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Learning Resources

 Web resources

Building & Construction Toolbox - an online learning resource covering topics that include tiling, plastering, brick/block laying and painting & decorating.

Building Skills Toolbox - an online learning resource developed to support delivery of parts of the General Construction Training Package.

Buildsoft - develops and markets software for the building & construction industry.

Cement Concrete & Aggregates Australia (CCAA) - provides are range of building finishes information under the Finishes drop-down menu.

Copper Development Corporation - provides plumbing publications for download.

CSIRO Manufacturing & Materials Technology - provides an extensive range of online brochures.

GreenPlumbers - provides consumer information, a product directory and courses for registered plumbers.

Infotile - provides a range of technical papers for download.

Lead Reference Centre - provides a range of information & resources.

Make it Mud Bricks - information about making and using mud bricks.

MasterPlumbers.com - great site for plumbing that is well worth a browse and as well this site contains a large number of quality industry links.

NATSPEC - a comprehensive national building specification system endorsed by government and professional bodies.

Paint Australia - provides a range of informative articles and facts sheets.

PlumbingWorld.com - abbreviations & conversion tables for plumbing.

SAI Global: Building - access the latest Standards Australia publications (for sale).

TAFE Studylinks: Building & Construction - access additional websites for plastering, plumbing, signcraft, tiling, etc.

The Tile Doctor - information tile installation, design concepts, and maintenance.

Think Brick Australia - includes a Reference Library section.

Tile and Stone Tips - information on many aspects of tiling.

Waste Minimisation Guidelines - a series of free guidelines (in Acrobat PDF format) for people who work in the building industry. 

Your Home Technical Manual - a guide to environmentally sustainable homes.

 Other information

Additional information for this area may available via the wide variety of social software (link to Wikipedia) & other Internet services where people share their knowledge and connect/collaborate/communicate with others around the world who have similar interests. Some of these services (with main links to Wikipedia articles) are: 

• Wikis where information is published online through the collaborative input of many people - this information is then available for all to access & edit.
    • wikipedia  - an encyclopaedia with versions in a number of languages
    • wikispaces - used by individuals, education & special interest groups   
   
• Blogs (or web logs) are essentially online journals or diaries presented in reverse chronological order. Groups often use them to promote informal discussion on particular topics or issues.
    • blogger - search for relevant blogs with keywords of your choice
   
• RSS - this is a way of having a summary of information (or feeds) 'delivered' to your web browser or aggregator as it becomes available from online newspapers, magazines or special interest websites.
    • bloglines - an excellent way of managing your RSS subscriptions or Feeds
    
• Social bookmarking sites where users post their list of bookmarks (or favourite websites) for others to search and view. There are specialised services for particular interest groups.
    • del.icio.us is perhaps the best known general social bookmaking service
   
• Newsgroups & mailing lists are older types of Internet services (or forums) which are mainly used these days by special interest groups.
    • tile.net allows you to do keyword searches of these services

To find out more about these and the many other online information services available, explore Wikipedia further as well as its related Wikimedia Foundation projects.

For this program area the following forum may be of interest:

• Infotile.com - floor and wall tiling related forums

 Teaching resources

Curriculum Centres provide information and resources for TAFE NSW educational staff relating to this area on their Intranet website - this is only accessible to staff from within the TAFE NSW computer network.

Last updated: 12 February, 2008

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