Diary of a Network Geek

As proud a parent, or step-parent, can be!

My wife reported to me today that our daughter is a bit of a writer, which I knew. What I did not know, however, is that at least one of her teachers thinks she’s good enough to get published. Or have her work submitted to a contest. I wish I could claim that it was biological superiority that made her such a literary genius, but, alas, she is my step-daughter and I can make no such claim. However, it does give weight to the nurture-vs-nature argument. She has, after all, seen me working at the Craft for more than five years now. Surely, some of that must have rubbed off on her. I hope that the fact I don’t make a living at it has registered for her, too. And, all the network administration I’ve taught her. I hope she’ll learn something other than Novell, though, because it’s really become too much of a niche market.
In any case, I have all the tools to help her find the appropriate publication or contest to submit her work to, if she wishes. I will not push her to do so, only suggest. At the moment, she writes for her own pleasure and I’d hate to take that away from her, but I would be tickled if I can help her get published. That’s something that I have yet to do.
In the mean time, I’ll just be as proud as I can be of my daughter, the Writer.

I built a server yesterday.

Well, in a way I did. I really imaged a server, from a Ghost disk image. But, it was a Windows 2000 server, so at least I can use it on my resume. And, it beats working with nothing but the Novell servers that my company is phasing out. Of course, they’re phasing them out very, very slowly, but still, they are going to eventually go away.
Really, that’s my only complaint about this job. Everything moves slowly. Absolutely everything. So, I’m still waiting to go full-time and get benefits. And, since I have about two months left on COBRA, and even after they hire me I have to wait 90 days for benefits to start, I’ll have to get some kind of health insurance. Right now, I’m looking at Blue Cross Blue Shield of Texas, but I may find some other options, too. Man, I hate dealing with all that mundane garbage.

Anyway, at least I’m working. And, two jobs, too!

Let the games begin!

Well, things have been going so well at work that I thought I’d start working on some certifications. I need to update my CNE to version 6, but there are some other certifications I want, too.
For instance, I’ve been lusting after my Linux+ for some time. In fact, I bought the
Linux+ Exam Cram book some time ago and just haven’t gotten around to reading it. But, I also ordered the
Novell Netware 5.x to 6 Upgrade Exam Cram book, the
Security+ Exam Cram 2 book, and the
CCNA Routing and Switching Exam Cram book. I’ve also bought the Self Test Software practice tests for these certifications.
I’ve actually been working on the CCNA on and off, but I decided that it’s time to really step up the whole professional qualification side of my resume. I’ve worked with most of these technologies for some time now, but to get past human resources, I need some kind of cert to prove it. IT is kind of weird that way. Not that I think I’m going to be looking for another job any time soon, mind, but the last time I thought that, I found myself out looking. Better to be prepared. (You’d think I’d have learned that back in the Boy Scouts!) Besides, as good as it looks over at Loomis, Fargo & Co., they still haven’t made me an offer yet, so anything can happen. If the worst happens, I’d like to be better prepared this time. And, of course, it’s fun to have an alphabet soup of certifications trailing after my name. Maybe it’s time to become a certified locksmith, too…..

Another grey winter day in Houston.

Not much going on here in Houston today. It’s just another grey, Winter day, like so many before and so many to follow. We’re in the icy heart of Winter and my soul is cold today.
Instead of working out this morning, I fell asleep on the floor for one-half-hour. That really irritated me. I like the activity of my little morning work outs. Sure, sometimes it’s hard to do, but the rewards are clear when I look in the mirror. Maybe that’s why I feel a little extra depressed today. Like nothing is quite turning out the way I’d like. Of course, I tell myself that the way I’d like things to turn out aren’t always the best way, but still, most of us like getting our own way, right?
The other thing is, I saw that Novell had a job opening in Houston, still. I applied there back in late October, or early November, but never heard back from them. I’m fairly sure that they were looking for a NetWare 6 CNE, but I’m just a NetWare 5 CNE still. The catch-22 is, I can’t get the book to update to NetWare 6 for several months and by then I hope to be deep into working on my MCSE. Well, I sent them my resume again, just in case. I honestly don’t think they’ll look at it any more seriously, but I can’t pass up the potential chance to work for Novell. It’s really frustrating to feel like my career is in limbo while I try to pay bills, get back on my feet, and retrain. I hate that feeling. But, that’s where I’m at right now. That is my reality. So, there’s nothing else to do but keep on going.
If I could set up some kind of side business for extra income, I don’t think I’d mind quite so much. I’d write, but that takes so much time and pays so little that it almost doesn’t seem worth it. But, I don’t really have too many other bankable skills these days. Oh, maybe I could do up some fonts for sale, but they’ll be pirated before I can blink. The same thing goes for my maps and just about anything else I can think of to sell online. Maybe people are more honest than I think, but I doubt it. I don’t know, maybe something else will occur to me.
In the meantime, I’m going to try not to give into the depression.

