I put motion sensors in the walk-in closets so the lights come on when you go in and stay on for 5 minutes. I did the same in the laundry room. The light beside my bed comes on at 10pm so I can turn off the lights on the way to bed and still have light at my destination. Automation should be for convenience. If you're living with your smartphone next to you, then maybe controlling your lights with them is fine. I put the basement lights on X10 and had a switch at the top of the stairs. Then I can do an "all lights off" before going to bed without having to go down and check them all.
I too am glad to see more of the nerd and less of the news. I've been encouraging my boys using the book, 'From Transitors to Tetris' (don't have the exact title as the book isn't handy).
This is an important, fundamental skill - knowing how the technology works and not just picking up a game boy and playing for hours (back in my day that was the reward for building a system).
Amen. There are plenty of things you will do in life that seem pointless - think of all that "literature" you had to read in high school, but you have to labor through it.
I agree. This is a good option and the current cameras can take hundreds of photos and some can even shoot video. They work day/night and are weather proof.
I made the shift from technical worked to management almost 15 years ago. I didn't want to make the move, I enjoyed the technology and keeping things running smoothly, optimizing not only code but processes. My manager and I had a series of discussions around this as she was inviting me to the "dark side". What opened my eyes and helped me find the challenge was when she pointed out that people, like machines, have optimal configurations and they differ for each system. What motivates an individual, what is their capacity at a given time, what external influences are operating on them, what is broken or in need of being upgraded? Once I understood that I could apply what I enjoyed about technology to people, I was interested in making the move. That said, you have to commit to it. You need to learn about yourself and what kind of person you are. What are your strengths and weaknesses and how do you compensate for them. Myers/Briggs and all those personality tests can help. Just like you know a technology or programming environment inside and out, you have to make the same commitment to learning the people environment. And it has little to do with being social. You have to learn about the different types of leadership and how/when to apply them in various situations. You have to learn about understanding what motivates people/groups and how to motivate them. You have to learn how people (and personality types) relate to each other and how to build a diverse team. You have to learn how to lead from behind, but also to be there to take the bullet for your team - they get the credit, you take the blame.
If you don't want to do your part to become the best leader you can, then don't make the move. You'll be giving up your technical skills and if you're doing this right, you'll keep just enough information to be a check/balance against your team. As you move up the ladder, you'll be exposed to different groups and you need to understand how they work and what their needs/motivations are - development, operations, networking, security, etc.
Find a manager you want to be like and ask them to mentor you while you're learning.
This will seem odd - but the Boy Scouts of America offer leader training for their volunteers. You'll have to get cursorily involved in Scouting to participate. One is called Woodbadge and to take it you need to complete some initial training (Scoutmaster Leader Training, Intro to Outdoor Leader skills). These classes are usually available locally. There is also a training center located in Philmont (north eastern New Mexico) that offers training on the national level. I have attended several management training classes through the different companies I have worked for, some costing thousands of dollars, as well as the scout leader training and it is definitely comparable and in some ways better. Helping a teenager learn to manage his peers and watching their struggles has taught me a lot about managing and directing a team of "professionals".
Mathematics Made Difficult by Carl Linderholm. I read this book in high school and when I didn't get something, I took the time to look it. I just went to see if I could find a copy and for some reason their priced at over $100. Pretty good for a book written in 1972.
My boss gave me this advice just before my wedding, "Marriage is for life. For Murder, you only get 7 years". Sure enough 8 years later, he told me, "you'd be out by now..."
One reason for security is competitive advantage. In your case you could define that as the value add on the collecting of the data. Yes at a low level you can make the information available to them in a safe a secure manner. This thread is full of good ideas. It sounds like you are looking for a reason not to share the data and from a competitive advantage point of view, you collect the data and make a subset of it available to them. You may have other customer information in the same database, you may have data fields that you don't want to share, etc. In any event if it's your information and you must provide what you want to share with them.
You can also offer "more data" for a cost and pass along the additional work you'll have to do to protect the information.
I learned a method called targeted selection. While the full process does not apply to what you're doing, the types of questions asked are. Typical questions are phrased in the form, "tell me about a time when...". Encourage the candidate to tell you about one of their experiences and how they approached/solved it. For example, "In this job you will encounter problems that require cooperation from multiple departments. Tell me about a time when you were presented with such a problem and how you approached solving it." Listen to the answer closely. What you are looking for is not a right/wrong answer. What you are listening for are things like, how did he communicate? did he tell people how to solve it or did he build consensus? how did he delegate? etc. If you build a list of 5 or 6 of these questions and listen, document, and review the answers, you will get a feel for the type of person they are and how they will respond.
search on targeted selection and see what you can find out.
