Social networking is win!
Maybe. I post links to any new posts on Facebook and AIM. Apparently, people check that stuff.
My boss told me today he caught up on my blog and told me I am a good writer. Later, a coworker told me she overheard and asked me if it was about Systems Administration. I proclaimed, “Nay!” Actually, I just said no, I started it because I had a page-a-day calendar and it felt like I could probably write every day or so and it would be fun.
Quite clearly, things didn’t work out that way.
Most of these posts are stream of consciousness and have to do with something that pops into my head and I think, “OH! That would be cool to write about.”
But today, I declare this will end as a post about Systems Administration! (Be aware, I have been tearing pages off my Car Talk calendar so this could have some terrible jokes and even more terrible references.)
If you or a loved one is thinking they want to go into Systems Administration, it’s important to follow these guidelines:
- Do you/your loved one enjoy staying up late to tinker with computers even though they have to be awake in less than 6 hours?
- Have you/your loved one messed around with various flavors of Linux?
- Have you/your loved one ever attempted to run a website, email, or other Internet services from your home?
- Do you/your loved one enjoy reading books/reports with hundreds of pages of techno-babble while listening to Techno?
If you answered ‘yes’ to one or more of these questions, you may want to consider a career in Systems Administration.
Tips:
- Learn Linux/Windows file structures
- Start tweaking Windows
- ALWAYS BACKUP YOUR FILES
- Learn everything about Windows/Linux services (installing, upgrading, removing, disabling, etc.)
- Database experience helps
- Web server (Apache, Tomcat, IIS (AH!)) experience helps
- Explore the world of scripting languages (bash (Linux), batch (Windows), perl, ruby, the list could go on forever)
- Job scheduling (cron/Windows Scheduler)
- Build your own machine, give it crazy specs and either multi-boot various OSes or load VMWare Server or VirtualBox (personal favorite) and dive into the Wonderful World of Linux
I could think of more but I’m le tired. Don’t be afraid to make mistakes and always know how to revert what you changed. In the case that you can’t revert, be sure there is nothing you care about in whatever you are changing.