I do not do New Years resolutions, because I know that I usually do not really mean what I resolve to do. There is one thing I am going to dedicate myself to working on this year though, receiving a certification in at least the LPI level 1 certification. The LPI certification program includes three levels of certification, each extremely thorough in it own account, but the payoff is great when one completes the process.
Why would I choose to do this rather than working on a MSCE or A+ certification? It is no secret that Microsoft Windows Server products, and other proprietary software solutions are dying much faster than they are growing. With this known, why would I want to waste time in obtaining these certificates, when in ten years, they will more-than-likely be obsolete. In the meanwhile, Linux server infrastructure is growing faster than ever before. I suspect this has something to do with flexibility, security, and overall financial expense benefit outweighs any modern proprietary systems that were popular in the past.
Christmas 2008, my wife bought me the book “LPI Linux Certification in a Nutshell.” I have had this book on my bookshelf since then, with the intention of studying it and working on a Level 1 certification sooner, but for no other reason than laziness, I have not completed it. Do I see this as an insult to Carrie for buying it for me, and then doing nothing with the resources she supplied me with? Yes I do. So to make it right, I am going to dedicate myself to completing this book, not just reading through it, but actually studying and learning the information included within its cover. After that, I plan to find a test center somewhere, take the test, and hopefully pass. This would only be test one of three, but it is a start, and a good goal to set for now.
Linux administration jobs have increased more than eighty percent over the past five years, and this is expected to grow even more as proprietary systems become more expensive, and none the more secure. Companies do not like vendor lock-in, and are pulling away from this old, re-skinned, proprietary computer systems that have been force fed for years and years.
With this outlook, I would like to get in on the fun, and do what I want to do, and enjoy doing now.
One final thing I would like to do is use my newest domain – highlytechnical.net – as a high level tips and trick site with the information I gain as part of the LPI course(s). Looking forward to the learning experience to come.
Good blog entry. (soapbox on) Certs are all well and good but I can tell you first hand that they aren’t everything. They allow you to test your knowledge on non-real-world scenarios; however, both you and I know first hand that every network, every computer, every switch, and every router is different in how it behaves based on any one of a number of variables. “Lab” knowledge won’t get you too far whether it’s in the Linux world, the Mac world, or the Windows world. “Real-world” knowledge is the best, by far, and there’s only one way to get it. I’m a Windows guy, yes, but you know how long I’ve been working with Windows (all the way since 3.1 back in the day and every version since then) and that I can pretty much tell you how it’s going to act given a certain scenario and configuration. I’ve no doubt you’re the same way with Linux. (soapbox off) That’s always been my gripe with certifications and how employers prefer those with certs to those without: practical, real-world knowledge beats any other knowledge any day of the week. Cheers.
I want to get certified more to add to my personal knowledge, rather than just to get a job. I want to know as much as I possibly can, so I can gain the experience that employers are actually looking forward. I agree with you completely on the “certs-for-jobs” thing where you have the theory, but not the application. I see the LPI certification as more of a stepping stone (large one at that) rather than just read and regurgitate type of non-sense that goes on all to often. Experience is great, but a little theory can’t hurt either.