I don't think anyone asking for help on this list has the notion
that being a full blown, professional, full time, <add your
buzzwords here> sysadmin can be just "picked up". It is also not
their goal to become that level of sysadmin. That "poor teacher
performing the sysadmin duties" isn't going after your sysadmin
jobs, he is just trying to get the job done.
But that's the situation I'm complaining about. Why /should/ he be
able to get the job done ? Should the poor teacher suddenly be able
to be a car mechanic, just because he volunteered for the job ? Why
does a school think that one of their teachers with spare time on his
hands can magically become a sysadmin just because that's what it
says on their payroll entry ?
You can't become a sysadmin worth paying just by saying "I am a
sysadmin.". You can, however, say "I am learning to be a sysadmin
and, one day, will be able to earn money by doing that.".
Here's an analogy: The Exotic Car Hire Showroom:
Customer: "How much to hire the Maserati for a couple of days ?"
Salesman: "That will be four thousand pounds, sir."
Customer: "Jeez, I don't want to buy it, just hire it for a couple of
days."
Salesman: "Sir, that vehicle costs over a hundred thousand pounds
second-hand.
The back bumper alone costs seventeen hundred and fifty
pounds.
Our two thousand pound a day charge is very reasonable
and if
you can beat that elsewhere I'd be very surprised.
Perhaps you
might find this Porche over here more convenient and,
personally, I
find it easier on the eye and more fun to drive."
This mailing list:
Question: "How do I set up automated server fallover ?"
Response: "Read the 'High-Availability' PDF, then 'man failoverd' and
'man
heartbeatd'. If you still have questions, post them.
Question: "Jeez, I don't want to devote my life to it, I just want to
get it
working. Just tell me what to type."
Response: "Sir, we're not familiar with your power setup or the
configuration
of your network. You could read all that in two days and
if you
don't understand it you should not be trying to set it up
yourself.
Failsafe management is always mission-critical and one of
the most
complicated things you can do with computers. I think a
three day
investment in its configuration is very reasonable. If
you don't
want to do it yourself, pay a professional who will do it
right."
The customer can argue all he wants, but that's the charge for the
Maserati. He can hire the cheaper car, or her can get a second job
to pay for his liking for expensive cars.
Simon
--
Simon Slavin Fylde Building Room C11
Computing Development Officer 01524 65201 x 93569
Psychology Department
University of Lancaster
