We can guess that you probably enjoy fairly practical work - a 'hands-on' type. Usually, the trial of reading reference books and manuals can be just about bared when essential, but it's not ideal. You should use video and multimedia based materials if book-based learning really isn't your style. Where we can involve all our senses in the learning process, our results will often be quite spectacular.

Find a course where you'll get a host of CD and DVD ROM's - you'll learn by watching video tutorials and demonstrations, and then have the opportunity to practice your skills in interactive lab's. Be sure to get a training material demonstration from any training college. The materials should incorporate slide-shows, instructor-led videos and interactive labs where you get to practice.

Select disc based courseware (On CD or DVD) wherever available. Thus avoiding all the issues associated with broadband 'downtime' or slow-speeds.

If you simply want to have a good understanding of how to work with a computer for basic operations, the European Computer Driving Licence is the best course for you. It will teach you how to run the standard components of Windows (the system that runs most personal PC's.) You will discover the way to log-in to the internet, and the way to get on to and find your way around websites and handle emails. You'll also cover the fundamentals of word processing plus a bit about what spreadsheets and databases are generally used for.

In order to increase your skill-set for career-related purposes, you might want to take some more official training. The most popular of these is more advanced instruction in Microsoft 'Office'. By far the most practical commercial accreditations teaching 'Office' are Microsoft 'Office Specialist' and Microsoft Certified Application Specialist (recognised respectively as 'MOS' & MCAS). The 'MOS' features the Microsoft 'Office' 2003 environment under Windows 'XP' (still probably the most commonly used in business), whereas the 'MCAS' features 'Windows Vista' & Office 2007, so could be better placed for the long run. Both qualification paths contain individual exams across the key Microsoft 'Office' applications: 'Word' (word-processing), 'Excel' (spread-sheets), "Access" (data-bases) & "Powerpoint" (presentations.) Both are well-respected exams & help make it simple for employers to appreciate your advanced expertise with the packages.

Get rid of a salesman that recommends a training program without an in-depth conversation to gain understanding of your current abilities plus your level of experience. Ensure that they have a large product range so they can give you an appropriate solution. With a little work-based experience or base qualifications, you could discover that your appropriate starting-point is not the same as someone new to the industry. It's usual to start with a user-skills course first. This can often make the slope up to the higher-levels a much more gentle.

Huge changes are flooding technology in the near future - and the industry becomes more ground-breaking every year. We're at the dawn of beginning to get to grips with how all this will mould and change our lives. The way we correlate with the world as a whole will be inordinately affected by computers and the web.

And don't forget salaries either - the income on average across the UK for the usual IT professional is much greater than remuneration packages in other sectors. It's a good bet that you'll receive a whole lot more than you would in most other jobs. As the IT industry keeps emerging at an unprecedented rate, it's looking good that the need for well trained and qualified IT technicians will remain buoyant for decades to come.

All programs you're considering should always lead to a widely recognised accreditation as an end-goal - not some little 'in-house' plaque for your wall. All the major IT organisations such as Microsoft, CompTIA, Adobe or Cisco have internationally renowned skills programmes. These heavyweights will give some sparkle to your CV.

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