Job Hunting

[gmpirate]

I'm looking for a little advice here. I've been working with computers a long time but never as a full time job. Skills/Qualifications:

have built many pc's

have built lans w/ tcp/ip,appletalk, thinnet, twisted pair RJ45, hubs, cable installations in buildings, ethernet

troubleshooting, 98', NT workstation, Mac OS, most peripherials

A+ certified, working on CCNA

Having a hard time even getting responses. . . any suggestions?

[Barney]

I suppose you can fill out an application @ McDonald's. http://www.sysopt.com/forum/biggrin.gif http://www.sysopt.com/forum/wink.gif

Ronald

[gmpirate]

do you think they would hire me?

[Barney]

Sure they will!

You will be excellent to put sauce on the burgers (it is like putting thermal paste on a CPU).And because you know so much about computers,you can control the microwave

Ronald

[Biff]

Could be a tough road ahead, most companies look at the work experience. It took a friend of mine a couple of yrs to get into the industry here in Canada.
I would say it varies with locations, yours may be a lot better. I think the BIGGEST thing is don't get discouraged, keep sending in resumes.
Get the phone book out and call everybody, or better yet, go there and hand in a resume.
Keep the resume brief and to point, one page if poss, plus a cover letter. If you get a interview, do a little homework and find out some background info on the company, may be a big pluss come interview time
Good luck!

[socalgal]

Barney/Ronald..

If you cannot respond in an intelligent manner to a valid question, do NOT post a reply.

Be warned (again) that replies to others in a similar vein will not be allowed to continue.

[Nathan]

You might want to try consulting work to get you in the door. Like Biff mentioned, it's really tough to get into this business sometimes.

The biggest thing most companies want is experience. And in order to get experience, someone has to hire you. To train someone is really expensive for a company. But it's necessary.

So what I would suggest is to get some really good PC's, used if need be, and install NT server (version 4 or higher) on one of them. Learn how to give file, directory, and printer rights to a user. Learn how to connect 95, 98, and NT workstations to it also. Then reformat it and install Novell server on it and do the same thing. Then when you have done that, if you have another PC or two, make one an NT server and the other a Novell server. Then get the other PC's to log into both of them at the same time. These are the normal everyday problems that users have. So these skills NEED TO BE LEARNED.

Sounds like a lot of money? Yes and no. If you get mostly used equipment, it's not. And the licenses? You can get Netware 5.X out there in a thick book which will come with a CD-rom with licenses for about 4 users and a server I think for about $100.00. But you might already have that.

Sounds like alot huh? Well, look how good it would be to have on a resume that I have an NT 4.0 and/or Novell server in my home with my PC logging into both of them. Or at least one of them. And by the way, when you get an interview, you can talk about what & how you did it. And the network people will know where you are at in your knowledge. Be honest with your skill sets. It will show through in a few days or weeks if they hire you anyway. But show a commitment to REALLY WANTING TO LEARN. You might be surprised who might hire you. Most of the good jobs are not 8 to 5 either. You'll find that out on a friday night when you upgrade a server to find you have just hosed it. Now you have to stay to get it back up and running for their next business day.

Depending on what you want to get into, will depend on many factors. Don't ever feel guilty you don't know something. At times, it's very overwhelming. Many who have been in the industry for 10 years or more can't keep up with a lot of it (think on that one for a while).

I can talk on this alot more, but I think you got the picture.

One last thing. Commit yourself to tech sites like this one, www.ehelpfree.com, (http://www.ehelpfree.com,) and others. When you can correctly answer most of the problems posted here without looking at their PC, your doing great. Some questions really can't be answered without looking at the PC yourself, for various reason. Without a doubt, I would not be what I am today without sites like this one. The techs that hang out at these sites can probably solve almost any question that's posted. And these contacts are invaluable because they make you look good in the field when you are out there and can't remember a fix for something.

Let us know what happens. Sorry for the length.

[This message has been edited by Nathan (edited 04-20-2000).]

