[nycbug-talk] BSD admins: set for life or a domino set waiting to happen?

[Andy Michaels]

On Fri, Nov 7, 2008 at 11:11 PM,  <matt at atopia.net> wrote:
> It seems like unix jobs are in high demand. While we all have a general understanding of TCP/IP and DNS etc. Which are things unlikely to change, what's to stop
> someone from coming out with a replacement to unix that would make our skills immediately go to waste?

Wasn't Windows supposed to do that?  (that's what recruiters have
always told me) See how that's worked out?

> What's the future of people with skillsets like us? (my assumption is anyone on this list has at least an average and desirable understanding of unix, etc.).

as with any domain, you need to stay relevant.  It's not so much about
*what* you know specifically, but you should be able to learn, and
have solid conceptual foundations.

> Will the market eventually get so diluted with unix people that it will no longer be in demand?

<pure-opinion type="personal" flame="pleaseNo">

maybe, but not likely any time soon.  I've tried hiring *nix folks and
nearly all the people that responded to the job posts were from this
list.  Seriously.  *nix has a relatively high barrier to entry (time
and skillwise).  Therefore, people looking to add bulk to their resume
are a little less likely to put effort into learning it.  During the
same hiring efforts I mentioned before, 99% of the respondents
(literally hundreds) were MCSEs with absolutely no *nix experience or
knowledge. I *specifically* asked for *nix skills.

At the worst, the market may become flooded with people with *nix on
their resume, or who "really interested in checking it out", but
probably not with solid *nix people.

</pure-opinion>

-Andy