Notice anything different?

Well, you should! My darling wife has totally redone the look and feel of our website. I think it’s much, much nicer now. And, it all matches. Except for this little slice of the site, but even that’s pretty close!
Anyway, I let go and let her control the look and color scheme and everything. I just make small suggestions and retain veto power over anything that just completely offends my sensibilities. And, let’s face it, most Novell NetWare Net Geeks really don’t have many sensibilities left!

In any case, the new colors and professional web designer input are a sign of the times and my new, kinder, gentler self. Oh, BTW, I’ve got a nice bridge in Brooklyn I’d like to sell you….

Being out of work sucks.

I could just about end this entry there, but that would be cheating. Thankfully, I am employed now, but I haven’t been for all that long, so I remember how bad it sucks to be out of work.
I remember when I first got into IT. I was sure that I’d never have to worry about being employed again. Wrong! But, then, at the time, I never would have expected to move to Houston. And, I never would have expected that a company like Enron would go bankrupt. Not to mention the fact that the mere concept of HP and Compaq “merging” was so far from being a possibility that it was inconcievable. But, the only constant is that things change. And change they did.
So, last year at this time, I was out of work and I didn’t know when I’d get hired. I figured that it would be no sooner than mid-January, because that’s when most everyone gets their new budget. Wrong again. It took almost an entire year for me to get a new job. Now, I’ll admit that part of that is my fault. I’ve got my Novell certification, but I never really wanted to get my Micro$oft certification. Guess what everyone was hiring this year? Yeah, primarily MCSEs (that’s MicroSoft Certified Systems Engineers, to you, buddy!). And that left me high and dry for most of the year. But, eventually, a Novell shop went looking and found me. Of course, even they are converting to Windows 2000, so I’m going to end up getting my MCSE after all. At least, the next time I’m out of work, I’ll be able to use that to my advantage.

Now, don’t get the wrong idea, I’m not going to rely on either certification to get me a gig. No, sir, I’ve learned my lesson. Marketing is going to get me a job. Yep, that’s right. Marketing is the key. Marketing is the answer.
Marketing myself is what I mean, of course. Why else would I set up a blog like this? I get to use all the nice keywords and technical terms that keep me listed high in the search engines. Yep, I can write about being a CNE, then explain that CNE mean Certified NetWare Engineer. Buzzwords. Ah, I love the sound of buzzwords. Every MicroSoft and Windows reference cranks me up a notch. Each time I link to Novell’s website, I improve my search ranking. And, the last time I checked, it was working. If I do a search for CNE Resume on Google, I find myself as the number one hit. Sweet!
So, keep hitting those links, children. Keep Uncle Jim’s website ranked high. make sure the nice recruiters can see me, so that the next time I’m over loaded with free time and not enough paying work, they can fix that. Ah, the power of technology….

Now, back to work for me, before I’m unemployed again.

Wow, it’s been a long time since I updated my blog!

For one thing, I’ve been wrestling with my web host/ISP for one of my other domain names. I wanted to get a simple upgrade done and two weeks later, I didn’t even have a status report, much less the upgrade. So, I decided to move that domain, which is Fantasist.net, BTW, to a new ISP. So far, so good. They seem to be better than the last folks and they sure are less expensive!

