decide to ignore them will only ignore them to a certain extent.

(As for your earlier comment, did you *really* mean to say that NAUI isn't a recognized agency?!? From your comments, "Dive Safety Through Education" does not appear to be a motto you choose to dive by, but if you were really saying that NAUI is on par with SDA, I fear I may have wasted a post.)