This is a thread where you can let us know what kind of stuff you're into. Hit the main parts, like what it is, your skill level, etc. Rough pass: -- self-employed contractor for almost 20 years -- provides various tech services, and has a software product for Life Sciences research labs -- currently under contract at Black Box / EA as the internet architect for Need For Speed World Online. -- past work highlights include design/implementation of Amazon.com, online banking systems, government sites, etc My skill set is as follows: -- expert linux/unix system administration, shell scripting, etc -- expert systems and applications architect, specializing in security, fault tolerance, failover, and scalability. As in 40 million global users kind of systems. -- expert Oracle/Java development (RAC specialist), including continuous build systems, auto deployment, etc -- competent SqlServer/C# development, including MS team city tools -- competent Ruby on Rails development -- more than a passing knowledge of C, C++, Perl, PHP, and a few other languages -- linux kernel hacker, including cluster services for Oracle -- reasonable knowledge of a ton of frameworks, including Drupal, Cocoon, Django, Spring, etc. Specialties: -- technical SWAT team. Come in, figure out what's wrong, fix it, hand off to client. -- developing and implementing startup development systems, from issue tracking, documentation, version control, build/test systems, etc. -- telling clients how it is. If they're being stupid, I'll say so. What I don't do: -- fix your computer, unless you spent more than $50k on it -- build you a website if a $5k budget freaks you out. (I cost way, WAY more than that). -- fill out an RFP -- sugar coat my opinions. If you're an idiot, you'll be told you're an idiot. -- work with idiots. -- put up with shit
I'm young so I don't have a whole lot of real world experience, but I've been playing with and fooling around with computers since I was 5 so I've still got a pretty good resource pool to back on: Education / Certs: I'm 3/4 of the way done an HBSci in Computing and Information Systems, as well as will be graduating a local technical school with a diploma in Computer Programming - the latter gave me exposure to database tech (with MySQL and Oracle as well as a fair touch of PL/SQL coding) but not enough to call myself anything resembling experienced. I recently passed my CCNA so I have a fair shake at networking. Work Experience: I've been working at a datacentre / Colocation vacility for three years now as a Systems Operator; or as better termed "do-everything bitch". I build and repair servers hardware (be it a proper rackmount server or some piece of shit Pentium 3 someone's hosting 200 websites off of with Windows 2000), as well as done software support, maintenance and operating system installs on all of those. While saying "I can install windows" is hardly relevant, it's also gotten me a fair bit of experience screwing around with FreeBSD and Linux (though I use linux at home anyway) - We 'officially' support Windows Server 2k3 and 2k8 as well as CentOS and FreeBSD so those tend to be the things I've spent the most time with. Oh and I wired lots of cable under floorboards. Riveting. Hobbies / Shit I care about: I've been formally taught Python, Java, and C# as well as taught myself Perl and feel comfortable screwing around in any of them. While I don't 'know' say, C++, syntactical similarities means I can tell whats going on in code for other languages anyway I like fooling around with Linux but haven't really touched the Kernel with any kind of detail. I'm big on networking, in that I know what I'm doing and like shit organized and done properly. With this generally comes being able to figure out whats wrong. In terms of internets technology I've played with ASP.NET+ADO as well as Java Server pages a fair bit, and with my job at a datacentre I've spent a lot of time configuring IIS, and Apache. Not exactly a huge skill to have but I love doing it so much I really don't care - I built PCs from parts a la ncix/newegg. As said most people can do this these days, but I really enjoy it. On a similar thread I'm a casual overclocker.
Guess I should go ahead and pipe up here. I'm pretty much an entry level code monkey at this point in my life. So far I have a BS in Comp Sci with a minor in mathematics, as well as a 'Graduate Certificate' in software design for video games (basically a masters degree, but I didn't do a Thesis paper or defense, so its not an official masters). Through all that schooling I basically became a C++ power house, although I've been coding in other languages recently so I'm not as proficient as I was. Did a bunch of different stuff like Graphics and Engine programming and some simple scripting language and compiler design, as well as doing some extensive work with the DirectX and OpenGL API's. By the end of school I had built my own 2D and 3D graphics engines (simple ones), as well as a fun little game that ran on the Nintendo DS. Now I'm a .NET programmer at a company out of Central Oklahoma. I feel like its a touch of a step back, but it's a good job that I feel lucky to have seeing as how I had the good fortune of graduating right as this nice big recession was kicking off. Eventually I would like to start expanding my horizons and learn some perl and Javascript and maybe some other stuff, and I could always stand to learn more networking. Outside the world of software, I am an all around technology/gadget nerd. I love building PC's when I get the chance, and hacking around with gadgets and stuff. I of course jailbroke my iPhone, as well as hacking my PSP so that I could play games straight from the memory card, as well as run Super Nintendo emulators, etc.
