[wplug-jobs] Help us young bucks out

Ted Rodgers ted.d.rodgers at gmail.com
Thu Sep 6 22:56:54 EDT 2012


John,

Good topic, although the jobs list is usually for job postings, that
is employers seeking candidates.  Perhaps a good thread for the
general list would be a discussion about job networking in the
opensource community.

>> I want to get a job where I can
>> forward the progress of free and open source software, but the only
>> problem is that I am considered "too green" because I wasn't born yet
>> when Lisp Machines and System V UNIX were in heavy use.

Be careful when making comments like the above because in many circles
it will burn your bridges before you even get to them. While your
point may be somewhat valid, the focus of your statement is very
negative.  First, you are laying down your hand and saying "look what
I don't have" rather than saying "I can offer this" or "these are the
skills I've learned or am working on."  This sets you up for being
shot down because you created a hole and immediately have to dig
yourself out of it.

Second, while you may not realize it, you are stereotyping both
yourself and "them."  You're talking to a mixed membership list here
and innumerable others who may read the list online via archives for
literally years to come.  Many of us may not have used the original
UNIX, but we were around when it was young and heavily used.  Any
senior manager who may want to interview you is also going to be able
to recall the era when System V was brand new, too.  Be careful where
you imply the word "dated" or "obsolete" because LISP is may be
lurking in places you wouldn't expect.

.
>> Since there is
>> no way that I know of the correct that, what can I still do and how can
>> WPLUG assist me in getting a job that forwards the progress of free and
>> open source software?

You cannot change your age or the start date of the epoch, but you can
change your approach or simply choose an approach that others may not
--that alone would set you apart and get you noticed.

Without knowing you, it's difficult to make more than general
suggestions, but I'll offer you a couple.  Develop your skill set to
lessen the gaps in your skills.  Since you were in a technical
program, I'll assume you focused on system administration; having been
in the program you are sure to have found areas that you either liked
or that you feel weren't covered well.  Research those areas and use
skills from them ... use them a lot.   Learn the facets of those areas
well and get under the hood  so that you learn to use and tweak them
and to break them too --if you never break the pieces, you'll never
master fixing them.  Remember that while your program may offer you
certification or a degree, it's real purpose is as a tool to help you
develop your career: it's a starting point or check point, not the
finish line.

An important thing to consider is how the pieces you've learned fit
together with other tools to form an environment, whether it be a
single system or a large and complex environment of thousands of
systems and their associated hardware.  Go beyond your texts and
figure out how to expand and grow; that is, learn to climb your way
out of the box since clearly you are not there yet.  Before you get
defensive of that, you're doing a program at your school that wasn't
tailor fitted to you; when you're done, you'll be one of many who
learned roughly the same amount through your coursework and labs.
Think:  what environments fit your current skills now and what
environments are your target five or ten years from now ... and just
as importantly, how can you get from here to there?   Project work is
a good way.  It will allow you to become comfortable using your skills
and demonstrate to other that you are skilled while you work and
network with others.  Project work is active and often not easy,
though, so don't expect a great offer to land on your lap without
active participation or some effort and the affiliated pain of some
sort.  Notoriety while free is not without cost, so remember that all
the great ones have bled and some haven't ever stopped.

WPLUG is a group of and for users, that is, a users' group.  WPLUG is
not a job agency.  The group can be somewhat seen as a lab with
members who choose to be a part.  Experiment some and find out what
can come from your being a part of a group where everyone gives
because it's something they like and not because it's an obligation.
And, if you do share information or start a project, the website can
host a writeup, video, or discussions about your presentation or
project. Those can help get your name out there and build credentials
that the average courses cannot.  While many career connections have
been made through WPLUG, it must be remembered that expecting the
group to find you a job would be unreasonable and outside the scope of
the organization's mission statement or purpose; but, I think you'll
find that WPLUG or its members would not be opposed to you having a
job and would not be offended if in some small way it happened that
your being a part somehow led to your gainful employment.


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