TeamREES

Having three children, my wife and I named our children months ahead of time to (with names picked out if they were a boy or girl) and I never really gave much thought to how difficult a task that could be. 

We have a few sets of friends who are a few years behind us in the “baby realm” are and having their first kids.  The amount of effort they’re putting in to finding baby middle names is pretty mind boggling.  It’s apparently even more difficult if they when searching for baby boy names.  The don’t want to go the more traditional route and name their children either after themselves (junior) or after the grandparents.  They also don’t want to choose a middle name that belongs to their favorite stars (sports, movies, etc).  They also don’t want to use common inanimate names like apple, star, silver, etc.  

So in their quest for rare baby names, I can almost guarantee that as soon as they find the special one, they will instantly start seeing that name everywhere; much like when you buy a new car and then all of a sudden you see that car everywhere.  It’s the nature of the beast.

So as the magic date approaches, they’re still without a middle name for their baby.  If it’s a girl, they are close to settling, but choosing a baby boy name might just send them over the edge.

Any good sources for baby middle names would be appreciated, I’ll pass it on to them. If you happen across some that are truly unique, please feel free to comment.

Many companies are already chomping at the bit to take advantage of many of the features Windows Server 2008 offers, such as improvements to Terminal Services, Server Virtualization and security enhancements including bitlocker and read-only domain controllers for branch-office type installations. 

Many of the services and features included in Windows Server 2008 will be able to replace software and applications many companies pay for currently.  While this is certainly going to be a welcome addition by many IT departments, it also creates opportunities as well.

Training and certification will continue to play a big part in securing higher paying jobs, opening doors, being considered for new opportunities, changing careers, earning the promotion, etc.  Some of the Top IT Certifications for 2008 will continue to be the perennial favorites, including CompTIA A+ Certification and Cisco CCNA Certification. 

Networking and Support are Key Components

One of the most sought after certifications is Cisco’s CCNA certification.  Virtually every business, regardless of industry, needs qualified people to design, configure, troubleshoot and maintain their networks.  This isn’t going to change for 2008.  In addition, these same companies need people to troubleshoot hardware and software issues, provide desktop and desk-side support and rollout new machines; along with refreshing existing ones.  For these reasons, CompTIA A+ Certification training, and Microsoft’s MCDST Certification training will continue to be offer an excellent return on investment.  If you are looking to either get into the information technology field, or increase your current level, then A+, MCDST or CCNA certification is definitely a worthwhile endeavor.

Project Management

According to a recent Gartner survey, project management is another area that will continue to be a high-paying profession that will be in demand in 2008.  Project Managers manage the project lifecycle, from conception through design, testing and implementation.  They coordinate with the various individual contributors involved in the project, and make sure timelines, deliverables and budgets are met.  They also are able to determine when things are getting off-track and adjust accordingly to ensure timely completion of the project.

As a result, Project Management related certifications like CompTIA Project+ and the Project Management Institute’s (PMI) Project Management Professional (PMP) certifications will be in demand, along with technical certifications and training centering around enabling project management and collaboration, such as Microsoft’s SharePoint 2007.

Security

Perhaps one of the biggest areas for new growth is the security sector, just based on the fact that so many companies are now realizing the need to secure their environments.  Hacking is becoming easier to do, as new tools are released and information is quickly disseminated.  Every company has, or should have, a need to secure their environments from being compromised both physically and virtually.  Even companies that feel they don’t have anything that necessitates additional funding to secure their networks, should understand that failure to do so opens them up to not only being attacked; but also to being used as an intermediary step in a larger attack against other targets (i.e. Denial of Service attacks against remote targets).

Virtualization

As word grows of how great server virtualization can be for a company’s bottom line, not to mention how it improves adminstration, fault tolerance and reduces hardware expenditures, certifications centering around virtualization technologies will be in high demand.  The two dominant players in this field currently are VMware and Microsoft.  Of the two, VMware’s ESX Server platform is a more mature technology and can enable some organizations to consolidate 30 or more hosts onto a single ESX server.

