Re: [Sheflug] Training (was Re: Installation hangs during disk format)

[Craig Andrews <xxxxx [at] xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

On Wednesday 18 Sep 2002 9:13 pm, Dawson, Alan wrote:
> computer training used to be about programming, an essentially problem
> solving skill, where as much of the IT training in schools is now around
> 'how to use word' or 'creating web sites with dreamweaver' which has more
> in common with office practice or teaching typing than computing.

In this aspect, then yes I agree that 'Linux Training' would be an impossible 
definition. However, the current IT market has a problem, and that is 'IT 
Training'. This is the opposite of what you describe. It takes a general 
topic with many avenues, then crams it into 'Using VBA' or 'Mailmerge with 
Word'.

Even the oft ridiculed MCSE is nothing more than a bunch of questions, often 
along the lines of:

'If a user cannot log in the the PDC when others on the network can, do you:

a) toggle the foogle switch
b) enter a username
c) check capslock
d) do a wardance'

Ok, so not EXACTLY like that, but specific enough to tell you _which button to 
press_. This does not help the trainee learn why the problem occurred, or the 
nature of SMB and NETBIOS (*shudder*) but the specifics of an implementation 
(in Microsofts ideal world, THE implementation).

Linux Training, then, is ambinguous. However, I would say that the best 
training would be generic IT training. For instance, basic PC internals, 
describing the boot process, the BIOS, hardware interfaces, etc. Linux 
exposes all this to the user in a pretty friendly form (certainly moreso than 
Windows). Others could include Networking, wireless or otherwise, any type of 
programming (Linux does them all, even GUI ones like KDevelop/Anjuta) and 
basically any IT topic _not_ specific to an OS.

A good example of this is 'Operating Systems - Design and Implementation' by 
Andrew S. Tanenbaum. It uses generic principles to describe things like 
process scheduling, IDE controllers, terminal IO, etc. and uses Minix as a 
specific example. However, it always maintains a seperation between 'This is 
how it works...' and 'This is how Minix does it...'

As a personal anecdote, I learned more about diagnosing Windows NT boot 
failures and system services by using and studying Linux than any of the 
books taught me, because they never taught me how a modern 32 bit operating 
system functions on x86 hardware (there's a whole other kettle of fish!), 
just what little information Microsoft was willing to part with.

Just my £0.02

-- 
Craig Andrews
craig@fishbot.org.uk

___________________________________________________________________

Sheffield Linux User's Group -
http://www.sheflug.co.uk/mailfaq.html

  GNU the choice of a complete generation.