dasada Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 I just encountered this show, and a lot of the terms and concepts they are using are slightly foreign, especially in the networking portions. I get like 60%, but that's not enough to build a context. Can anyone recommend a good book or something to learn what I need to know to be on the level of this show? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
VaKo Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 Unfortunately there is no so book given the breadth of the field. You can get a lot from wikipedia if you just need the basic concepts and outlines, but for technical information you will have to use a combination of technical documentation & manuals, along with the time honored method of just getting stuck in and playing around. Obtain a spare PC or 2, learn about virtualization (to save money) and have fun. It also helps to set yourself goals, as in "I want to do X", ie build a webserver or setup a media center, and learn how to acomplish it. And yes, you will break stuff, it took me over 50 reinstalls of FreeBSD before I got to grips with running a *nix box. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h3%5kr3w Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 VaKo speaks the full truth about this. My advice to you, get a 6 pack of beer (or alternative something if your under 21). Start off slowly watching the show and as you hear what you do not know about, bring up wiki and just start learning (dont feel bad because I still do it too... I never heard about fiber channel or iscsi before ep. before last). Also a great thing to do is browse the show notes because you can get alot of info from the links on what exactly things are. it took me over 50 reinstalls of FreeBSD before I got to grips with running a *nix box. THANK YOU JESUS it's not just me!!! :P BTW!! I myself am a network junkie (have to be.. Im going for my CCNA right now [cisco certified network administrator]) so if there are a handfull of terms you dont know about do not be afraid to ask! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dasada Posted June 30, 2009 Author Share Posted June 30, 2009 Ok. As a start, I am posting this from my new Kubuntu dual boot. Everything is surprisingly shiny... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
decepticon_eazy_e Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 Ok. As a start, I am posting this from my new Kubuntu dual boot. Everything is surprisingly shiny... Awesome! Keep doing stuff until you break it, then DO IT AGAIN!! Best way to learn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
h3%5kr3w Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 b R e A k I t ! w00t! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SomethingToChatWith Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 You usually learn by picking topics that are most interesting to you and dedicating the time to sit down to research them. As you acquire more knowledge, you'll understand concepts at at least a overview and develop an interest for more technical topics as you go along. If you are serious about your studies or want to turn it into a career you'll take the knowledge and experience you acquire over time to go after certifications that'll help potential employers identify you for what you know. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Sierakowski Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 IMHO, you can't go wrong with getting A+ and Net+ certified. Neither represent a significant time drain, and you'll get your feet lightly wet in all aspects of PC's and Networking respectively. Good to give you the big picture and fill in any gaps your independent study may have left, and at the end of the process you have two marketable certs under your belt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dasada Posted June 30, 2009 Author Share Posted June 30, 2009 Okay, the Kubuntu was a mistake. I tried it on my laptop I use for school, and forgot to back up my data. This became a bad idea when I got a GRUB error 17. It is very hard to learn programming without a computer, and I couldn't even get back into Vista. Luckily, the linux deities upstairs had some freaky kung-fu coding skill, and they were able to recover the system fully. I have sworn off dual-booting, and the next time I experiment with linux, it will be on a separate machine in a Faraday cage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
digip Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 One other thing is to just watch as many episodes as you can from past seasons, but also other IPTV tech shows and websites in eneral. Hak5 is a great show, but there are a lot of other great shows and sites that have come and gone who hold a lot of great content. BSODTV, IronGeek's site and video tutorials, http://hackermedia.org/ , http://forums.remote-exploit.org/ . Then google the terms you need help with. When google can't provide the answer, pop in hak5's IRC channel or ask the question in the forums. Ignore users who might post trivial responses or flames, its part of the territory so get used to growing a thicker skin, but for the most part, everyone here is always willing to help with intelignet questions and topics related to tech stuff. Growing up, I always thought I knew my shit when it came to computers, but over the years the show has opened my eyes a lot to new things and gotten me more interested in computers. I've now gotten my Network+ cert and am working both my CCNA and then CCNA Voice certs. Hopefully I will have the money and time to work on the Microsoft route of certs, like MCSA and MCSE stuff, but for the most part, I work with windows and have taught myself and can usually figure out the windows stuff, like Active Directory, etc. Its the other things we don't use on a daily basis that really get me interested in things, like *nix and cisco networking, wireless hacks and general hardware mods and hacks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jason Cooper Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 Try learning linux in a virtual machine initially (virtualbox should do the job well enough), that way you don't have to worry about messing up your existing OS and set up and you can try a number of distros before deciding which one you found the most intuitive for you. Also Kubuntu wasn't a mistake as you now understand the importance of backing your data up :) A good lesson to learn before you get to the night before you are due to hand in your coursework only to find that the drive it was on has died. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SomethingToChatWith Posted June 30, 2009 Share Posted June 30, 2009 IMHO, you can't go wrong with getting A+ and Net+ certified. Neither represent a significant time drain, and you'll get your feet lightly wet in all aspects of PC's and Networking respectively. Good to give you the big picture and fill in any gaps your independent study may have left, and at the end of the process you have two marketable certs under your belt. Half the networking terms referenced on the show I wasnt familar with prior to my certs. The studying is good, even if you don't fully understand it at first. The idea is to become familar, so that you can even gain an interest. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brian Sierakowski Posted July 1, 2009 Share Posted July 1, 2009 Try learning linux in a virtual machine initially (virtualbox should do the job well enough), that way you don't have to worry about messing up your existing OS and set up and you can try a number of distros before deciding which one you found the most intuitive for you. Also Kubuntu wasn't a mistake as you now understand the importance of backing your data up :) A good lesson to learn before you get to the night before you are due to hand in your coursework only to find that the drive it was on has died. Yep, I just installed ubuntu yesterday in a VM. Download an Ubuntu VMX file from easyvmx.com, get the free vmware player, and mount the ISO as a drive in player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SomethingToChatWith Posted July 2, 2009 Share Posted July 2, 2009 Error 17 typically means you're simply pointing to the wrong disk/partition. Grub offers edit facilities at boot time to help you figure out the right parameters and you can edit once you're in for future booting at /boot/grub/menu.lst. It doesnt mean your systems crashed. I'd haft to agree though. VMs make it easy. I just got VBox today to start playing around though I've had a physical machine up in the past. It just makes everything easier. No worrying about configuring drivers, but learning your stuff. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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