How did you get started in IT?
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I did a traineeship (payed internship) in high school. Was working 2 days a week and at school the other 3. Went from hell desk to full sys admin for the firm before moving to my current job, Supreme Network Overlord for an ISP in Australia.
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@Katie
My title was Network Engineer until I put Supreme Network Overlord on my leave form and the boss signed off on it. -
@slazer2au said:
@Katie
My title was Network Engineer until I put Supreme Network Overlord on my leave form and the boss signed off on it.Wow very cool Title
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Writing games on the ZX Spectrum when I was about eleven.
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My story on my entry into I.T. is a bit backwards. I was a naive boy when I moved to the U.S. from Germany (Navy Brat) and got a job working with a Metals Company. We sold Aluminum, Stainless, and other metals to machine shops, military, and contractors. Great stories while there and it was neat to work with some cool customers. Quick aside: received commendation for logistics support for a military base just prior to the 1st Desert Storm. I handled the logistics coordination for the aluminum that went on all the armored vehicles that used rakes for the mines they cleared. Anyway, back to I.T. After working in sales, purchasing, and management, it became clear to me this was an old boy's network and upward mobility was just too far off for me. As a young, headstrong person, I didn't want to wait till I was 50 to make VP, so I had a friend that was part owner of an IT company that wanted to grow, so I moved over there for sales.
I had played with DOS and like technology so I made the jump. My only requirement when I made this move was that I wanted to learn from the ground up. Well, the first week had me building 30 workstations to hook up to NetWare 3.12. For the first two years, I was given all the crap stuff until I started taking on more sales stuff. Eventually took over sales full time and eventually was promoted to VP, but during the whole time I played with stuff in the office and developed a tight relationship with the Engineers. I listened really well and had them teach me a ton of stuff. To be honest, I ended up taking on tech support, sales, project management, and politics. I was a bit fed up with the latter and resigned so I could go back to school.
After 3 months of going to school full-time and gauging my workload, I put out feelers to executives looking for some part-time work. One company called me in so I could help them with their business processes. They were growing like crazy, and about a month later was asked to come work full-time as VP. In addition to running IT, I also handled 3 other departments. Fast forward to today, after a massive layoff there and a 3 year stint of running an IT company part-time with two others, I now work here at the Engineering company.
While I made VP twice before I was 50 (remember the headstrong boy at the metal company), I really now enjoy just working and playing with technology. I've built/replaced tons of servers and PCs, am migrating Exchange at the moment, and just am in love with virtual technologies. I'm in a good place right now.
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@DenisKelley That's an interesting story! I think working in different aspects of IT and being well-rounded gives folks a good perspective.
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I am certainly very glad for my varied background. I've worked in many fields and disciplines and even within IT in many roles and industries.
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@scottalanmiller said:
I am certainly very glad for my varied background. I've worked in many fields and disciplines and even within IT in many roles and industries.
Definitely does help see problems from different angles.
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And helps with empathy.
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I pretty much fell into it. In high school, I was determined to become a Geneticist. I was focusing on biology, attending genetics conferences, etc. However, I don't have any computational math skills, which would impact various of aspects of that career path. I was in the middle of the school hall when it dawned on me that I'd need to pick a different career. Not moments later, the computer teacher came to find me in order for me to bring up a crashed server yet again.
I got my foot in the door working for my high school after I graduated by doing data entry in the library. Things didn't quite work out there, and during my first summer semester of college, 3 of my classmates in my hardware 101 course pointed out a job opening on the college job board to me, and I jumped right into IT from there at that manufacturing firm.
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I was always around computers as a Kid. My mom taught Computers and Keyboarding at a Vocational school, so from 6 or 7 I would run around helping the ladies (Mostly typists, learning how to use a computer) get their computers working in the lab. After High school I got a job selling Cell phones (Back before they had camera's or texting was a thing. It was then that I realized technology was something I always wanted to be around. After I figured out that sales wasn't something I wanted to do forever, i went to a Community college to get an associates degree. Got a temporary gig at a Poultry company in the IT, department, Moved from there to my first Technician job, and 12 years later, here I am.
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@Nara said:
I pretty much fell into it. In high school, I was determined to become a Geneticist.
Genetics is very interesting stuff!
I came from a biology background - I studied Marine science, conservation, and ecology in college. -
@scottalanmiller is the Borg, so I assimilated. Once upon a time I was a forensic chemist.
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@Dominica said:
@scottalanmiller is the Borg, so I assimilated. Once upon a time I was a forensic chemist.
I am excited to hear How did you get started in IT.
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I have an older cousin by about 8 years. He was into linux and building computers and such. I use to always go over to his house when I was 4-5 years old and be mesmerized at what I saw. I started tinkering myself with a computer my parents had. Took at the components out and replaced them. Started to install windows and and configure it. Been hooked ever since.
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It all started while I was working as an automotive technician. My wife and I bought a used Packard Bell (http://www.qvc.com/Packard-Bell-Multimedia-C110-120MHz-Pentium.product.E45731.html). We "upgraded" it to 32MB RAM, 8GB HD and 56k US Robitics modem. I tossed out the PB Windows media disk with BLOAT ware (only 250MB was left) for a bootleg W95b disk. Built my next PC with Cyrix processor and W98.
Became friends with an IT tech who used to call me Captain Clicky. He would hand out OSes and programs like they were candy. I was running W2k instead of W98 or WME and had Office with Viso! By the time I started my first IT job, I was already using XP which was the "new kid" on the block. That IT job was actually supposed to be a sales and pick up pc's for the tech. Slowly I became the tech who was in sales and also started selling website design for the company. That is how my wife started doing web design for a living. Been doing it ever since.
First there was Google, then there was Expert Exchange (till they wanted money), LinkedIn groups, SW and now ML!!
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Started working at the age of 19. I wanted to get a job very soon, and upon checking found that if you do a basic hardware and networking course, you might get a job soon! Finished that and joined my first job as hardware engineer- to install and setup home computers, installing Windows XP and ME (Yeah, some wanted to use that!) Was there for about 8 months and then moved to a different city in India, working as junior system admin. Mostly worked as a one man IT so it had its own perks and pitfalls!
Mostly relied on google search, got later into server administration, then into MAC and Linux administration as well. Still lot to learn but I like what I chose as my career path.
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I was first introduced to electronics - my father being a manager for a huge oscilloscope manufacturer he showed me how "Everything was put together".
As for IT, I didn't get into the Criminal Justice program, so I opted for the next best thing - Networking & Programming. Seeing the change in majors, my parents surprised me on my 13th birthday...I was given a computer...in parts! From then on my family never bought an OEM computer again. I got a job when I was 16 as a cable technician, my boss would come pick me up from school and I would then run cable like there was no tomorrow. Whilst running cables I made a lot of contacts for IT work (Since my boss was a "Phones only" guy). Worked as a sub-contractor for two government entities and my cable tech job until I graduated HS, became full time on one of the government positions, and picked up a second job refurbishing computers (About 200 a day!). Second job moved to a far location & now I'm still at my government position working for 3 different municipality buildings and running my own IT business.
And the search for growth continues!
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Criminal justice was a program that you had to pick at age thirteen?