I have had this problem in the past. I was working 80 hour weeks trying to catch up and the reward for doing a good job is more work. The answer is strong management support. I worked with my boss to define my responsibilities and what was expected (SLAs for network and server uptime, maintenance windows for changes, a patch management process, help desk duties, important projects or initiatives, etc). I then tracked time against those and reported status regularly. When a new assignment comes up or work comes over the wall, I assign it a priority (with the help of the requester) and I take it to my manager and ask him what work I shouldn't do in order to get this new task done.
This approach led to the hiring of two more people and the realization that not everything can be done at once. Management appreciated it because it showed them where their IT costs were and helped them prioritize.
I love to work the holiday weeks (Thanksgiving and Christmas). No one is in the office and I can catch up on most of my work. I'm taking vacation next week instead, when everyone returns and the work starts pouring in again.
This is relaxing. In these weeks, work=vacation. Everyone here is relaxed and here for the same reason, to catch up. Unless, they're the new guys who have no vacation...
I spent hours learning to program my 41-CV. I still use it regularly, though I have been tempted by the TI. I still have that synthetic programming book, though I admit I haven't used it in 15 years.
My HP-41 carried me through the EE weedout courses and made Statics and Dynamics a little less stressful.
I haven't worked a 40 hour week in 10 years. I have either had a pager or in the last year, a cell phone. I have a laptop that goes every where with me, when I'm not dialing in, I'm catching up on my reading materials (currently standing at 1200 pages). I have averaged about 3000 hours per year (with @ 2000 hours equaling 40 hours/week for 50 weeks). In my definition of work I include anything having to do with work, even thinking about work (we are the knowledge brokers).
Slashdot Mirror
Immigrate.
And these systems must be pretty reliable, they don't make them like they used to.
I believe it occurred in the Alderan system...
I put motion sensors in the walk-in closets so the lights come on when you go in and stay on for 5 minutes. I did the same in the laundry room. The light beside my bed comes on at 10pm so I can turn off the lights on the way to bed and still have light at my destination. Automation should be for convenience. If you're living with your smartphone next to you, then maybe controlling your lights with them is fine. I put the basement lights on X10 and had a switch at the top of the stairs. Then I can do an "all lights off" before going to bed without having to go down and check them all.
"Fairie tales don't tell children that dragons exist. They already know that. They tell children that dragons can be killed." (G.K. Chesterton)
I too am glad to see more of the nerd and less of the news. I've been encouraging my boys using the book, 'From Transitors to Tetris' (don't have the exact title as the book isn't handy).
This is an important, fundamental skill - knowing how the technology works and not just picking up a game boy and playing for hours (back in my day that was the reward for building a system).
xyzzy
Now I don't have to lose as much weight as I thought. I feel lighter already. I can put my gym fees toward supporting global warming...
Amen. There are plenty of things you will do in life that seem pointless - think of all that "literature" you had to read in high school, but you have to labor through it.
I can loan you my QEMM settings file so you can load the drivers and still have enough memory to load Quake...
sans.org - there are a number of digests they have and their security training is excellent.
I agree. This is a good option and the current cameras can take hundreds of photos and some can even shoot video. They work day/night and are weather proof.
I made the shift from technical worked to management almost 15 years ago. I didn't want to make the move, I enjoyed the technology and keeping things running smoothly, optimizing not only code but processes. My manager and I had a series of discussions around this as she was inviting me to the "dark side". What opened my eyes and helped me find the challenge was when she pointed out that people, like machines, have optimal configurations and they differ for each system. What motivates an individual, what is their capacity at a given time, what external influences are operating on them, what is broken or in need of being upgraded? Once I understood that I could apply what I enjoyed about technology to people, I was interested in making the move. That said, you have to commit to it. You need to learn about yourself and what kind of person you are. What are your strengths and weaknesses and how do you compensate for them. Myers/Briggs and all those personality tests can help. Just like you know a technology or programming environment inside and out, you have to make the same commitment to learning the people environment. And it has little to do with being social. You have to learn about the different types of leadership and how/when to apply them in various situations. You have to learn about understanding what motivates people/groups and how to motivate them. You have to learn how people (and personality types) relate to each other and how to build a diverse team. You have to learn how to lead from behind, but also to be there to take the bullet for your team - they get the credit, you take the blame.
