The Blender Foundation has released a series of 25 instruction videos aimed at new Blender users. It covers everything from user interface concepts, modeling tools and rendering (animation doesn't seem to be included at this point but might get added at a later date).
The videos are produced by Dillon Goo.
I have a LONG history with Blender - I wrote some of the earliest Blender tutorials, worked for Not a Number and helped run the crowdfunding campaign that open sourced Blender (the first one on the internet!). I founded BlenderNation in 2006 and have been editing it every single day since then ;-) I also run the Blender Artists forum and I'm Head of Community at Sketchfab.
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At long last, some official Blender Foundation educational content. This is the single most important step the Blender Foundation could have taken to secure new users. If the Blender UI menu includes a direct link to this content, it might just have prevented 75% of day-one uninstalls.
Now Blender just needs a basic material library to get the new user to their first shiny rendered default cube.
Never heard of BlenderCookie? Official Blender Foundation educational content has been available there for years, featuring the actual Blender Foundation staff and instructors such as Jonathon Williamson and Kent Trammell.
Blender Cookie is not related to Blender Foundation.
The only institutions related to Blender Foundation are Blender Institute, Blender Animation Studio and Blender Network. Blender Cloud is a service provided by the Blender Institute/Studio. The only "staff" of Blender Foundation is the CEO, Ton. And Anja for the e-shop/accountancy.
This is the first time training of this type is created officially (that's why is delivered for free on the official Blender YouTube channel). In the past, there was the 'Open Movie Workshops' created by members of the open movie projects produced by Blender Institute (that's why they live now in Blender Cloud).
People seem to think that Blender Cookie, Blender Guru, Blender Nation, Blender Market and others are related to Blender because of the name, but they are all independent companies like any other that happen to use the software and sometimes contribute financially.
It's a bit confusing but not as bad as it used to be, we're working hard to make this clear.
I knew that Andrew Price's channel wasn't a part of it, but I'm actually quite surprised to find out that CGCookie's staff are not officially Blender Foundation. Learned something new today after all.
I thought that the 2.8 project will change the UI forever? It renders this tutorial useless for newbies? Am I right?