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Jim, hoping to unwind in a country setting while
telecommuting, asked which of these courses we
think he should take:
>1.) A hands-on Windows 2000 systems administration course,
>in which one
>learns the ins and outs of installing the OS, and also how to
>configure and
>troubleshoot aspects such as Active Directory, DNS, IP
>Routing, RAS, etc.
>2.) A course on creating dynamic web sites, the content of which is
>database-driven. Technologies used: ASP, XML, SQL, Perl, and
>javascript.
I reply that I've taken the odd few courses (though
usually seminar/workshop stuff, a few days long) over
the years, and for most of them, the only benefit I
ever derived was, it "Looks Good On A Resume" (LGOAR :-).
For me, when I study something, I retain it only if I
can use it. If I can't use it within a few months, it
all leaks out of my head, except some basic concepts
and trivia. I might still have a nice, crisp certificate,
but (for example) I wouldn't even pretend to be an
SQL System Administrator. Gawd-forbid, somebody were
to actually ask me to set up an enterprise SQL database...
eeek! That, and several other things I've taken over
the years either were taken in anticipation of
job-related developments that never arrived, or were
taken 'on-spec' or in error because the content didn't
reflect the scope of what we eventually did at work.
(E.g. with the SQL stuff, I ended up being an SQL
DB Admin and SCRIPTER for a while, but didn't really
do any of the underlying Sys Admin... they hired
somebody else to do that part.)
A few times, I've found myself on beginner courses,
when my knowledge and skill was far beyond the course
level, simply because big-company bureaucracy had
slotted me into a course vacancy many months *after*
I had already self-learned what I needed to do the job.
On rare occasions, the training I took actually coincided
with an opportunity to use it on the job. I either learned
some tool skills that I could put to work (and thus retain)
or I learned a better way (theoretical/general) of approaching
(say) documentation or customer support, and then I used
that to revamp my overall methodology. Fine.
So, my question to Jim would be:
If you take one or the other, will you have any
opportunity to put it into practice? Or will it
soon turn into a fading LGOAR item?
Which way do your interests lie? Do you know which
companies might hire you to telecommute from your
idyllic country setting?
Just off-hand, I'd suggest that maybe the web-related
stuff might be more suitable to write/create-from-anywhere
job opportunities. Jobs documenting system-admin stuff
might want your on-site presence.
I'm not actually suggesting that you be able to provide
a crisp, clear, final answer to those questions. They're
just some back-of-mind prodding kinds of questions to
get you thinking about pros and cons as related to:
a) what you'd like to do and
b) what you can realistically expect companies to want.
Why not do a "Ben Franklin"?
You know, put both options at the top of a sheet of paper
and then tote up the pros and cons of each.
Then assign numerical weights (your personal weighting
and your estimates of the employment world's weighting)
to each pro or con.
Then do the arithmetic.
One option will probably stand out. Certainly the exercise
will clarify for you what you want to achieve.
A landmark hotel, one of America's most beautiful cities, and
three and a half days of immersion in the state of the art:
IPCC 01, Oct. 24-27 in Santa Fe. http://ieeepcs.org/2001/
+++ Miramo -- Database/XML publishing automation. See us at +++
+++ Seybold SFO, Sept. 25-27, in the Adobe Partners Pavilion +++
+++ More info: http://www.axialinfo.comhttp://www.miramo.com +++
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