DarkLordofthePenguins

For most of my career as the local computer nerd, I have focused on the mathematical, theoretical, and artistic side of computers. You know, things like web design, C programming, bash scripting, Boolean logic, network protocols, and the Unix command line. I never learned much of the practical stuff, the stuff that would qualify me as someone with "technical expertise". I never learned how to hack, how to actually do stuff with computers, in a practical sense.

Now I'm setting out to change that. With the projects I'm working on right now (mainly installing Debian), I am learning some of the more empirical aspects of technology. I am learning actual skills, rather than just principles. I am gaining the expertise that will enable me to have more complete control, to get technology to work the way I want it to.

Here are some of the skills that I would consider to be in the realm of actual expertise:

- Troubleshooting

- Installing an operating system

- Securing a system

- Doing administrative maintenance, such as hard drive partitioning

- Running a server

- Recognizing viruses and malware

- Using a computer to spy on people

- Building a PC

- Recovering data

- Setting up a network

- Diagnosing and fixing network problems

- Contributing to free software

- Anything that will land you a job in IT

Most of these are things I have yet to master. Things like this often involve true ingenuity, not just the ability to memorize commands and think logically. They involve a deeper understanding of technology.