Looking for advise on this cert...

pamccabe

A few weeks ago I earned my CCNA, and am looking for another goal. I had considered CCNP, but with my school schedule and new job, I'm thinking I might put that off for right now while I get experience. I am 2 weeks into a NOC position at a data center. Anyway, I'm also a student for networking and am currently enrolled in a UNIX/Linux course that focuses on CentOS. The instructor is amazing. He actually gets me pumped up to learn. Which, after getting up at 5am with a baby, and working 8 hours, then having a 4 hour class... it can be hard to find energy for anything at that point... anyway, I am loving this course. The instructor said it might be a Unix/Linux Intro course, but he only calls it Intro because it is new material for most students. If we walk away from our computer during lab without logging off, he will change passwords, or add lines in the scripts. He also doesn't answer questions, he asks us questions to get us thinking... just an instructor unlike any other I've ever had. This linux course is really interesting to me. I really want to learn more about it and get better with the command line. That is another thing, he will not allow us to install a GUI environment. It has to be all command line.

Boy did I get sidetracked there... anyway, if I wanted to start on a Linux+ cert, where would I go from here? Also, is this a good intro cert or is this for more advanced users? Forward thinking, I want to work on networks. Cisco is my true passion and I love working with their equipment. I might start on CCNA Security while working my data center job but want to learn another useful skill. I think Linux/Unix would be beneficial for a network engineer down the road.

Any thoughts, tips, suggestions would be appreciated.

The_Expert

Folks who have been working with Linux for many years will probably tell you that the Linux+ certification is very easy compared to the Red Hat certification track.

However, for someone like you - it will probably be a challenge. I know it was for me! I studied for 6 months and also took a course before attempting this certification. Prior to this I only had minimal exposure to Linux.

Over the last 6 months I have learned so much and have even become a Linux convert! Studying for the Linux+ has made me a better person skill wise.

I say go for it! It seems like you have a great instructor who can help you meet this goal...

Good Luck!