If you don't want to do your part to become the best leader you can, then don't make the move. You'll be giving up your technical skills and if you're doing this right, you'll keep just enough information to be a check/balance against your team. As you move up the ladder, you'll be exposed to different groups and you need to understand how they work and what their needs/motivations are - development, operations, networking, security, etc.
Find a manager you want to be like and ask them to mentor you while you're learning.
This will seem odd - but the Boy Scouts of America offer leader training for their volunteers. You'll have to get cursorily involved in Scouting to participate. One is called Woodbadge and to take it you need to complete some initial training (Scoutmaster Leader Training, Intro to Outdoor Leader skills). These classes are usually available locally. There is also a training center located in Philmont (north eastern New Mexico) that offers training on the national level. I have attended several management training classes through the different companies I have worked for, some costing thousands of dollars, as well as the scout leader training and it is definitely comparable and in some ways better. Helping a teenager learn to manage his peers and watching their struggles has taught me a lot about managing and directing a team of "professionals".
Mathematics Made Difficult by Carl Linderholm. I read this book in high school and when I didn't get something, I took the time to look it. I just went to see if I could find a copy and for some reason their priced at over $100. Pretty good for a book written in 1972.
http://www.amazon.com/Mathematics-made-difficult-Carl-Linderholm/dp/0529045524/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1234144871&sr=8-1
My boss gave me this advice just before my wedding, "Marriage is for life. For Murder, you only get 7 years". Sure enough 8 years later, he told me, "you'd be out by now..."
One reason for security is competitive advantage. In your case you could define that as the value add on the collecting of the data. Yes at a low level you can make the information available to them in a safe a secure manner. This thread is full of good ideas. It sounds like you are looking for a reason not to share the data and from a competitive advantage point of view, you collect the data and make a subset of it available to them. You may have other customer information in the same database, you may have data fields that you don't want to share, etc. In any event if it's your information and you must provide what you want to share with them.
You can also offer "more data" for a cost and pass along the additional work you'll have to do to protect the information.
good luck.
This looks like an ideal place to spread FUD and provide a fertile breeding ground for conspiracy theories.
I learned a method called targeted selection. While the full process does not apply to what you're doing, the types of questions asked are. Typical questions are phrased in the form, "tell me about a time when...". Encourage the candidate to tell you about one of their experiences and how they approached/solved it. For example, "In this job you will encounter problems that require cooperation from multiple departments. Tell me about a time when you were presented with such a problem and how you approached solving it." Listen to the answer closely. What you are looking for is not a right/wrong answer. What you are listening for are things like, how did he communicate? did he tell people how to solve it or did he build consensus? how did he delegate? etc. If you build a list of 5 or 6 of these questions and listen, document, and review the answers, you will get a feel for the type of person they are and how they will respond.
search on targeted selection and see what you can find out.
Great, now when I'm getting spammed, I'm going to be able to get additional adds for .
8 something...
I have had this problem in the past. I was working 80 hour weeks trying to catch up and the reward for doing a good job is more work. The answer is strong management support. I worked with my boss to define my responsibilities and what was expected (SLAs for network and server uptime, maintenance windows for changes, a patch management process, help desk duties, important projects or initiatives, etc). I then tracked time against those and reported status regularly. When a new assignment comes up or work comes over the wall, I assign it a priority (with the help of the requester) and I take it to my manager and ask him what work I shouldn't do in order to get this new task done.
This approach led to the hiring of two more people and the realization that not everything can be done at once. Management appreciated it because it showed them where their IT costs were and helped them prioritize.
If you have any legitimate business with AT&T be sure to call them around the times mentioned in the memo. They'll be extra cautious then.
I love to work the holiday weeks (Thanksgiving and Christmas). No one is in the office and I can catch up on most of my work. I'm taking vacation next week instead, when everyone returns and the work starts pouring in again.
This is relaxing. In these weeks, work=vacation. Everyone here is relaxed and here for the same reason, to catch up. Unless, they're the new guys who have no vacation...
I spent hours learning to program my 41-CV. I still use it regularly, though I have been tempted by the TI. I still have that synthetic programming book, though I admit I haven't used it in 15 years.
My HP-41 carried me through the EE weedout courses and made Statics and Dynamics a little less stressful.
I haven't worked a 40 hour week in 10 years. I have either had a pager or in the last year, a cell phone. I have a laptop that goes every where with me, when I'm not dialing in, I'm catching up on my reading materials (currently standing at 1200 pages). I have averaged about 3000 hours per year (with @ 2000 hours equaling 40 hours/week for 50 weeks). In my definition of work I include anything having to do with work, even thinking about work (we are the knowledge brokers).