Software and programming have come a long way since Alan Chow wandered the halls of La Trobe University. Here, he looks at how education options have changed in this area.

System Integration has changed a lot over the past 20 or so years with technology rapidly evolving to become more feature rich but also more complicated at the same time.

I started out working for a Control4 distributor back in 2006.  In those days integration was quite simple with the majority of devices being infrared based or RS232 based.  Most integrations back then didn’t require a high level of functionality and customer expectations were quite low with the most complicated integration being lighting systems like Clipsal, Dynalite and HPM.

As time progressed, the rise of IoT along with Google, Amazon, Apple based home automation platforms brought about a new era of technology and standards.  Thus we had to evolve with the time and as such in today’s age we are less reliant on low level control like infra-red, relays and contact closures and more reliant on integration via high level communications via IP or RS232 based communications protocols to offer more seamless integration.

Even now RS232 based communications is fading in favour of IP based integration though some people still prefer RS232 based control due to ‘reliability’. This reliability comes from the fact that they can minimise potential issues as there are limited factors that can cause problems to communications – it is a single cable versus IP where it would have to go through network switches and other networking devices.

This isn’t to say that IP communications is inferior to RS232 communications. When setup correctly IP based communications is definitely more scalable and convenient. It can support greater speeds than RS232 meaning that on top of control, IP can send a large amount of data in a relatively short amount of time which is useful for, say, supplying artwork and other meta data for albums, tracks, artists, movies, tv shows and more.

As devices get more and more complicated the skills required to integrate these devices becomes more specialised requiring in-depth IT knowledge.

I studied at La Trobe University and graduated with a Bachelor of Information Systems. Did this degree prepare me for the path I took in my journey? It gave me the foundation of how things worked. It taught me how software works and how I could develop my own software. It taught me how to break down problems, project management skills and how to work in a team.

Back when I did my degree, IoT and home automation weren’t mainstream so the skills I learned were not as applicable as I would have liked. Though universities have now introduced IoT courses with focus on electronics and programming.

For example La Trobe now offers a Masters of IoT where they educate students on IoT cloud data, the impact of IoT technology, IoT programming and system design along with security protocols and privacy rules.

For those of you who don’t want to pay $30,800 on a degree and go through two years of study however, CEDIA is now offering a ‘Programming Specialist’ pathway in the CEDIA Academy which comprises of seven online courses that are designed to get potential programmers up to speed.

This is more relevant to our industry and is designed to upskill integrators who want to master the art of programming.

Systems programming is a challenging discipline that requires attention to detail as well as a methodical approach and the ability to think logically through various scenarios and evaluate multiple possible outcomes. While there are many proprietary software and hardware platforms on the market, the purpose of the courses in the Programming Specialist Pathway is to equip learners with the critical knowledge and skills necessary to successfully write programs regardless of the particular software and hardware specified for a given project.

Additionally, successful integration projects require a thorough process of information gathering, comprehensive analysis of the client’s needs, and thoughtful development of the system design and project plan. Some courses will also focus on the knowledge necessary to develop system designs that can support the connection, control, and automation of multiple subsystems. Also, best practices related to user interface design and the engineering process are discussed in the pathway.

Throughout the courses, learners explore various program languages as well as the command syntax used for common program functions. Learners will also exercise critical thinking skills as they practice writing code examples and evaluating recommendations for efficient and effective coding practices. Learners will leave the Programming Specialist Pathway with the ability to explain the differences between control and automation, knowing the fundamental concepts of device-to-device (D2D) communication, having the ability to identify communication protocols and define common control and network devices.

The introduction of IoT courses at university and CEDIA’s new programming specialist pathway have provided the education required to ensure that our industry has people with necessary skills to keep up with developing software and integrations to match the technology trends.

Hopefully many of you get inspired to take the next step in your careers and invest in your own education to become a programming guru. I look forward to seeing what the next generation of programmers come up with as I’m sure it’ll change the way we interact with technology.