Useless Conversation

[Selby]

Why is outside SF bad?  Because it's not inside?

No idea.  Lots of people I know are out of work or hate where they are, I recommend they apply here and get lots of "Wah!  I don't wanna move to the bay area."  Well neither did I but I had to go where the jobs were and San Diego didn't have them.

[Paelos]

Cheddar's advice is solid. Who you know is better than what you know, confidence rules the day, and image is everything.

[Lantyssa]

Do you have Unix experience?  Hell, MS-DOS?  If so you will pick up Linux juuuuuuuust fine.  Do not sell yourself short.

I can find my way around in DOS, Unix, or Linux.  I've never done a Linux install or used apache.  I've run IIS boxes for a decade (Win7 IIS is a step back, bleh).  I can learn it, I just haven't done it before.

Protip- make sure to follow SAR on your interview, it will most likely be structured.  (Situation, Action, Result).

I'll do my best to practice this so I am ready.  I have been careful and fortunate and had no server losses.  There have been other situations which can benefit from this advice, however my servers have been solid.

[Murgos]

I can find my way around in DOS, Unix, or Linux.  I've never done a Linux install or used apache. 

It's not like it was 10 years ago.  These days you put the disk in and check the little boxes and hit enter.  I kinda miss the old, OMGWTF! WIRELESS DRIVER?!!! KERNAL PANIC %&^$%&$ days.

[Bunk]

Having gone through some recent workshops with my company regarding hiring and onboarding - there seems to be a growing trend to change the approach of interviews away from the standard question answer to more of: "Tell me about a situation and how you handled it". Be prepare to have some worthwhile stories to tell when you head in. Number one in my opinion though, is being able to really convince the interviewer that you are quick and eager to learn - especially if the interviewer is the guy that's going to have to train you.

You telling me that you self taught yourself how to run a new system out of neccessity means way more to me than hearing about how good you were at running a program that my company doesn't use.

[Paelos]

Things that have always worked well for me during interviews:

- Solid eye contact. You'd be surprised how many people screw that up.
- Active listening. Facial expression changes, nodding, creating the impression of being actively engaged.
- Success stories. People like situational experiences in interviews rather than simple statements. The SAR approach that Cheddar referenced is highly effective.
- Good questions. Research the company. Know their strengths. Ask questions that demonstrate you took the time to delve into who they are.
- Casually professional. Show that you are serious about what you do, but you're not a faceless peon. It's ok to engage the interviewer in conversation about non-job related topics before or after you start.
- Conservative image. Dress so that people consider you to be a professional, but not so that any part of your image stands out.
- Confident answers. It's your time to show that you know what you can do. It's also ok that if you don't know, you can say it and follow up with the fact that you are great about learning it quickly.

[Yegolev]

Looking backward, no server losses can be a detriment.  The fact that I had to work FOUR power outages this summer has given me a terrific line item on my resume.  Not to mention the copious hands-on experience.  Even better, when my team lead had to go lay down after being awake for 72 hours, she put me in charge and I got some great voice-time with management by being the UNIX liason into the master coordination call.

I have never wanted to do management but I've finally decided that this is what everyone wants me to do so I'll put a toe in the pool.  Today, running projects; tomorrow, complete IT domination.

[Lantyssa]

I agree it can be a detriment.  When the world is burning and you save it, everyone remembers.  When things Just Work no one notices, even though that is my ideal state as the IT gal.

I need to emphasize that due to foresight, I avoided many of these possibilities.  Then point to the situations such as Slammer, where some departments were crippled for a month, while we had only a handful of infections and had all two-hundred systems inoculated in two days.

"If you don't need to see me, I'm doing my job well."  Unfortunately, most jobs want to see you.  It's counter-intuitive.

[Ironwood]

I have never wanted to do management but I've finally decided that this is what everyone wants me to do so I'll put a toe in the pool.  Today, running projects; tomorrow, complete IT domination.

Beware.  Beware the horrid evil outside of your comfort zone.

As to the rest, if I'm hiring and someone comes to me with stories of horror, I'm going to ask about fault (to see if they're the type of person that casts it around) and then I'm going to ask about future avoidance (to see if they learned the lesson or even bothered to find out what was wrong).  Make SURE these two things are crafted into the narrative.  Don't make an interviewer go looking for them.

[murdoc]

Today, Calgary is the second coldest place on Earth.

[Nebu]

Today, Calgary is the second coldest place on Earth.

Fortunately, they can get treated for frostbite without having to file bankruptcy! 

[Bunk]

Today, Calgary is the second coldest place on Earth.

Ok, I feel bad for you. It's been -10c in Vancouver in the shade and we're freezing our asses off.

[Yegolev]

Last night my wife saw Bunktavious on XBL and said something about "that guy is playing the fuck out of Fable"... so now I can tell her why.

[Paelos]

Do people even go outside to work when it's that cold?

[Nebu]

Do people even go outside to work when it's that cold?

They did when I lived in Minnesota.  I imagine Canadians are even more accustomed to it. 

[Paelos]

Yeah I suppose so, I just wonder how cars get started.

[Samwise]

I have heard tell of devices called "block heaters" that fix that problem, although I have never seen or used one.

[Paelos]

I'm glad I've never had to worry about that down here. Worst weather we get is in the 20s.

[Rasix]

Sweet, looks like I won the stomach flu lottery.

[Nebu]

Sweet, looks like I won the stomach flu lottery.

Think of it as the gift that keeps on giving.

Get well soon!

[IainC]

Crazy amounts of snow falling here and the weather service says it won't stop till after the weekend. I'm glad I walk to work.

[Bunk]

Yeah I suppose so, I just wonder how cars get started.

