Ask an IT guy

We have the Gamingforce Computing forums for in-depth tech topics, but maybe you want to find out why demo systems at stores always seem broken, or why the IT guy at your office always seems so pissy.

Here we are.

Jam it back in, in the dark.

Um, Counselor Troi.

Duh.

Seriously, though, many of us are either involved or married. All depends on personality, I guess. Some of the IT crowd are as socially inept as the stereotypes dictate, and others are more socially averse than incapable. I was among the latter avoidant types for a while, until I realized that girls don't bite (well, not unless you want them to, and that's all behind-closed-doors stuff).

I'm kinda-sorta involved myself, though admittedly we met online and we still need to arrange an in-person meeting. The best times are when you can find a woman/man who's as much into technology as you are. There's NOTHING better than being able to talk about shell scripting with your significant other and, instead of getting eyerolls, get "uh, yeah, but you can do that in 5 fewer lines if you put that statement up there."

As for out-of-work time, I fix people's computers, but sure as hell not for free.

There's nowhere I can't reach.

Originally Posted by Zephyrin

Are you fat and ugly like my IT guy?

HEY! I take offense to that! My fragile ego is reeling, and I must now go drown my sorrows in ice...cream...and doritos.

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Oh.

In my case, I weigh more than I probably should, more than I'd like to, but part of it is just build. As our webmaster once said to me, "See, though, if you lifted weights a few times a week you'd be scary."

So I'm not like Richard Stallman. More...recent pictures of Torvalds. Not beanpole, but not Hindenburg either.

This thing is sticky, and I don't like it. I don't appreciate it.

Originally Posted by Stealth

Salary?

Variable. WIDELY variable.

It depends on where you work and what you do. Major companies can afford to pay a lot, and small businesses or nonprofits (such as the library where I work) can't. Helpdesk generally makes less than sysadmins, then there are the specialty guys like DBadmins or security gurus (yo). Best money to be made is in consulting contracts, since you can pretty much charge whatever you want. Of course, the tradeoff is in stability.

How ya doing, buddy?

Originally Posted by Zephyrin

How could she?

In my sleep, through careful application of chemically-altered martinis. Introduced by way of conspiring with my family members. Not even home is safe.

Neus:

Sysadmins are usually in charge of managing servers and networks. They manage user accounts, monitor network activity, set up servers, generally perform administrative duties on computer system infrastructures.

As for Perl, it's a scripting language primarily for UNIX systems and derivatives. Commonly used for scripting internet sites as well.

A typical day for me is really difficult to classify, since I work in a smaller environment and have to deal with a more generalized range of problems, whereas others can address concerns specific to their area of expertise (i.e. Motorola can hire a dedicated DBadmin, and all he has to worry about are database issues).

What pleases me most is figuring out better/faster/more efficient ways to do things, or tracing an intrusion on our network and patching the hole, usually along with others I see on the way (InfoSec being my area of expertise).

You always learn, but I think that's true for a lot of professions. Yeah, I get slow days, but those are the perfect days for cracking open the books or browsing Wikipedia's tech articles.

Perhaps it's indicative of a limited worldview, but I can't think of anything that's an "only in this job" sort of bonus. I think it's harder to see from the inside than it is from a third-party perspective, as I don't know anything else-only what I've been doing all this time.

Finally, as for my avatar, I still have the Magna Carta one, along with the sig. I'm banking on ChocoSig coming back up, but if it isn't, I have a backup plan. In the meantime, I've been on a Twin Peaks kick, and find director Lynch's in-show cameo character particularly amusing, so I figured I'd pay him tribute while sig hosting gets worked out.

I was speaking idiomatically.

Let it die, Sanguis. You're on the fast track to bannination if you keep this up.

EDIT: Perhaps best to close my thread before it degenerates further.

How ya doing, buddy?