On Mon, 22 Jan 2007 23:51:35 +0100 (CET), DanS
<t.h.i.s.n.t.h.a.t@a.d.e.l.p.h.i.a.n.e.t> wrote:

>Jeff Liebermann <jeffl@comix.santa-cruz.ca.us> wrote in
>news:ler8r25f22h38suaho4akmrh06rcnjtsa1@4ax.com :
>
>> dotan_ak@yahoo.com hath wroth:
>>
>> Ever consider the possibilty that you can't figure it out because you
>> have a CCNA? Just a thought.

>DOH !!!

Well, there does seem to be some confusion here between cause and
effect. Troubleshooting expertise is not obtained by studying for and
passing exams. It's obtained by getting one's hands dirty and
developing an understanding of how things really work. My theory is
that once one understands how something works, the troubleshooting is
merely the systematic elimination of probable causes[1]. The
inability to get one's hands dirty and get real experience is also why
phone tech support is often useless for troubleshooting.

I have nothing against certifications and certificates. I have a
personal attachment to certificates as I partially supported myself
during college days running a diploma mill. Certificates also saves
some testing effort during the job application and hiring ordeal. It
also guarantees that the applicant knows all the buzzwords from about
3-5 years ago, so we presumably can talk the same language. For
myself, I'm self-certified and too busy to take the exams. If I need
a certificate, I just fire up the certificate factory software, and
produce one on demand. Something like my old warranty card:
<http://802.11junk.com/jeffl/pics/drivel/slides/diploma.html>
There's another on the wall that proclaims that I'm a "Computer
Expert" which entitles me to be arrogant, obnoxious, egotistical,
pontifical, and short tempered to clients and customers. In the 16
odd years that it's been on the wall, only a few people have noticed
and nobody has complained. Yeah, I like certificates.



[1] Once upon a time, I had a lucrative business driving to the
server farms in the middle of the night to perform server and network
troubleshooting. The highlight of one of these trips was watching two
or three CCNE/MCSE holders, busily trying to restore connectivity to a
rack full of servers, when all the lights were off on the switch.
Repair consisted of plugging the switch back in and then wasting an
hour undoing the damage the certificate holders had done trying to
reconfigure the system (because they didn't cover themselves by
keeping a log or making backups). Certificates don't necessary do
much for troubleshooting.

--
# Jeff Liebermann 150 Felker St #D Santa Cruz CA 95060
# 831-336-2558 jeffl@comix.santa-cruz.ca.us
# http://802.11junk.com jeffl@cruzio.com
# http://www.LearnByDestroying.com AE6KS