Careers in the Operating System Field Essay -- Information Technology

The significance of the role of the Operation System (OS) in the overall Information Technology employment sector cannot be undervalued. Indeed, it is hard to talk about technical skill-sets or the practical application of such skill-sets without at least some underlying understanding of their context within a computer operating system environment. From hardware specifications and requirements, user technical support, system administration and security, to software development and system implementation, operating systems are an integral part of the information technology and computing world in all its aspects, and it is difficult to form a concrete demarcation between specialized careers in this industry and the concept of the computer operating system. Probably the most common thought of career position within the information technology arena that garners the most OS-centric job description specifics is that of the system administrator or network administrator. A system administrator is a person employed to maintain and operate a computer system or network for a company or other organization. The duties of a system administrator are wide-ranging, and vary widely from one organization to another. Sysadmins are usually charged with installing, supporting, and maintaining servers or other computer systems, and planning for and responding to service outages and other problems. Other duties may include scripting or light programming, project management for systems-related projects, supervising or training computer operators, and being the equivalent of a handyman for computer problems beyond the knowledge of technical support staff. Unlike many other professions, there is no single path to becoming a system administrator. Few co... ...roblems, I have found that the creative outlet offered by developing applications is much more satisfying to me in terms of my personal career development. I plan to re-enter the software application development job in the very near future, following graduation from RVCC. References The Enterprise Systems Staff (2006, August 8). 2006 ESJ Salary Survey, Part 1: Salaries Grow for All IT Staff Positions. Retrieved November 10, 2006, from http://esj.com/enterprise/article.aspx?EditorialsID=2052 The Salary Wizard Basic Report(2006, September). Retrieved November 10, 2006, from http://swz.salary.com/salarywizard/layouthtmls/swzl_compresult_national_IT10000135.html Salary Survey Report Job: Computer Technical Support Specialist(2006, November) Retrieved November 11, 2006, from http://www.payscale.com/research/US/Job=Computer_Technical_Support_Specialist/Salary