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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">On 07/21/2014 03:34 PM, Rick Troth
wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote cite="mid:53CD7954.3010805@casita.net" type="cite">
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<div class="moz-cite-prefix">Pronounced "the etsy test".<br>
<br>
On 07/21/2014 12:26 PM, Scott Merrill wrote:<br>
</div>
<blockquote cite="mid:53CD3F45.20508@skippy.net" type="cite">
<pre wrap="">I recently learned that someone who I consider to be a competent Linux
sysadmin had never personally installed Linux. In his professional
life, that was a task always performed by a different team.</pre>
</blockquote>
<br>
Most shocking for me was to find at one shop that "systems
programmers" in one group did not know programming. To be
specific, they did not know the primary developmental language of
that system. This knowledge was historically a requirement. (True,
one can go far with Linux and not know C from the alphabet. But
here was almost like not knowing command entry.) <br>
<br>
There's a spectrum of capability ... along several axis. Point
taken, Scott. There's also a problem of elitism, even snobbery. <br>
But <br>
the need to bring people up to speed is real and serious. (Crypto
crises are just the low hanging fruit for opportunistic
journalists. Other forms of system security follow closely, and
RAS (reliability, availability, serviceability) aspects will
become critical.) <br>
<br>
In job A, I learned about the /etc test. <br>
In job B, I tried to apply it. Didn't go well. <br>
<br>
In job A, the Unix team hired a PhD student who was ostensibly a
Unix heavy. Guy's working on a doctorate so he's not suffering
from lack of basic brains, and he'd been *on* the Unix systems for
months. But they had to let him go after just a week. It was
embarrassing and painful. Somehow he passed the interview only to
fall flat with real work. What happened? <br>
<br>
Looking for a sharper edge, someone on that team hit upon "the
/etc test". The idea was ...<br>
<br>
<blockquote><font face="Courier New, Courier, monospace">cd /etc</font><br>
<font face="Courier New, Courier, monospace">ls</font><br>
"tell me what each of these is used for"<br>
</blockquote>
<br>
It's a Kobayashi Maru. You're going to fail. Something in the
range of files will be outside your domain of knowledge. But the
intent (of the interviewers) was to see how far you get. (And
maybe also see how you handle the unknowns.) <br>
<br>
In job B, I was allowed to be part of the interviewing panel. As
if candidates were not intimidated enough, I threw in the /etc
test. Once. We hired that candidate, and she was terrific, an
excellent engineer/admin. But she let us know with certainty
(after joining the team) that "the /etc test" was a bad idea (in
her not so humble opinion). <br>
<br>
I've mentioned the /etc test a few times since then. <br>
<br>
-- R; <><<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
<fieldset class="mimeAttachmentHeader"></fieldset>
<br>
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</pre>
</blockquote>
I'm not system admin material, but am curious:<br>
<br>
acpi dictionaries-common iproute2
networks selinux<br>
adduser.conf dkms issue
newt sensors3.conf<br>
adjtime dm issue.net
nsswitch.conf sensors.d<br>
alternatives dnsmasq.d java-7-openjdk
obex-data-server services<br>
anacrontab doc-base kbd
openal sgml<br>
apg.conf dpkg kernel
opt shadow<br>
apm drirc kernel-img.conf
os-release shadow-<br>
apparmor emacs kerneloops.conf
pam.conf shells<br>
apparmor.d environment ldap
pam.d signond.conf<br>
apport firefox ld.so.cache
papersize skel<br>
apt firefox-3.0 ld.so.conf
passwd sound<br>
at-spi2 firefox-3.5 ld.so.conf.d
passwd- speech-dispatcher<br>
avahi fonts legal
pcmcia ssh<br>
bash.bashrc fstab libao.conf
perl ssl<br>
bash_completion fstab.d libaudit.conf
pki subgid<br>
bash_completion.d fuse.conf libnl-3
pm subgid-<br>
bindresvport.blacklist gai.conf libpaper.d
pnm2ppa.conf subuid<br>
blkid.conf gconf libreoffice
polkit-1 subuid-<br>
blkid.tab gdb lintianrc
ppp sudoers<br>
bluetooth ghostscript linuxmint
profile sudoers.d<br>
bonobo-activation gimp locale.alias
profile.d sysctl.conf<br>
brlapi.key gnome localtime
protocols sysctl.d<br>
brltty gnome-settings-daemon logcheck
pulse systemd<br>
brltty.conf gnome-vfs-2.0 login.defs
purple terminfo<br>
ca-certificates groff logrotate.conf
python thunderbird<br>
ca-certificates.conf group logrotate.d
python2.7 timezone<br>
calendar group- lsb-release
python3 ts.conf<br>
casper.conf grub.d ltrace.conf
python3.4 ucf.conf<br>
chatscripts gshadow lvm
rc0.d udev<br>
chromium-browser gshadow- magic
rc1.d udisks2<br>
colord.conf gtk-2.0 magic.mime
rc2.d ufw<br>
ConsoleKit gtk-3.0 mailcap
rc3.d updatedb.conf<br>
console-setup hddtemp.db mailcap.order
rc4.d update-motd.d<br>
cracklib hdparm.conf manpath.config
rc5.d UPower<br>
cron.d host.conf mdm
rc6.d upstart-xsessions<br>
cron.daily hostname mime.types
rc.local upstream-release<br>
cron.hourly hosts mke2fs.conf
rcS.d usb_modeswitch.conf<br>
cron.monthly hosts.allow modprobe.d
request-key.conf usb_modeswitch.d<br>
crontab hosts.deny modules
request-key.d vim<br>
cron.weekly hp modules-load.d
resolvconf vtrgb<br>
cups icedtea-web mono
resolv.conf wgetrc<br>
cupshelpers ifplugd mtab
rmt wildmidi<br>
dbus-1 init mtab.fuselock
rpc wodim.conf<br>
debconf.conf init.d mtools.conf
rsyslog.conf wpa_supplicant<br>
debian_version initramfs-tools nanorc
rsyslog.d X11<br>
default inputrc ndiswrapper
samba xdg<br>
deluser.conf insserv netscsid.conf
sane.d xml<br>
depmod.d insserv.conf network
securetty zsh_command_not_found<br>
dhcp insserv.conf.d NetworkManager
security<br>
<br>
How much of the above should an average user know? How about a
serious user?<br>
<br>
This is from a fresh install of LinuxMint 17<br>
<br>
I know the feeling about Job A. Human Resources usually hire the
person that's best at jumping thru hoops. (not me) I knew a lady
that ran a Human Resources company. She said it was really hard to
determine who could actually do the job. I usually got the best jobs
(in another field) by hiring on as a temp, and then the engineer had
to have me hired. One time after that happened, the woman that ran
Human Resources came and told me she would never had hired me. I
told her that she was incompetent and that if it was my company I
would fire her.<br>
<br>
Tom<br>
<br>
<br>
<br>
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