[ale] somewhat OT: sysadmin must-knows?

[jay]

Man, you guys have been amazingly helpful so far!  I will definitely start 
looking for a copy of the Purple Book (read: wait for Christmas)!  It sounds 
like things like LDAP and authentication protocols of various sorts factor 
big.  These are things I havent had a chance to work with yet, becuase the 
only admin work I've done so far is standalone servers (ftp, http, samba, 
postfix, bind, sendmail). 

I spend as much time in Linux environments as possible (Windows is only for 
compiling in Visual Studio, and then *only* over rdesktop from my Linux 
machines), using various distros, and it sounds like the consensus is "learn 
by doing".  I like the idea of setting up a few machines at home to test 
stuff too.  

Are there any specific tasks that come up all the time that I should know 
inside out and backwards? 

Lastly, does anyone out there have any other suggestions for jobs besides 
sysadmin that would allow me to work with Linux and open source?  I am not 
100% dead set on sysadmin work, I just like the concept of going to work 
every day and working with *nix systems.  I am not really interested in being 
a programmer, though I do enjoy it, it's not something I want to do 40hrs a 
week.  Any other suggestions are welcome.  

Is it likely that I'll find a place where I can be a "lackey" to an 
experienced sysadmin so I can earn my stripes? I have no problem working my 
way up from the bottom, I figure my ability will shine wherever I am and I'll 
be able to progress. 

Thank you guys immensely for the tips and help thus far, it's been very 
helpful!

-Jay