Training

We have been selected to be the official Light-O-RamaTM (LOR) training partner.  We are fortunate enough to feature Drew Hickman as a course instructor.  He brings an invaluable amount of real-world expertise to the courses.  He previously taught light display and animation courses at locations all over the United States.

Mr. Hickman has been in the light display business since 1996, creating the very first commercially available hardware (ChristmasCave*) and software (Dasher*) products for music-synchronized displays.  He has worked on all types of displays, both large and small, commercial and residential, and is a certified LOR instructor.  He is sure to share some of his more interesting experiences of being in this business with his students.


Private, custom, and corporate courses are also available.  View the bottom of this page for additional information.

Here is one customer's testimony after taking a training class from Holiday Technologies in 2022:

Just wanted to say thank you again for all your help. I greatly appreciate you answering all my questions, especially in a way I could grasp the concept. [I'm] far from understanding RGB fully and don’t expect to be an expert but just in your class I learned more in 2 days than I learned in months online watching videos and reading.

- Jonathan M.

Here is another customer's testimony after taking a training class from Holiday Technologies:

Drew,
I just wanted to take the time to thank you for all of the training you provided. All summer I have been programming away using fixed grids with a lot of time and patience. Now because of your training I have learned about FREE FORM grids and a number of time saving programming techniques. What used to take me 40-50 hours of Programming time for my 160 channel show is now down to 15-20 hours per song. It was worth every penny. Also thank you for including the training manuals as well. They are great to reference back to. Once again thank you for chopping down our programming time. This is going to save us so much time and money.

Sincerely,
Michael de Laar
Holiday Lighting Designs, Inc.


Teaching a class of over 75 in Gatlinburg, TN

Another customer had this to say after attending one of our classes:

Drew,
When I heard how many people were going to be in the class I was a little disappointed because I thought I wouldn't get the same personalized attention as if it were only 10 people. I was also very concerned about the varying degrees of knowledge that I, a brand new LOR user, would be left in the dust and be playing catch up all day long.

I am happy to say that neither of these were the case. I never felt stupid for asking any question and you took the time necessary to answer and fix anything that individuals were having issues with. Although I am still very overwhelmed I am confident with the basics and confident that I can look up the complicated procedures [in the manual] when necessary. The training was very comprehensive and appropriate for someone like myself.

Thanks again and I look forward to using the techniques learned in this class.

Justin Wendzel

And one more testimony:

DREW HICKMAN'S LOR CLASS SAVED THIS NEWBIE!!

This is my family's first year to animate our upcoming Halloween and Christmas display and let me tell ya it has engulfed every moment of our free time...buying, building props, and learning the LOR Software. It has been fun and overwhelming at the same time. Surprisingly, I was able to pick up a lot of what the software was able to do for me on my own. What was missing was how to sequence with the music in an effective manner and how to make that sequence pleasing to the eye. I knew I needed some expert help or I would spend years trying to figure it out and most likely give up.

Well....the Gwyn's NEVER GIVE UP!!! Instead I found Drew Hickman of Holiday Technologies who went through every detail of the LOR software in two full days of instruction. Drew was awesome and extremely patient with everyone in the class. There were no dumb questions and we were all in awe of his knowledge of the industry. I learned exactly what I needed plus a lot more and I do mean a lot. He even took the time to help me figure out my EDM transmitter and gave me some tips on how to make my display more pleasing.

I know Drew has saved me thousands of dollars of mistakes and the good Lord only knows how many hours of programming time. Thank you Drew for making our holidays a lot brighter!!!!

Buffy and Cecil Gwyn


Official Light-O-Rama (LOR) Training course

Possible locations
Phoenix, AZ: date TBD
Northern Ohio: date TBD (we have 3 interested)
Salt Lake City: date TBD
Fayetteville, NC: date TBD

Contact us for additional information and to register!  You can also visit our webstore to register on-line.

Course description: The majority of class time will be spent teaching people how to use the Light-O-Rama (LOR) S6 software suite. Some class time will be spent reviewing the various hardware products and services offered by both Holiday Technologies and LOR. Throughout your time together the LOR-certified instructor will share his real world experiences in setting up and commissioning large commercial displays.  Additionally, he will also teach shortcuts that will save countless hours of wasted time during the busy time of the decorating season.

The course will be divided as follows:

  • Day 1 - Introduction, Technology Overview, Hardware, Software in the suite, Hardware Utility, Sequence Editor
  • Day 2 - Sequence Editor (continued), building shows, Visualizer, advanced training in various topics, including using DMX devices, tips and tricks for increasing the speed and quality of your programming, commercial applications and considerations which can be applied to your display, using RGB lights and pixels in a display using DMX and/or ethernet, and various other advanced topics.

Materials provided: Attendees will be provided with training manuals and a lunch for each day they attend.

Click here to view the Table of Contents from the Training Manual

Hours: 9:00am-5pm on Day 1 and 8:00am-5pm on Day 2

What to bring: Attendees are strongly encouraged to bring a computer with them that has the Light-O-Rama software already installed, some digital pictures of a potential display location, and an audio file or two on their computer. They also need to bring one working light controller, the hardware necessary to connect the controller to their computer, a pair for headphones or earbuds, a power strip, at least three strings of Christmas lights, and an extension cord. If an attendee cannot bring a computer they will be paired with another attendee that has one.

One of the main goals of the course is to allow students the opportunity to start setting up their display on their computer and to program part of an audio file of their choice using several of the major tools available in the LOR S6 software suite.

Costs: Two days of training will cost $349.

Scheduling: Contact Holiday Technologies directly (913.626.6226 or sales@holidaytechnologies.com) to indicate your interest in a class and location. A class will not be scheduled until at least 15 people are willing to attend in a given location and have given us a down payment.  Once this occurs those people who have previously signed up for a particular location will be notified and payment arrangements will be made.

NOTE: Some of the hardware and controllers used in the classes will be made available for sale at the end of the class. Come prepared for some special deals!

We are also looking into offering a special course designed for people who are used to programming using the AL software package and wanting to switch over to using LOR.  Please contact us for additional information.


Custom and Corporate Training
We can tailor our standard training classes to fit any specific needs you may have.  Themes can include architectural as well as holiday, landscape, and even entertainment lighting.

We can come to your location and train your team of installers and technicians, passing on to them all the tips and tricks we have learned through the years when creating and installing displays.  Please contact us for more information, including availability and pricing.

* Trademarks mentioned herein are the property of their respective owners.

 

Products | Services | Showcase | Support | Contact
About | Warranty | Join mailing list


Copyright © 2007-2020 Holiday Technologies, LLC.  All rights reserved.
Privacy Statement | Terms of Use