I'll throw in my qualifications. I'm an Excel bitch. Chances are if you want to know how to do something in Excel, I can tell you how to do it (articulate can not be promised). Education: I have a BS in Economics, but don't use it all that much. The only thing I use from that degree is my minor in stats, which I do simple regression analysis on medical data. I can probably tell you how to use this for any field (and how to get it). I graduated from Univ. of Minnesota in 2006. What I do: As I stated before, I do statistical analysis on medical data. I also build data feeds using T-SQL and reports using SQL Server and Visual Studio. My main focus is reporting - I can tell you how to take raw data and turn it into usable aggregate data points. I can tell you a lot about the following (things I use on a day to day basis): - MS SQL Server Management Studio - MS Visual Studio - Business Objects (6.1 or XI) - Excel I can maybe help answer a question about the following: - VBA (I used to do a lot of programming in this for Excel - dont use it anymore) - MS Access - Minitab - Visio (still use every once and a while) - Tortoise SVN
My main line of work is being a phone/internet guy. I have a 2 year diploma at NAIT for Telecommunication Engineering and have been working in the field for 3 years. I also have my Journeyman cert in Telecommunications (it's an Alberta thing). I have a pretty good knowledge in anything communications; Satellite, AM/FM radio, land line services like phone, DSL, VDSL, fibre systems. Also, microwave services and long line transmission systems. I also have a fair amount of experience with PC's and computer repair.
Cisco guru - about 6 certs all the way to the highest level in different tracks, did tech support at the highest level for VOIP applications on voice gateways. SIP, SIP providers, analog telephony, standards based telephony protocols, and also traditional routing protocols, cisco gear, and all of your run of the mill protocols like telnet, ftp, tcp, etc. Can navigate wireshark pretty well, but please don't ask about fax - it's terrible to work with. Basically, nearly anything cisco I can answer. I love talking about it, in case anyone has questions. About 4 years experience.
I'm a windows server geek. I spent a year as a support flunky with Australia's largest web developer (at the time) and then 8 years with the 5th largest hosting company/6th largest domain registrar in the world doing pretty much every technical job they had involving microsoft technologies, including senior systems engineer and technical lead. I've spent the last 3 years doing e-commerce and mining industry contract crap that paid well until the mining industry in Aus started firing everyone who wasn't a 20 year veteran and i'm currently a senior systems engineer for a contracting group that handles SME's and enterprise groups without an IT division. Primarily, I deploy virtualized platforms using VMware or Xen specializing in HP hardware. Typically we deploy solutions involving robust centralized infrastructure and thin clients. So I do a lot with Exchange/SBS/SQL/Terminal servers and all the general 'We don't have an It guy, here's a wad of money, make it go away' problems that companies who can afford a $50k centralized server solution but not an IT guy have. I have a fairly extensive background in data analysis and database administration and a fairly wide scope of knowledge with Ubuntu and Debian clients and servers as well as Mac's and a history of being the guy who does the weird shit as well as windows admin. I'm reasonably proficient with most database products from Excel up to SAP and have a pretty broad technical grasp of almost everything that uses the internet. Being able to write a coherent sentence, I've also ended up by default as a fairly proficient technical writer. I wrote, re-wrote, edited, updated and maintained every article in the internal and customer facing knowledge base for the hosting company mentioned above and that includes code projects that have been deployed on more then 50,000 websites, articles with more then a million views and extensive contribution to the list of ways that IIS can fuck up in cooperation with Microsoft. I am a decent Cold Fusion developer and a fairly proficient script monkey with VB/Perl/PHP/TSQL/C#/CMD Scripts/Batch Scripts/Kix Scripts and probably a few other things that I'm forgetting. I have the aesthetic sensibilities of a color blind drag queen - but I've done the back end implementation for websites that have received a million+ unique visitors a month in collaboration with a UI designer in the past and a fair number of smaller projects. My current role is a lot more customer facing and a lot less architect and trouble shooter then I'd prefer it to be due to the nature of the group I'm working with. But I get to play with a lot of cool SAN and virtualization solutions while the local market sorts its shit out. I have an incomplete Bachelor of Business degree and a bunch of short base training for random Microsoft/networking products - I've just been fortunate enough to work for employers who were more interested in if I knew what I was doing then qualifications.