Get Certified and Get Ahead

The bottom line is, if you want the maximize your opportunities for 2008, continue to educate yourself, broaden your skills as much as possible, and stay ahead of the curve.  By keeping a step ahead and learning the skills that companies need to maintain their businesses, you’ll keep yourself marketable and in demand.  If you’re not already certified, you should definitely be working on:

• CompTIA A+ Certification
• Microsoft MCDST Certification
• Cisco CCNA Certification

Those three certifications provide an excellent body of knowledge that forms the foundation of a successful and prosperous IT Career.  From there, you can grow in many directions and specialize in any one of a dozen or more areas.

Best of luck in your Training and Certification Endeavors!!

A friend recently sent me a link to a movie called ZeitGeist, which is a very interesting analysis of everything from the origins of religion to the 9/11 attacks, to everyone eventually being v-chipped with RFID tags to track everything from movement to spending habits.

I have mixed feelings about the contents of the video, and I don’t necessarily think everything is 100% accurate (I don’t have enough information to really have a deep opinion on many of the things in the video) but what I do know, is that if the content of the video is even REMOTELY true, it is indeed extremely disturbing.

Definitely take some time, and view the video.  You can watch the entire thing online, for free from their website at www.zeitgeistmovie.com

I’m very interested to hear people’s take on the video, what do you think about the vid?

Palaestra Training has just released a new training series: Microsoft Outlook 2003 Training. This is an exciting series, from our new instructor, Sid Miller. Sid is an Office expert that really makes it easy to learn all of the features Outlook has to offer.

Whether your a home user or business user, chances are you’re only using a fraction of the functionality Outlook 2003 has built-in.

With this training series, you’ll be given in-depth coverage of all the features and functionality found in Outlook. It’s so much more than just an e-mail client, it’s full-featured personal productivity tool that does calendaring and scheduling, e-mail, tasks, to-do lists, journals and more.

This series is over 7 hours of in-depth coverage in a format that’s easy to understand and packed full of information that you will be able to use immediately to boost your productivity.

For free full-length samples from this series and others, or to find out more about the training visit www.palaestratraining.com

Palaestra Training recently added some great information on CompTIA A+ Certification Training, studying for the exams and what to expect when you take the exam.

For some people, the CompTIA A+ exam is their very first experience taking a certification exam, so it’s important to understand the process, how to register and what to expect when you get there.

Palaestra Training creates IT Certification and Training videos for CompTIA, Cisco, Microsoft and others. If you’re looking for A+, MCDST, CCNA, Microsoft Outlook or Internet Safety training, visit them online at www.palaestratraining.com

I’ve been online since I was an early teenager back in the early to mid 80’s, running Bulletin Boards (BBS) years before the Internet.  I was on Prodigy and CompuServe years before most of my friends had even heard of the Internet.

Once the Internet became mainstream, I became involved in web design and really have enjoyed developing another creative outlet over the years.  Designing a website is easy. Designing a functional website is challenging, and designing a nice-looking, functional website is quite a task to say the least.  But simply being able to design a website is only half the battle.  The old “Build it and They Will Come” axiom no longer applies.  Whether you’re a blogger, a small company or an international enterprise, you’re online for one main reason - to be seen.

Wading through the information on how to get ranked in the major search engines can be frustrating and extremely time consuming.  Not only is there so much conflicting information available (much of which is simply wrong), it’s difficult to know who to trust.  There are a few true Search Engine Optimization (SEO) guru’s out there who are willing to teach others what they know, and Aaron Wall is one of the them.  If you want to learn about SEO from the best, pick up a copy of this book.  It’s quite simply THE DEFINITIVE guide to Search Engine Optimization. 

I refer back to this book all the time and I can tell you first hand it’s helped me tremendously.  I’ve seen huge increases in ranking and traffic for my business website, which creates IT Certification and Training videos for CompTIA, Microsoft, Cisco and more.  If the information works for me, it can work for you too.

The tips and techniques contained in Aaron Wall’s SEO Book is pure gold, and it’s information you won’t find anywhere else.  The book is updated frequently (updates are free), and his website is a wealth of information.  Aaron is regarded throughout the industry as one of the top authorities on SEO in the world.  As you read through his book, you’ll understand why.  Tips, techniques and information you can use immediately to improve you rankings, generate more traffic, and ultimately more money.

If you’re serious about your website and want to massively increase your visibility, then you simply must have a copy of this book.  I highly recommend you check it out for yourself.