As for other updates, I’m still working at Loomis Fargo. In fact, they’ve started to make noises about bringing me on board full-time. So, I guess I’m still doing okay. It’s been a really easy job for me so far. Nothing more challenging than checking backups and dealing with printer problems, really. Of course, this weekend, I’ll be doing an in-place upgrade on a Novell NetWare server. Got to get up to version 5.1, or we won’t get Novell support! And, at the same time, I’ll update it to the newest NetWare Directory Services revision, too. Two birds with one stone and all that.

Well, that’s enough of an update for now. More later this week. Maybe how I survived Thanksgiving at my in-laws.

Yesterday I made the most wonderful discovery…. Novell AppNotes in Palm format.

I don’t know how long they’ve had it on their site, but Novell has all kinds of stuff in Palm database format. Don’t let that throw you, though, it’s just how the Palm Reader wants documents. I’ve got to tell you, for a Palm geek like me, this is great news! They’ve got everything here that a Novell CNE with a Palm could want.
I downloaded everything from NDS troubleshooting guides to information about testing LDAP. I grabbed an introduction to MySQL for Novell and ton of stuff about maintaining NetWare and NDS. It gives me something to read while I’m waiting for processes to run. It’s really great stuff!
Not everything at the Novell AppNotes site is formatted for the Palm, but a lot of stuff from the past year sure is. I know I’m gushing a little bit, but this really is great for me. I’ve been formating HTML pages for the Palm from Novell’s support database for years, but they never turn out so well. This not only looks good, but someone else did most fo the work!

Well, I’m off to read documentation!

Well, I survived my first day of the new job.
I got to work about 45 minutes too early because I misjudged how long it would take to get there. I’ve heard such horror stories about Beltway-8 that I was sure it would take an hour. But, it took, at most, 40 minutes. Ah, well, at least the boss has a good impression of me! I got squared away in short order and started getting used to being in an office again. It was a little strange after almost a year.
Their Novell network is in fairly good condition, though there is some work to be done. For starters, the last guy didn’t get all the patches done on all the servers. And, apparently he wasn’t too keen on listening to his boss, because he installed several versions of NDS (Netware Directory Services) on the network, in spite of being told not to do so. That will be an issue eventually. So, that’s my first job. And, because he upgraded two of them to a whole other version, not just a subversion, I have to install patches before I can even get them up to date. It’s not hard work, but it is tedious.
Also, I have a server to build ASAP. So I’ll have to get specs tomorrow and get that banged out. It shouldn’t be too hard, because I’ve done tons of servers, and I can do that while I do patches. I like to multitask!
And, there’s some other things, too, but I’m still too new to really get which one’s matter. I’ll get that figured out by the end of the week.

The one thing I didn’t like was that I felt a little under dressed. Mind, I was wearing the nice polo shirt that Momentum Information gave me as part of their “welcome aboard” package and Dockers. Now, to me, that’s business casual, but most of these guys were in button-down, long-sleeve shirts. No one said anything about me being underdressed though, so I’ll have to see what’s going on this week. Maybe it was just that they wanted to make a good impression. Who knows? But, my feeling is I’llneed to go get some more button-down collar shirts. Which is okay by me. Now I just have to find some that are “cool”!

More later in the week, as the “new” wears off!

Well, I signed my papers and took my drug test today. My contract is for six months, but that doesn’t mean much considering that either of us could terminate the contract at any time for any reason. Also, since it’s contract-to-hire, they could convert me to permanent at any time, too.
In any case, my start date ended up being Monday, so updates about the new job will start next week. Of course, before then, I’m sure there will be at least one update about the pre-new-job jitters. After having been out of work for almost a full year, I’m both eager to start and terrifed that I won’t do well. I’m sure my Dad would tell me that if I’m scared I won’t do well, that means I’m thinking enough about it to get things done right.
At least these folks seem to be in fairly good shape on their Novell network from what I’ve seen so far. For starters, they have their timesync setup right. That’s more than a lot of people I’ve worked for can say. Certainly, it wasn’t right at ThatDamnBoatCompany, as I’ve come to think of my former employers. I wonder how they’re doing now?

Well, I’ll have to send e-mail to my family and friends now, letting them know the joyous news. Oh, by the way, the company that I’ll be working at is Loomis, Fargo & Co. and the people that placed me their are Momentum Information Technology. They’re good folks. Ask for Gary and tell him Jim sent you!