I think a large part of a lot of people's "attraction" to celebrities is the fact that they *are* real. They make mistakes (drunk driving, salary disputes) just like everyone else. There is a large subsection of the population that thrives off of E TV and People Magazine and all the gossip that goes with that stuff.
If you stop and look at it, your average group project is kind of teaching the lessons of the work place. I know where I went to school we usually had a group project in each class. You learned over time who you'd like to work with and who you wouldn't. Some people were satisfied with a C... just like in the workplace (you know the guys.. the ones that *aren't* reading slashdot with their morning coffee but salon.com/sex instead). There are people who want to do well but are just dumbasses (like the girl in my third year project who was not aware that you had to "unzip" some files and had no grasp of an "object" despite three years of java homework) and you hope these guys aren't hired in the first place. Then there are the guys I usually never see in the workplace: the guy who knows nothing and is convinced it will be easier to spend his career getting the work from someone else rather then actually doing it. (One guy we worked with once insisted he did not know how set two columns in a MS Word document).
So group work kind of prepares you for all the loonies in the end. Depending on how much drive you have you can still do well with a team of dolts.. or you can do just enough to get by.. or if the team really clicks you can excel. Just like the workplace.
The current issue of Wired Magazine is also featuring Google in an article about it's marketing and advertising sales strategies.. good read, but not available on the net yet..
In relation to this question of how to interview someone for a SysAdmin position.. how do you *become* a sysadmin?? I've had a number of programming positions, I am very farmiliar with windows and *nix systems. I use Linux all the time. BUT, I don't have any experience in maintaining a network other than a home network. At the end of the day I think system administration is the sort of thing I would prefer to be doing (interaction with people, new challenges on a frequent basis, etc) rather than coding java all day every day but I don't know how to enter that sort of field. How do I market myself as a SysAdmin? Where can I get (real world) experience? Any suggestions?
"I don't want the world, I just want your half"
My experience (and friends experience) thus far is this: follow-up, follow-up, follow-up. The larger the company, the slower the HR people are. If you send your resume, call them to make sure they got it. If they got your resume, go in and see if they've read it. If they've read your resume beat them over the head till they hire you. Seriously.. you might end up irritating 15% of these people but the other 85% will remember your initiative and more importantly your name and face. When sorting through 100 resumes yours will stick out and hopefully they'll call you instead of the other guy.
Also, when a company says "4 years exp." they are often wishfully thinking too. If you have two years exp, give it a whirl anyway. Almost every person I have known who has gotten a job has had less exp than the employer was looking for.
good luck..
Slashdot Mirror
I think a large part of a lot of people's "attraction" to celebrities is the fact that they *are* real. They make mistakes (drunk driving, salary disputes) just like everyone else. There is a large subsection of the population that thrives off of E TV and People Magazine and all the gossip that goes with that stuff.
If you stop and look at it, your average group project is kind of teaching the lessons of the work place. I know where I went to school we usually had a group project in each class. You learned over time who you'd like to work with and who you wouldn't. Some people were satisfied with a C... just like in the workplace (you know the guys.. the ones that *aren't* reading slashdot with their morning coffee but salon.com/sex instead). There are people who want to do well but are just dumbasses (like the girl in my third year project who was not aware that you had to "unzip" some files and had no grasp of an "object" despite three years of java homework) and you hope these guys aren't hired in the first place. Then there are the guys I usually never see in the workplace: the guy who knows nothing and is convinced it will be easier to spend his career getting the work from someone else rather then actually doing it. (One guy we worked with once insisted he did not know how set two columns in a MS Word document).
So group work kind of prepares you for all the loonies in the end. Depending on how much drive you have you can still do well with a team of dolts.. or you can do just enough to get by.. or if the team really clicks you can excel. Just like the workplace.
The current issue of Wired Magazine is also featuring Google in an article about it's marketing and advertising sales strategies.. good read, but not available on the net yet..
In relation to this question of how to interview someone for a SysAdmin position.. how do you *become* a sysadmin?? I've had a number of programming positions, I am very farmiliar with windows and *nix systems. I use Linux all the time. BUT, I don't have any experience in maintaining a network other than a home network. At the end of the day I think system administration is the sort of thing I would prefer to be doing (interaction with people, new challenges on a frequent basis, etc) rather than coding java all day every day but I don't know how to enter that sort of field. How do I market myself as a SysAdmin? Where can I get (real world) experience? Any suggestions? "I don't want the world, I just want your half"
My experience (and friends experience) thus far is this: follow-up, follow-up, follow-up. The larger the company, the slower the HR people are. If you send your resume, call them to make sure they got it. If they got your resume, go in and see if they've read it. If they've read your resume beat them over the head till they hire you. Seriously.. you might end up irritating 15% of these people but the other 85% will remember your initiative and more importantly your name and face. When sorting through 100 resumes yours will stick out and hopefully they'll call you instead of the other guy. Also, when a company says "4 years exp." they are often wishfully thinking too. If you have two years exp, give it a whirl anyway. Almost every person I have known who has gotten a job has had less exp than the employer was looking for. good luck..