* Matt Edlund <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> [2005-04-08 17:26]: > Well I saw a post about this certification on Slashdot and I thought I > would join the mailing list and see if it is something to take > seriously or not. To be honest, that is the largest problem that any > kind of BSD certification is going to face; if it will be taken > seriously or not. Reading through this I see lots of comments on
I view 'seriousness' as having a) a solid point of view (not trolling, or time-wasting drivel), b) determination, and c) committment. I'd like to think we have all three. Time will certainly tell. I have no doubt that this is a committed and serious group. I think the idea is a very good one. The issue of "seriousness" is very complex more so than just than just being a result of the commitment of the design group. There has to be a general view that this certification is not only necessary, but provides highly skilled people, backed by industry recognized standards. To give an example, I will use how people view the Cisco Certification program and the Microsoft Certification Program. Now, first off I am not holding Cisco certs themselves up to the spotlight, but instead how people in the industry view those certifications, especially in the early years. One of the things that Cisco did was increase the price of the certification so that only people who had the backing of the company they work for could really afford them. They also crafted a series of tests and practical examinations which were difficult with little to no "flex" room for people to "learn the system". Basically they created a way for people who already knew the material, to prove it. Microsoft took a wholly different approach. Instead of creating a certification to display a professional's knowledge, they created a series of courses that were more geared at teaching people new to the industry the Microsoft client/server/enterprise setup. Their idea was that the more people you can get who "know" the system, the greater your market share. This was a direct result with Microsoft's (revolutionary at the time) experiments with "student pricing". They found that students who used Word at school, demanded it at the office, and managers, responded by making Office the #1 business application supplanting Word perfect for dominance in the word processing market. Instead of trying to restrict their base of applicants, Microsoft did the exact opposite. They contacted governments and lobbied to get their course covered under things like the Canadian Government's Employment insurance program. Even today, these schools continue to churn out thousands of Microsoft Certified Systems Engineers and Developers, flooding an already saturated market and further reducing the value of the certification. Obviously this is all done to tremendous profits for both Microsoft and the training industry, but give very little of lasting value to the consumer who purchased the training. Cisco made their mistake in that they went for too elite of a group. They priced their certifications at such a level that even companies who wanted to get their staff certified had second thoughts. However, that certification is extremely valuable to those who hold it. It is with this in mind that I came up with these principles that I believe that a BSD certification should have; Core Values that a BSD Certification should embody 1) RTFM 2) Value that increases over time 3) Respect for accomplishment and knowledge gained 4) Community 5) Money should never be a bar to skill RFTM This, at first, may seem like a joke. But think about how you came about your knowledge of BSD. Certainly the majority of us didn't learn the intricacies of pf.conf in a class room lecture hall. We read man pages, searched the web and the forums and we found the answers to our questions. If you ask a question only fit for a n00b, RTFM, in some form or another, is likely the answer you will receive. Reading the manual is the first step in every case. 2) Value that increases over time I have a list of certifications including ones from Microsoft and Novel. I don't even put them on my resume anymore. The reasons for this are various. For one, the underling value of these certifications is questionable to begin with and like many experienced professionals I obtained them early on in my career a long time ago. We all have certifications made obsolete by newer versions of the software we trained on. While I know Windows servers intimately, certainly more so than when I got those certs, claiming I am an certified anything in Windows NT 4.0 is pointless. BSD is an operating system that has evolved and grown over time and I believe that the value of a BSD certification should do so also. To this effect I propose a structure of courses offered as levels, with only the most supremely skilled holding the highest levels. In this fashion we can insure that as a professional's knowledge grows, so will the value of the certification he holds. This leads me right into my next value that I believe that a BSD certification should hold; 3) Respect for accomplishment and value gained Some people jump off cliffs for the rush, some people drive dangerously fast down the highway, I solve computer problems. The rush that gets you when you solve a difficult problem and the beauty of a truly elegant solution is as addictive as any drug. When after days of research and hours of coding and testing all the errors go away and the problem is solved, the elation that we feel is why so many of us live and breath computers. If Linux has sharp edges, then BSD is made of broken glass. It requires careful handling and a sure knowledgeable hand. Respect for this knowledge should be among our core principals. Certification should be based on skill and knowledge and where applicable should be granted upon recognition of such. Those who are the core developers of BSD and their peers in BSD should be those with the highest certifications. If you believe that Theo de Raadt needs testing to be considered certified at the very highest level you are welcome to try and tell him that. I am sure you will get the answer they deserve 4) Community I believe that an effective certification should come between the examples set by Microsoft and Cisco. While the certification should be a example of a professional's knowledge and skill, it shouldn't be limited to only those who work in the networking departments of fortune 500 companies and while it should be valuable to those who hold it, it must also strength the community from which it grows. Graduation shouldn't be the end of the involvement in the community for those who choose to earn their certification. I believe that this is more than contributing skill and knowledge but also in helping to choose and grade those who will be coming next. Multiple choice answers have a right and a wrong answer clearly spelled out, but do we really want people who can simply regurgitate knowledge or do we want people who can come up with elegant solutions based on skill? The tests should be both practical and essay written and I believe that a method of community involvement should be implemented to let those who already hold high levels of BSD certification be the ones who mark the tests. Web solutions are the obvious solution and a certification holder can choose how many questions they wish to mark or if they mark any answers at all. Those who's accomplishments advance our community and the BSD operating system should be lauded and rewarded publicly and with respect. 5) Money should be no bar to skill BSD is free, the information to gain the knowledge to earn this certification is free and therefore, so should the certification at all levels. Conclusion By keeping these core values in mind we can insure that we have a certification that is in demand, provides value to it's holders, and strengthens the community that created it. We read the manual, we respect ours and others accomplishments and knowledge. We contribute to the larger BSD community and we commit to keeping the certifications free and accessible to everyone with the only bar being the knowledge of those who choose to so test their skills. But that is just my opinion Mathew Edlund Edmonton, Alberta _______________________________________________ BSDCert mailing list [email protected] http://lists.nycbug.org/mailman/listinfo/bsdcert