With due respect, I don't think anything as complex as Cisco architecture could possibly be mastered to the level of "guru" in 4 years experience. Also, the puffery of "all the way to the highest level" is silly unless you're actually stating that you have a CCIE in multiple paths. Myself, I've done a lot of things in the last decade+. I spent a few years doing freelance support, branching out into webpage design for small businesses. Found it to be too easy to take the day off when working for yourself, and went to work for an ISP as their in-house tech. Found my boss to be an alcoholic (no, seriously, he'd come in with a 12-pack at noon and finish it by 3:00) and his wife to be a lunatic, and left. Worked for several years at a medical device manufacturer writing and executing computer systems validations (like scootah, my ability to write coherent English ended up being put to work), doing some database development work, some Oracle forms work, and eventually found myself in a position where they wanted to promote me but I had no degree and the VP was a stickler for degrees. I left and moved south, went to a university and graduated with a bachelors degree in IT and a bunch of Cisco certifications to go along with it. During and after this time I did IT work for, at first, a couple attorney offices and a bankruptcy trustee and eventually for a contracting company that supported businesses in the area that were too small to have IT departments. I added a tremendous amount to my knowledge of servers during that time - the result of supporting a couple hundred small businesses all with different network/server setups and unique problems. Now I'm working for another medical device manufacturer doing product support and development for their communications, nurse tracking and patient safety product(s) which run entirely through the network. All told, my primary expertise lies in systems administration and networking, but I've picked up a lot of scripting and some programming along the way in various languages, I'm a lot more competent in Excel than I think any normal person should be or want to be, I've got some decent database skills and I've become very good with hardware: enough so that I wish I remembered more from my physics classes on the electrical pathways because I can often see/fix what is wrong but I'd like to know more of the "why."
I felt silly listing acronyms, but yes I'm CCIE certified, and am qualified to take it in another track. It's all I've known since I was very young, for what it's worth. I'm not a master in all tracks, but pretty well seasoned in most technologies except wireless and some of the more specific appliances/modules. No puffery intended, as I know the IT-nerd world is a very easy place to step on toes.
all purpose nerd. Hold MCSE and MCDBA that I don't use. Currently working for an outsourcing company that manages a ton of clients that dont want to dick with having an IT department. On track to complete my CCNA during the first quarter of this year. I've basically been doing deskside support for way way too long which is why the jump toward the Cisco track. Since a couple of you are pretty proficient, where would you recommend I focus after the CCNA is complete?
Getting an actual networking job and putting that certification to actual work. You'll appreciate the change of work and the experience there is a hell of a lot more valuable than the support you're doing now - even if you only end up doing network support. From there either climb the cisco track or find another aspect of IT that interests you.
I'm currently working in house for a large real estate corporation specializing in data centers. I spent the past five years managing a team of technicians providing tiered "remote hands" support for our customers lights-out data centers. In the last year, I've switched companies and now work primarily as a network engineer, specializing in critical facilities network support and design and network security. Certs: CCNA +Security MCSA ShoreTel phone systems (VOIP/SIP) Interests/Skills: VMWare (currently preparing for VCP certification) Linux administration
I'm not super technical but I have been working on podcasting of late so if someone else needs some help getting started with how to record, edit, and publish a podcast I can help them out.
Education -B.S. Economics -B.S. Political Science -Can speak Spanish (fluent), German (Elementary), and Italian (near fluent) Certs -A+ -CISA (Certified Information Security Auditor) -CCNA What I do -Knowledge in C+, JAVA, Perl, HTML, PHP -I'm an IT Auditor now, but Im looking to get into web design and freelance small business support -I also help my company (a large bank) troubleshoot issues with it's Integration Layer What I don't do -Spend hundreds of hours wasting my time fixing simple computer issues for my friends and family who don't pay me anything but expect me to be on call 24/7. Oh wait, I do do that...
Update on this, I've been working as an Oracle DBA for the past six months, mostly on the build side, so I can answer some basic database questions. I've screwed around with Postgres and MySQL on the side.
Education 3/4 of a BBA in CIS (never seemed to finish for some reason, I hate school) Certs -Defunct MSCE (Win2k) -ShoreTel Certified Engineer -Learning Tree Active Directory Advanced Adminsitration -SonicWall network security engineer What I do -IT / VOIP Engineer for a small managed service provider, partner reseller -Telephony -LAN/WAN -Voice and data cabling -Microsoft server admin -CCTV/DVR security systems (BOSCH, PELCO) What I don't do -MAC -CISCO -Coding (fuck coding) I've got 13 years of IT experience, from computer technician, systems admin, and contracting for small to medium sized businesses. I've worked primarily in the automotive and health care sectors. I hate help desk support but for some reason I can't seem to get away from it yet.