Having done the course. it is valuable. It builds a foundation on which other stuff can be built.
What is annoying howevr isa set of regulations that are built like a photographic negative - whatever is not prohibited, and most everything is, might be legal if there is not some overlapping regulation that closes that avenue of compliance.
Take part 91 for example; if an aircraft is fitted with a beacon, it is an offense to start an engine without switching it on.
What happens if it goes U/S in flight or after you have already examined it during your pre flight? You have no entry in the MR about the defect, and it is unclear to me if the aircraft would even be allowed to fly.
The obvious solution is therefore to remove the beacon completely.
Cessna seems to have also adopted this stratagem. There are now no landing and takeoff charts in the c172 POH - just short field charts.