[SysOpt]

Try these:

http://www.dice.com http://www.guru.com

The tech sector needs talent - if you have something to show for your work, some companies would be willing to give you a shot I'm sure. Or, even if you don't, they'll probably let you prove yourself on their time.

Scott

[gmpirate]

Thanks guys,

I set up a peer to peer with 3 pc's and a mac. I was planning on adding the NT server (2K to be exact). Would Novel be the next server to try then?

I might get this job at Flouer Daniel working the graveyard watching some equipment. It doesn't pay much but they have a full lab with routers and switches that I would have access to.

This site is great too and I'll check out "ehelpfree" too

[Nathan]

I won't hurt to learn it. Hey...the more you know the better your chances are...!!!

That graveyard shift sounds like a chance at getting in the door.

[Dallasmcse]

Nathan is so right on the money.
My start was with a consulting firm who farmed me out to co's who needed extra help for projects. I told the consult what i have done and what I was studying at time. One of thoses co's hired me!!! Been studying and learning ever since. BTW i just spent the last 10 hours updating drivers at the server farm at work. Long hours are par for our profession. But I love this job!

[Barney]

Gmpirate and Socalgal,I am sorry.It wasn't exactly what you would call helpfull.

I don't know what it is like regarding how easy it is to get a job.Your age is very important.In the Netherlands it is very easy to get a job when you are young,the problem is when you are getting older.

I think jobs in the computerbusiness are still wanted a lot,it doesn't excist very long yet.Not many people are trained for the computerbusiniss because you can follow classes for this only for a couple of years.

Ronald

[Nathan]

Dallasmcse

Hehe...server farm eh? Did one of the servers crash while updating it or are you doing installs on new ones at the shop?

I work with a guy right now that use to put in 3 to 5 servers in a day sometimes. And with all I'm learning from him is really moving me along. When you find people like that who want to help you learn the trade while you are helping them is incrediable. The experience you gain is really great. Hopefully I'll be able to past it along to others too.

[Gene C.]

Nathan
I commend you on your reply. your post is a everyday happing in the office sorroundings. and you have covered most of the daily or weekly tasks. ""also, I couldn't get your link to open. all I got was page can't be displayed""

gmpirate
you sound like you have the job covered already. have you tried to go to one of the job hunting sites and do a search in your area. and than call or e-mail a meeting with there personel dept.

also I see dice.com has been posted. you might want to try these. and there are more out there. headhunter is the one I like most. http://www.headhunter.net/ http://www.joblocator.com/ http://www.jobsearchengine.com/ http://www.jobbankusa.com/search.html

[Dallasmcse]

The driver upgrade was actually a bios up grade for PERC scsi2 on 15 dell 1300's we have at ops center. These feed databases to our 30 or so plants. Dell came out with a service alert about bios's below 3.0 so "rollem out and don't stop till your done."
BTW It's not a question of if they will crash, only a question if when.

[bdog]

I would set up a linux server as well. It is free, and the demand for linux people is growing. Stuff like NFS, samba, and firewalls and routing is important. Not a whole lot of people out there that can do it either. For every 100 people that you can find that can tinker around with windows products there is probably only one that is proficient in linux. Plus if you learn linux well you will have a good understanding of other variants of unix. I would set up a NT server as previously recommended as well. I don't know where you are located, but where I am at I don't have to go looking for computer jobs(consulting). People come to me all the time. It is more than I have time to deal with. Once you get started you will be surprised how fast you customer base grows.

[medo]

Hello,

Looking for a job is a full time job.
The resume is very, very important because its represent you. A good-looking resume might do the first step and after that it's up to you. Job experience is important but you can find a job without experience if you know how to sell yourself. That means you have to prepare yourself for the interview knowing something about the company and knowing answers in advance because in most cases you will have the same questions.
Did you read the book "What colour is your parachute" (or something like that). It is a fine book about looking for a job.

Good luck


Medo

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