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  • #2280096

    Thrown into IT role, please help!

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    by mgosselin ·

    Thanks for taking the time to help a fledgling out!

    I have recently joined an organization without any IT personnel, and as certain needs have come up, mostly minor, I’ve been able to address them. Now the company is growing larger and the IT role more demanding/technical. I have no formal training, certifications, etc. but have just enough knowledge to troubleshoot minor issues.

    What, in your opinion, is the best way for me to get up to speed? I understand that there are certifications, but these take a lot of time and energy that I don’t have. I also understand that there are many resources out there which can help me, however being so new to the IT area, I don’t know where to look.

    Please help me out.

    Thanks

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    • #3378190

      Reply To: Thrown into IT role, please help!

      by jschein ·

      In reply to Thrown into IT role, please help!

      Where to look, you have done it…

      Certifications, degrees, phd’s do not matter in this field. Some will flame me soon, but you will learn experience is 95% of the job. 5% is knowing how to network and get information that you are familiar with and unsure about.

      The best thing to do is build up a good relationship with any technicians that come on-site to repair warrantied items. Also, if your routers / lines are outsourced by the phone companies, get to know these people and build a friendly relationship as soon as you can.

      After you have experience and know what hardware address is used by com port 1, then you can go for you A+. When you know which class of i.p.’s fall in Class C, then you can go for your Network + cert.

      After that, you decide if you need anymore or if you just need to network with friends on what is the best approach to what you are doing. Remember, everything you are doing has been done and noted all over the web. Google is a great search engine if used properly.

      Know about licensing issues in a corporate / company environment and what you need to have done to cover your basics.

      It would be hooah of you to goto compusa or some store and buy one of those books… “IT FOR DUMMIES”… don’t laugh, it covers alot of information in which you need minus the large downpayment.

      Also, people here are more than nice enough to assist with ANY level of questions.

      Congrats and good luck

    • #3378184

      Reply To: Thrown into IT role, please help!

      by mbr ·

      In reply to Thrown into IT role, please help!

      Start reading up on your type of networks, if you do not have a background in networks your just gonna have hit the books from the start….O’Reily makes some great books. I would start with A+ books for software. No need to get certified but you need to read.

    • #3378155

      Reply To: Thrown into IT role, please help!

      by thechas ·

      In reply to Thrown into IT role, please help!

      Sign up for the Tech Republic e-mail newsletters that cover your needs.

      Sign up for Microsoft’s TechNet security notification e-mail.

      Read as many books as you can. I heartily recommend any book published by O’Reilly publishing.

      There are some very good support links at http://www.aumha.org

      Chas

    • #3378139

      Reply To: Thrown into IT role, please help!

      by mgosselin ·

      In reply to Thrown into IT role, please help!

      This question was closed by the author

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