training (was Resourceful BSD/Linux Network Administrator)

[Glenn Sieb]

Dru said the following on 7/2/2004 10:16 PM:

> And modern education systems are getting worse, not better. Since I 
> entered the training scene in 1997, I've seen 3 year curriculums get 
> cut down to 4 months. Government programs, scholarships, and bursary 
> programs slashed down to pittances. Apparantly, IT isn't as hot as it 
> used to be. Worse, many who are hiring prefer someone with only 4 
> months of training and a superficial understanding of what they're 
> being paid to do. That way they'll follow their scripts 
> unquestioningly and not complain at being paid $10 an hour.

I knew a guy back in the mid 90s who, while on Unemployment, decided to 
go to some training and become an MCSE. Of course, NJ Unemployment only 
cared about the *placement* rate the schools had, not whether they were 
worth their salt. So he got his MCSE, and landed a job working 50+ hours 
a week, tied to a pager 24x7 for a whole $25,000 a year. In metropolitan 
NJ. I had even advised him about how much an MCSE would add to his 
worth, and such, but he was offered the job and had to accept it (back 
then they had very totalitarian rules about such things with 
Unemployment in NJ). And he justified it by saying he had no experience 
anyway. Even though he aced all his tests. And yes, I know, book 
learning <> real world. But the fact that he _aced_ them counts for 
something. He hadn't passed by the skin of his teeth like a lot of 
people who go to such classes do. He bothered to actually play with the 
OS and learn it in addition to what he was doing in class.  I lost track 
of him soon after he started his new job. I often wonder how he turned 
out--did he succeed or did he burn out? :-/.

> I'd love to see a forum established to discuss how to bring quality 
> BSD training to the masses. To create a curriculum that is practical, 
> thought provoking, and available. However, freebsd-jobs isn't the 
> place to hash it out. Anyone care to suggest a better place to 
> continue on this thread?

I, for one, would love to partake. I'm no you or Tom Limoncelli or Greg 
Lehey, but I can hopefully share what I've learned over the past few 
years, both at Lumeta, and on the experiences I've had on my personal 
server. :)  As the old saying goes.. "Hey! It's another learning 
experience!" :)

And--by the way--*kudos* on the new book! I've been a fan of your OnLamp 
series for a while now, and was waiting for this book with baited 
breath! :) Very nice job indeed! [In case you missed it, Dru's _BSD 
Hacks_ was recently released by O'Reilly!]

Best,
Glenn

-- 
"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary 
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety.  
          ~Benjamin Franklin, Historical Review of Pennsylvania, 1759

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