Underground parking makes a hell of a difference. If you are in Alberta like Murdoc though - you have a block heater.

And I didn't play Fable 3 once yesterday (one of my fingers cramped up from playing it too much :( )

[RhyssaFireheart]

Nice, the manager that's supposed to be covering today (because the others took off for the holiday week) is "working from home" today instead of coming into the office.  The dept. admin is guessing there will be practically no one left after lunch, and no one around to officially release us to go ome early.  Not that I couldn't just leave, but this is the drawback to being an hourly contract employee - no work, no pay.

[Lantyssa]

I never saw or heard of a block heater until I visited my friends in Edmonton.  It was funny seeing them plug the car in at the time, but it let us get out and about in -20C weather, so I wasn't complaining.  The road care was amazing, too.  I refuse to go out here if it gets below freezing since I value my life.

[Chimpy]

So I get to sit around the house until mid afternoon watching the weather reports to see if it has warmed up/stopped with the wintry mix bullshit before driving to my mom's. I don't look forward to driving through no man's land (don't even get analog roam cell phone coverage) with freezing rain slicked roads.

[Bunk]

We've been fortunate that its been completely dry throughout this cold snap. It's hard as hell on the sinuses, but no moisture or rain means no ice.

[Minvaren]

I refuse to go out here if it gets below freezing since I value my life.

Reminds me of the time I drove the 25' shuttle bus around IAH when all the roads froze over in 1991 or so.  People harassed me for only doing 20mph up JFK - until a car calmly passed the bus while spinning like a top, then bumped a curb and spun off the road into a ditch.  Didn't hear a peep the rest of the trip.  Good times, good times. 

[murdoc]

Yeah I suppose so, I just wonder how cars get started.

Underground parking makes a hell of a difference. If you are in Alberta like Murdoc though - you have a block heater.

A block heater is a must. I'm lucky though, I drive from my heated garage to my heated unground parking space. As long as I don't have to stop anywhere along the way I never have to go outside. Yesterday was ridiculously cold though.

[Lantyssa]

Reminds me of the time I drove the 25' shuttle bus around IAH when all the roads froze over in 1991 or so.  People harassed me for only doing 20mph up JFK - until a car calmly passed the bus while spinning like a top, then bumped a curb and spun off the road into a ditch.  Didn't hear a peep the rest of the trip.  Good times, good times. 

Ah, I remember those freezes.  Had a few good ones in the late '90s, too.  One fun one was when the metal steps to my back porch ended up with three inches of ice on them and a tree fell across the back drive.  I didn't go out for a few days.

[Sky]

Man, I want to move to Canada. Hasn't been cold enough here to get the wood stove going the last few nights. Probably could've stoked one last night, but it was still 40º at 8pm.

I've also been going over the new health care plan we were forced into, to save money (for the library, not us). And the supplemental I'll now need. Should push me to $400/mo not including out-of-pockets/deductibles/etc. Not that that has anything to do with my wish to move to Canada. No ma'am.

[voodoolily]

Man, I want to move to Canada. Hasn't been cold enough here to get the wood stove going the last few nights. Probably could've stoked one last night, but it was still 40º at 8pm.

I've also been going over the new health care plan we were forced into, to save money (for the library, not us). And the supplemental I'll now need. Should push me to $400/mo not including out-of-pockets/deductibles/etc. Not that that has anything to do with my wish to move to Canada. No ma'am.

Portland's been cold enough for a wood stove the past few days. Won't snow, though. 

[murdoc]

I think it's too cold to snow.

[WayAbvPar]

Man, I want to move to Canada. Hasn't been cold enough here to get the wood stove going the last few nights. Probably could've stoked one last night, but it was still 40º at 8pm.

I've also been going over the new health care plan we were forced into, to save money (for the library, not us). And the supplemental I'll now need. Should push me to $400/mo not including out-of-pockets/deductibles/etc. Not that that has anything to do with my wish to move to Canada. No ma'am.

Portland's been cold enough for a wood stove the past few days. Won't snow, though. 

You guys didn't get any snow? We got about 5 inches, which promptly froze into solid ice. Getting off our hill was dicey, but the main streets weren't bad once we got closer to sea level. I am in the office with about 10 of co-workers; between the driving conditions, or telecommuting program, and the holidays it is a freakin' ghost town here. I love days like this.

[RhyssaFireheart]

I refuse to go out here if it gets below freezing since I value my life.

Reminds me of the time I drove the 25' shuttle bus around IAH when all the roads froze over in 1991 or so.  People harassed me for only doing 20mph up JFK - until a car calmly passed the bus while spinning like a top, then bumped a curb and spun off the road into a ditch.  Didn't hear a peep the rest of the trip.  Good times, good times. 

Ah, I actually loved driving a transit bus back in college in the winter.  Nothing like sliding down a slight grade while trying to come up to a bus stop and then gently bumping into the curb at the end.  Or watching far too many students dressed in winter clothes (NIU in DeKalb, IL) trying to stuff their way onto my bus and then getting the joy of pulling out from the stop on ice in a bus without power steering.

Just supposed to rain around here and get cold, so I'm waiting for mom to arrive from downstate/St. Louis area.  She siad it was pouring on the way up to Springfield but it's dry up by me, so maybe she drove out of it.  Weather's been decent for most of the month, but the day she travels, it's gotta be crappy.  Go figure.

[Engels]

Seattle got about 3 inches of snow on Monday and the UW has been shutdown for the last 2 days. Its so cold that the snow and ice aren't going anywhere, and once again, the city never invested in serious snow clearing machinery. The numerous Scandinavian students are appalled and spamming up the UW comments section on the website. Alaskans are wandering around in shorts pointing and laughing.