--- Tracy Pierce <[log in to unmask]> wrote:

> While the certificate is ostensibly an attempt to certify competence,
> its existence can be quite misleading.  I bet (I'd say I KNOW, but
> then you'd want examples) that there are people who hold the 
> certificate who don't know half as much about the machine, much less 
> the project at hand, as do some other people who've never set foot 
> inside an HP training class much less taken an HP certification test.
> 
> The certificate indicates that its holder passed a test, not that
> they can program their way out of a paper bag or can apply common 
> sense to a business problem, much less unravel code written by 
> possibly competent programmers who didn't have time for 
> documentation.  Does the certificate imply knowledge of every gotcha 
> to be found in VPlus?
> 
> Said test(s) include(s) questions about a lot of pretty arcane stuff,
> just the sort of knowledge that leaves a person pretty quickly if not
> exercised.  How long has it been since the certificate became
> unavailable?  Are all those certified actively working with the
> platform and using all the skills for which they're certified?  Even 
> if so, does that make them More competent than a non-holder?  Not in 
> my book.

i think we have all herd stories of m$ certified people who could
barely switch on a computer let alone do anything effective -- yet they
had that piece of paper that really only proved that they knew how to
take (and pass) a test.

given how dramatically the m$ certification process has changed (it's
multiple tests now), i'd say that hp heard the message too.  i wouldn't
have been able to pass the hp-ux system admin test without an awful lot
of work *and* experience (much of which was reapplied mpe
knowledge...fancy that! :-)

i think, as well, many of us have heard the complaints about the
existing mpe test.  personally, i'd love for the test to be revamped. 
rewrite it for 7.5, make it good evaluation of a person's mpe
knowledge, make it so the test means something.  if wishes were horses,
i'd like for there to be a programmer's test in addition to an
administrators....

having said that -- *nothing* is going to replace an interview.  piece
of paper or not, the only way to know if someone is going to fit into
your organization is to talk to them.         - d

Donna Hofmeister, HP-CSA  Sr. System Programmer
dgarverick -at- longs -dot- com
925-210-6631              Longs Drug Stores

>>>MY opinions, not Longs Drug Stores'<<<

__________________________________________________
Do You Yahoo!?
Tired of spam?  Yahoo! Mail has the best spam protection around 
http://mail.yahoo.com 

* To join/leave the list, search archives, change list settings, *
* etc., please visit http://raven.utc.edu/archives/hp3000-l.html *