# Beginner, Intermediate, Advanced?



## sixtydoses (Apr 15, 2010)

Well some of you guys are senior sys admins and more of the same, so am pretty sure you have conducted interviews before in hiring sys admins, tech support and the like.

Am wondering how do you classify if an applicant is either a beginner, or an intermediate or an advanced user? This is a very subjective question (the geeks will see an intermediate as beginner, ad noobs will see an intermediate as advanced), so am looking for the thin lines that separate these allegorical categories, if any.

Thanks.


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## gilinko (Apr 15, 2010)

My personal differential is more a way of thinking.

A beginner knows one system type(most often a Linux dist), but can't administer a system that's not from the same vendor(ie only debian/ubuntu or redhat/fedora).

An intermediate can move about some general systems like linux, windows, *bsd and solaris. And knows how to do the general things that those systems do. Incl patching, upgrading, installing etc.

An advanced user also has the network side of the work, and knows about serial consoles, managed network equipment etc. 

Also, the more experienced a user is the more they are "lazy" in their approach. An expert uses the tool that is most suited for the job, and easiest to maintain independent of OS, architecture and software.


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## graudeejs (Apr 15, 2010)

by your description I'm some kind of hybrid


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## SirDice (Apr 15, 2010)

Experience is all that matters. I might even present a test case I prepared earlier, just to see what your troubleshooting skills are. I don't care about the solution, it's more important how you got there. And don't even think about lying on your resume. If it says you have certain skills you can be sure I'm going to ask about it


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## gilinko (Apr 15, 2010)

killasmurf86 said:
			
		

> by your description I'm some kind of hybrid



There are no "definite" lines, it's just a matter of once perception. However as SirDice said, experience is the key. The final function solution is more important than how it got solved, so +1 on that.

And there is this thread which I posted in earlier this year


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## sixtydoses (Apr 15, 2010)

gilinko said:
			
		

> My personal differential is more a way of thinking.
> 
> A beginner knows one system type(most often a Linux dist), but can't administer a system that's not from the same vendor(ie only debian/ubuntu or redhat/fedora).
> 
> ...



Sounds reasonable as a guideline, and yea, someone used to say, a good sys admin is a lazy sys admin (though yea this saying should be applied in a correct context).

@killasmurf86 - hybrid signifies advanced, or almost.

@SirDice - *+1* on seeking troubleshooting skills rather than solution. With the existence of Google, it somehow may flatten troubleshooting skills, if not used properly (or when you rely on it too much).


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