hi, im 20 and lost with all this

[n0greenfx]

hey, im 20 and in my second year of school. i work ing a damn resuartant to pay rent and bill and its driving me nuts all this mindless restuarant crap. i am taking all my prereqs in school and am going to be an IT major. I would however like a better job in the IT department while im in school to get experience and such. I have good pc knowledge mostly windows and hardware building pc etc. i also just started messing with LINux like a month ago i have one desktop with linux installed. I have no idea however how to program. Im also learning Mac OS X as i just got a macbook for xmas..I am lloking for a way in the door mabey a certification or something so i can get rid of this ****ty resurant job. Currrently I make about 20$ an hour i would not really like to make less....i also have no current certifications

[awaj]

Most colleges have an IT department there. They will take almost anyone or so I understand. I am also in my second year, and am starting to look into getting a job with my school's IT department. It seems like if you know a little about hardware troubleshooting, and are fairly skilled in Word, Excell, Powerpoint, ect, it shouldn't be too hard to get in. The IT department that I am trying to get into does their own training during the spring and fall semesters.

[n0greenfx]

see honestly i also want nothing to do with the office suite lol i hate that **** and id rather not work at school they are only paying 8$ and hour and u must be on something called an aid based need basically u have to be getting financial aid to get a job on campus and my parents taxs or w\e dont allow me to recieve any government funding

[n0greenfx]

should i learn programming where is a good place to start with this???

[awaj]

If you want to learn some programming, you can probably take some classes on campus, or try teaching your self through some cheap books. I've tried doing the book thing, they are interesting, but for it to work, besure to actaully do the examples. I am sure you can also go do some searches on line. Webmonkey.com (or something along those lines) is a good place to start on HTML. Other people here may have other people have sites here to learn other languages too.

[Erik]

What do you want to do in IT? You should only learn programming if that is something you are looking to do as a career. Otherwise it might be useful to know a bit of it for troubleshooting and debugging, but not worth really diving into.

As far as getting a job now, some certs wouldn't hurt you. The big deal with certs for most companies isn't that they prove you know anything about what the test is on. It just gives you a special relationship with the big names in the computer world. For example in order to be an IBM authorized repair center you need a certain number of techs certified by IBM. In order to get IBM certified you need an A+. So an A+ might be worth looking into for you if you want an entry level job.

What type of work do you want (full time or part time)? That will have some impact on where to look, as well as what particular field you want to get into. But there is always Best Buy and the like as a start, however bad it may be.

[n0greenfx]

well prgramming is definatly not wat want to go into.. honestly its looks rather boring to me what enoy is taking everything apart lol and putting it back together, network, and runnng things such as linux on and xbox and my ps3. i also have fun unlocking cell phones for my friends. i also just got a macbook and i saw the guys at the "genius bar" they look like they are having alot of fun...I also enjoy A/v setting up home theater systems using an htpc. i dont know about best buy tho i can not really afford a pay cut at the moment and i heard geek squad makes about 10$ and hour. I am lookng for full time employment tho. A+ sounds god its a basic hardware cert right? is it worth taking a class onit or do u think i am able to just get a book and study for it on my own??

[yawningdog]

I recommend you look into military service. They give you training, time, a security clearance and an admin account on an AD network to play with. The GI bill is a smokin' deal too, it's paying for almost all of my degree.

If you don't like restaurant work, don't worry. It will only get worse when you become an IT pro. Best of luck to you.

[n0greenfx]

I just got hired at my local of repair shop...kinds excited yet a bit worried all of a sudden I kind of lack confidence. But basically he said any job I do is split 50/50 between me and the shop sounds good I think

[jlreich]

kinds excited yet a bit worried all of a sudden I kind of lack confidence.
I wouldn't worry. Sounds like you have a decent handle on how computers work. Once you get past the first couple of days and get the hang of things your confidence will return.

[n0greenfx]

i guess it my 1st real job workngwith pc's he said it was alot of ad\spyware removal lol porn freaks....then asked me what my favorite anti virus\spy\adware program was i responded with AVG it was the 1st that came to mind....are ther any better out there that i should get some qucik [ractice in with??? lol idk y im such a nervous wreck now. uhg

[awaj]

Hijackthis is a great tool (if used correctly) although it doesn't differentiate between good and bad. To beable to use it, I would check out this thread :http://pcguide.com/vb/showthread.php?t=61212. There are a couple tutorials in there which I am thankful for that explain how to use the tool fairly well.

[RegH]

i guess it my 1st real job workngwith pc's he said it was alot of ad\spyware removal lol porn freaks....then asked me what my favorite anti virus\spy\adware program was i responded with AVG it was the 1st that came to mind....are ther any better out there that i should get some qucik [ractice in with??? lol idk y im such a nervous wreck now. uhg

No flaming intended, but if you're looking for employment at a high level, I hope you can indeed spell accurately (or use spell checker) and use proper grammar.
If I were considering placing you, I would be concerned about this very basic requirement in my shop.
It's about communication. Got to be clear and accurate.

Honestly- I wish you best of luck. You seem to be a pretty sharp person.

BTW- A lot of people would be happy to get $20 per hr at their food service jobs ;)