Manta Technologies: Your Resource for IBM i Training
Manta offers a complete library of courses for programmers, operators, system administrators, and users of the IBM i operating system, which runs on IBM Power Systems.
All of our courses are web based and run in all popular browsers.
Library Organization and Pricing
The Manta IBM i Training Library is an integrated, online curriculum. Students can progress from entry-level concepts to advanced topics that prepare them for professional certifications.
The Manta curriculum is designed for today's busy adult learners. The basic unit of education is a course, which typically takes two to four hours to complete, depending on the student. That lets you fit training into your schedule. Set aside a morning or afternoon. If you get interrupted, set a bookmark and return later. You can also start a course at work and finish at home.
To give you the greatest flexibility in designing a training plan, every course can be ordered at the same low price: $149.
Every Manta course has a corresponding Competency Exam, which tests whether the student has mastered the published course objectives. The exams are built around realistic, on-the-job situations in which the student must enter commands, select menu options, write code, and perform other system-related tasks using Manta's exclusive IBM i simulator. At the end of the exam, the student is directed to remedial training, if needed, and the results are logged for reporting via our built-in Student Administration function.
Some IBM i skills can be covered effectively in a single course. In other cases, more than one course is needed to adequately cover a topic. Related courses are grouped together into a series. An example is the 7-course Free-Form RPG Programming series.
The Competency Exams for a series are packaged together as a separate product that is included with the series at no extra charge. Many students use the exams as a pretest to determine whether they need to take the entire series. By purchasing an entire series, you receive a 20% to 40% discount off the individual course prices.
When a course is not contained within a series, we call it a stand-alone course. An example is Free-Form RPG Coding, a "Differences" course designed for experienced RPG programmers.
Courses that belong to a common subject area—such as IBM i operations or programming—are sold collectively as a combination pack. An example is the RPG Development Combination Pack, which includes not only the Free-Form RPG Programming series and the stand-alone Free-Form RPG Coding course, but also 38 other courses that cover everything an RPG programmer needs to be productive. Combination packs offer an additional savings of 10% off the individual series prices.
If you need to train programmers, operators, and systems administrators, your best deal is the IBM i Training Library, which includes every course and Competency Exam we offer.
Save During Manta's Anniversary Sale!
In celebration of Manta's 32nd birthday, we are offering any course, series, or combination pack — including the complete IBM i Training Library. — at 20% off. The sale ends July 31.
Multi-User Licenses
Manta courses have a concurrent user license, meaning that you may train any number of students — just one at a time. With sufficient scheduling, most customers have no problem using a single-user license to train as many as 5 or 10 people.
If your organization prefers to train students in groups, rather than one at a time, consider a multiple-user license. Unlike the single-user license, the multiple-user license lets multiple students use the same product simultaneously.
The user limit applies to whatever product(s) you order. If you buy a one-user license for the entire library, for example, only one student can use the library at a time. To increase the number of students who can train simultaneously, you can move to a five-user license for the library or buy additional user capabilities for only those products used by multiple students. A popular combination is a single-user license for the library and a five-user license for the Program Development Combination Pack.
For any product, moving from a single-user license to a 5-user license increases the price by only 50%. Each additional student over 5 increases the price by 10% of the single-user price.
There is no problem in underestimating your need. If a student cannot access a course because it is currently being used, he or she will be told to try again later. In addition, you will receive an email to alert you to the potential problem. If you get the email frequently, you can upgrade to a larger license at that time.
Save on Renewals
Manta's basic license gives you access for a full year. This is generally more than enough time for operators, system administrators, and programmers to complete all of the courses in their respective subject areas. Doing so, however, requires most students to commit to finishing one or two courses each week. Depending on the number of students sharing a license and individual job requirements, it is possible that not everyone will complete training on time. Moreover, most organizations have ongoing training requirements, due to new hires and the need for experienced employees to learn new topics. We see this fact reflected in the customers who have renewed their licenses every year since the online version was introduced in 1999.
To support such ongoing training needs, Manta makes it easy for you to extend your license as long as you need it. We will send you a renewal invoice automatically, thirty to sixty days before your license expires. The second-year price is one half of our listed first-year price to reflect the expected drop in usage after the initial training demand. For the third and subsequent years, the price is one fourth of the list price.
Rather than waiting for a renewal notice, you can prepay for the second and, optionally, the third year of training. A 10% savings is built into the price for each additional year. Moreover, if you opt for additional years during a sale — such as the current 20%-off sale — the discount is applied to the full price. This is a great way to lock in your savings for years to come!