In need of a little direction re unix

Discussion in 'Linux / Unix Discussion' started by call8555, Oct 8, 2008.

  1. call8555

    call8555 New Member

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    Hi all,

    If you would be so kind, I'm in need of some advice.

    I'm currently working in the finance industry and intend to make an internal job move to our IT development department. I'll need among other things a basic understanding of Unix. I have books/videos/software etc to get me started, but To make this move I'll need to have a piece of paper with "You now know the fundamentals of Unix, well done" in the form of an exam.

    My question therefore is: Does there exist an exam or equivalent that I can I take on the fundaments of UNIX?

    I also need this for Pearl and C++ but they come later.

    Many thanks in advance

    Matt
     
  2. dmarsh
    Honorary Member 500 Likes Award

    dmarsh Petabyte Poster

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    Theres various *nix certs, Linux+, RHCT/RHCE, LPI-1/LPI-2/LPI-3/UCP, CLA/CLDA/CLP/CLE, CSA/CSE, HP-UX CSA, IBM AIX various, SCSAS/SCSA/SCNA/SCSECA, ACSA, have a look around the web with your trusty friend Google.

    You'd probably be most interested in Linux+ or LPI-1, note it is normally expected that you already have learnt the basics and have some experience before you start certification. These two certs are entry level so this is less of an issue, but they will still assume a lot of background knowledge. A Unix 'entry level' cert is not entry level in the way other operating systems or certifications are, you are expected to have a deep understanding of many computer science concepts.

    I am not aware of any widely recognised certifications for C++ or Perl.

    Programming certifications are not really held in high regard by most programmers, this is especially true for Open Standards and Open Source languages. To understand this you have to take a wider view, what is it that the test really tests for ? Does it prove you are a good developer ? Most developers would rather spend their time cutting code and producing working systems than passing tests which they believe do not prove anything.

    Some places use Brainbench or similar for testing C++ proficiency. Learning C++ to a high standard takes around three years in my opinion, its not to be taken lightly.

    Being a developer means being committed to lifelong learning, it literally never stops. Once you learn the language, then theres the libraries, then theres the tools, then theres the development process...

    Really if you want to land a role with all those skills you'd be best placed with a Computer Science Degree if you need the paper, or years of hands on experience otherwise, ideally both.

    The finance industry can be particulary picky when it comes to choosing IT staff. Some people can't break into finance even with years of relevant experience.

    Best of luck ! :D
     
  3. call8555

    call8555 New Member

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    Many thanks, some good places to start.

    I don't need to know these fully, just some paperwork to show that I've made an effort in learning or familiarising myself with these languages as I'll receive on the job training and be acting more as a liaison between the two business. so basically I need to get through the basics quickly and get this recognised on paper.

    Thanks again.:D
     
  4. tripwire45
    Honorary Member

    tripwire45 Zettabyte Poster

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    My guess is that you have more than enough resources to get you started. What I'm suggesting won't get you "a piece of paper", but it will give you a basic understanding. The Linux Tutorial.
     
    Certifications: A+ and Network+
  5. hbroomhall

    hbroomhall Petabyte Poster Gold Member

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    I'd suggest that you find out which 'flavour' of Unix your place uses. I'd guess it will be Sun/Solaris or Linux, but it could well be something else. Then look into Certs for that version.

    There are all sorts of minor variations between these flavours, and, to start with, trying to learn from a 'general' book may do you no favours.

    Harry.
     
    Certifications: ECDL A+ Network+ i-Net+
    WIP: Server+
  6. call8555

    call8555 New Member

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    Thanks, that tuturiol looks very helpful. I'll probably go for the LPI exam - looking at it now. Thanks
     
  7. dmarsh
    Honorary Member 500 Likes Award

    dmarsh Petabyte Poster

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    Harry has an excellent point which I tried to hint at with the cert list, the various vendors, Sun, IBM, RedHat, Novell, HP, Apple all have their own flavours. If you know your company wants a specific skillset then I'd target that.
     
  8. call8555

    call8555 New Member

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    They use Solaris - I'll go though the LPI first as a general understanding and I have installed ubuntu on my laptop, so no excuses not to learn. As this will be an internal job move it's primarily just to aid my own knowledge and grease the interview process. They don't expect me to have all the info pinned down, but as long as it's not virgin to me and have showed that I've made an effort to learn it, they'll be happy. I have a nice 2 hour commute a day so I'll pick up a Solaris book from Amazon too.

    Many thanks for your advice
     
  9. hbroomhall

    hbroomhall Petabyte Poster Gold Member

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    I'll warn you now - things in Solaris are often quite different from Linux.

    Partly this is historical. Long ago Unix was split into two camps, AT&T was commercial and was known as 'SystemV' (V = roman 5). BSD was academic. Solaris originaly was BSD, but changed over to SysV. It still has quite a lot of BSDisms in various places.

    Linux mostly grew out of the BSD world, as that was released on license some time ago. It has incorporated some SysV things though.

    On top of this Sun has added a number of rather nifty things and specialized admin stuff.

    So make sure you lean towards the Solaris books rather than Linux books!

    Harry (who has to admin Linux, FreeBSD and Solaris machines - and gets horribly confused sometimes!)
     
    Certifications: ECDL A+ Network+ i-Net+
    WIP: Server+
  10. supernova

    supernova Gigabyte Poster

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    AT&T also liciened Version 7 Unix to Microsoft, who developed it as Xenix which is responsible for SCO Unix which is around today.


    As for programming you really need to learn programming fundamentals and software design which of course is language independent. A Degree is one ideal way to do this if you wish to make a career out of it. However, many software houses hirer and train maths and physics graduates.

    Universities may use older languages to teach fundamentals Modula2 (Imperative, like pascal/delphi ), Eiffel (OO), Miranda (Functional), Z (Z notation, a tool) before you get to C/C++
     
    Certifications: Loads
    WIP: Lots
  11. UKDarkstar
    Honorary Member

    UKDarkstar Terabyte Poster

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    Ah ! Interesting. I wondered where that came from. I played around with that on (I think) an Apricot computer round about 1990 :eek:
     
    Certifications: BA (Hons), MBCS, CITP, MInstLM, ITIL v3 Fdn, PTLLS, CELTA
    WIP: CMALT (about to submit), DTLLS (on hold until 2012)

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