[ale] Linux Distributions

[Jerald Sheets]

The only thing I can add to this is an anecdote...this has happened  
to me twice in Interviews lately...

I have come into an interview, and after brief pleasantries the  
interviewer (or a sit-in) has said "I researched you on Google and  
have some questions about some of your technical positions"  and they  
proceeded to ask me about why I did a certain technical thing a  
certain way.  At another job.   5 years ago.

Now, imagine if you find yourself in an interview position in the  
future, and the interviewer brings this technical issue up to you in  
the interview, and asks "Why do you hold this technical position?   
It's bad practice, you know?"

Will you

A) argue with him
B) stomp out thinking he's trying to start a flamewar
C) realize at that time that it's not craziness we're spouting


Interviewers  and potential employers read our "work" here on ALE and  
whatever other lists we participate in, and your words can be used  
against you in the  future in that next search for a  UNIX Admin job.

Given that the majority of UNIXdom holds the "don't run  as root"  
view, howwill yo-u answer those questions  when they come?

Don't you think it's better we hash it all out here instead of being  
blindsided in an interview with it?


Jerald M. Sheets jr.
Sr. UNIX Systems Administrator
McKesson, Inc.
404.293.8762


On May 17, 2005, at 2:13 PM, George Carless wrote:

>> Why post this on list?
>> Troll.
>>
>
> Hardly.
>
>>
>> Here's the reason that I didn't want to discuss it: I have already  
>> seen and
>> participated in the "run as root" argument. Similarly, I have  
>> participated in
>> the "HB1, obfuscate email addresses on this list, and distro flame  
>> wars"
>> threads.
>>
>> Really, these threads repeat - and nothing new is learned or gained.
>>
>
> On the contrary.  To refute posts that seem to be saying silly things
> is, I think, a responsible approach; there are others reading this  
> list,
> who might be led to believe that running as root is advisable.  I  
> don't
> think that it is.  And there are always gains in good discussion - at
> least for those who are willing to gain by discussion.
>
>
>> My interest is only to get a fully-working OS. Other people want  
>> to make it
>> about whether or not I should ever run as root. I realize that the  
>> more
>> people waste energy on the root argument, the less attention will  
>> be put on
>> the issues that I posted about.
>>
>
> Well, that's the nature of things: it is frustrating--massively
> frustrating--to be asked for help by people who do not seem to be
> willing to listen to good advice.  That you argue that running as root
> is perfectly safe seems, to me, to be a good indication that you are
> likely not approaching other issues in the right way.  Indeed, I would
> go far as to say that someone who runs as root as a matter of  
> course has
> likely done a number of other things to their system that might
> complicate the installation of other software, or that might otherwise
> make it difficult to determine the root cause of any 'issues' they may
> be encountering.  And it's my experience that those same people  
> will say
> "I don't want to argue about whether I should run as root; just  
> tell me
> how to solve THIS problem" without understanding that the two  
> issues are
> related.
>
> I can understand your not wanting to engage in a flamewar - and that's
> fine.  But you must understand that some of the things that you say  
> are
> BOUND to raise heckles; given that, it seems in poor faith to say them
> anyhow and then believe you can simply walk away from what you have
> said.  If you don't want the argument, don't make the assertion.
>
>
>> The bottom line is that there is absolutely no way that I could be  
>> convinced
>> to run this system another way - and I realize that most others on  
>> this list
>> feel the same about how they run their systems. Let it be.
>>
>
> And that's why I don't think you can really be helped; and that's  
> why I
> find it rather irritating that you make big statements about, say,
> Debian, as though you some authority to do so.
>
> --George
> --------------------------------------
> George Carless ... kafka at antichri.st
> Words are just dust in deserts of sound
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