FROM BARBARA: #6

Posted on by
There she sat, this young lady of perhaps 15 or so.  It doesn’t much matter where… in her bedroom, on the bus, sitting on a park bench.  She was concentrating mightily on a small, plastic apparatus in her hand.  She hardly moved and the only discernible movement were her thumbs. sliding back and forth without difficulty over the surface of the item she was holding.  Life was going on all around her with all of its noise and movement, but none of it gave her pause.  Her thumbs moved quickly, without hesitation.  She sat there for quite a long time as the hours seemed to melt away and could never be recalled.
There he was, a tall, slim, young man who appeared to be about 17.  He could have been sitting in a restaurant, in the back seat of a car, or at a picnic.  The item in his hand was demanding his undivided attention.  His thumbs seemed to be moving with incredible ease.   A very pretty girl walked  by, but he gave her no mind.  If he was seated in the back seat of a car, the beautiful scenery with its majestic mountains and the incredible azure sky, decorated with dazzling, fluffy clouds would whiz by, but his eyes would continue to be held by the bit of plastic in his hand.  And so that day passed into one that would not be remembered.
How easily we are captured by new technology and how seductive it can be!!!  We all have had our moments with something new to occupy our time and thoughts.  For my parent’s generation it was radio.   For my generation it was television.  How exciting it was to be introduced to this box that contained moving pictures and sounds!  And it was not long at all until most of us were spending vast amounts of time in front of it. It didn’t seem to matter what we were watching as long as we were watching.  And so television somehow changed us forever, and we were never made aware of it.  Now our lives must be filled with entertainment of some sort.  And we are bereft without it.  Let the electricity go off, and suddenly we are transported back to the 1800′s and we don’t like it, at all!
I know I can spend an entire evening in front of the television, while letting a lovely summer evening go by and never even experience any of its glory.  We  never notice nor mourn the passing of all that time.  Time, after all, cannot be called back.  Once it’s gone it will never return.  I wonder sometimes if we ought to take a little of that time and reflect on its passing and appreciate it.
Technology has transformed our lives in so many ways since man learned to harness fire, I suppose.   We cannot know all of the effects technology has had on all of us.  Most of the technological advances have made our lives better… easier and more comfortable.  Texting, I believe, is another issue altogether.  It has always puzzled me.   If somebody can spend hours texting other people instead of talking to them face to face, what will that portend for the future?  Will we lose our ability to communicate effectively with others?  And I have not mentioned the fact that it is butchering the King’s English.   Will we forget how to spell, how to write, how to actually respond in a human way?   How will it change us and what will it change us into?    I know these are the musings of a sixty something female, but I still wonder.

FROM BARBARA: #5

Posted on by
Getting music from instruments to people’s ears has gone through many changes.  We’ve gone from troubadours to iPods.  Instead of stacks and stacks of records and other forms of musicality, we are now getting it out of thin air!!!    Let’s see.  In my age group we went from 78′s to 45′s and LP’s ( all records), from 8 track tapes (remember those?) and cassette tapes, to the form I foolishly thought was going to stay, the mighty CD.  And like everybody else I rushed out to buy dozens of the latest musical apparatuses that seemed to be much better than what came before.
Is there anyone out there, like me,  who cannot seem to part with the old stuff?     Every time I move, there I am wearily schlepping around heavy boxes of LP’s and more boxes of CD’s than I care to count, swearing to get rid of them….eventually.  Surely somebody could use them for something.  Hmmm…perhaps they could be used for edgings for flower beds…bird feeders….wind chimes….something!!!  And each time I move the boxes of old records and CDs they seem to get heavier and heavier, and still I keep hanging onto them   The words “collector’s items” come to my mind.  Every time I hear of a long lost stack of some guy’s old baseball cards being found and worth millions, I think, “Aha!  There you go!  The records and CD’s will be kept.”   At any rate someday somebody will be going through my treasures and  someone very young will say, “Look, Mommy,  these are really funny looking plates, huh?” or “Wow, Dude, look at all of these weird round things.”    So while I cringe at the memory of throwing away all of those 8 track tapes, the records and CD’s will stay right where they are…at least until the next time I move.  And who knows when that will be?
I finally bought an iPod for myself after watching scads of people walking around with plugs in their ears.  And then there were all the huge numbers of young people, to include elementary students, seemingly detached from actual living, sitting and staring at miniscule screens.  I began to envision images of robots walking around with their upper appendages straight out in front of them… mindless, unseeing, and unhearing.   “There has to be something to be had in all of this technology.” I said to myself.  I questioned my daughter and my son about the advantages to having one of these small, rectangles.  And what in the world were they looking at…listening to?  Couldn’t I get the same effect from my piles and piles of CD’s???
And then I took a really close look at my CD’s….all of them.  And the numbers had  increased alarmingly.  They seemed to have insidiously taken over every empty space in the room!!!  And I briefly wondered if the CD’s had been multiplying themselves when I wasn’t looking.  But only very briefly.  ”GEE, what shall I do with all of these?  They have taken over the entire family room, and there seems to be no stopping them!!”  I said to the cat.  She merely looked up at me and then walked away, ready for her nap.  I realized then that I had to change to another music delivery system AGAIN!!!!   ”GOLLY, will it never end!!!” I implored.  You realize, dear Reader, that I didn’t actually say ”Gee” or “Golly”, but something else entirely different.   Well, I bought the iPod and felt quite up to date as I walked to my vehicle.  And then I realized I would have to impose once again on my son to help me with it.
Which he did.  So patiently he showed me the iTunes, the iTunes store.  What the music library is.  What clicking on “Sync”meant. He helped me to understand what a playlist is and I was awestruck at the realization that I could use the familiar right click/delete operation even on the iPod adventure.  He helped me make a playlist and how smart I felt then.  How intelligent I must be!!!
And then came the day when he was gone and I had to make a new playlist all by myself.  Gulp!!!  The old bugaboos began to rear their very ugly heads, and I feared once again becoming that bumbling, fumbling person struggling with new technology…and failure loomed over my head like a great, dark cloud.  It took lots of courage for me to begin the procedures that I had earlier written down.  And as I followed through, I began to feel some relief and almost pleasure as the playlists appeared onscreen.  I found that I could insert the CD into the computer….click on the correct places…click and drag the correct songs I wanted….click “sync” and then “apply” and I was mostly done.  The playlist appeared on the tiny screen.  I was able to listen to all my favorites.  The other day, six months later, I found that I could still get a new playlist going after several failed starts, and I felt so accomplished.  Another big step ahead for me.
 So now I can rearrange and program all my very favorite tunes and how nice it all is.  And rather than buying yet another CD, I can simply go to the iTunes store and purchase music ”out of thin air.”  My daughter has recently purchased an iPod on which one can watch TV or movies.  But I am happy with my ”clever” ability on what is my “already out of date iPod.”
I remember long ago, tapping my pencil to the melodic tunes and rhythms from my treasured record collection as I put in my 5 hour lesson planning sessions every Saturday and Sunday afternoon.  And how much more pleasant a difficult task is to do when one has some favorite music on!  How classy a person’s house seems when beautiful music is playing during dinner with guests!  Nowadays I am more likely to listen to my tunes when I drag out my art supplies…but the pleasant, happy feelings remain unchanged.  I haven’t learned it all, and you know what they say,” The longest journey begins with the smallest step.”
From Barbara

FROM BARBARA: #4

Posted on by
Long before this day – and after I had suffered through the worst of the computer classes, I was at long last given a great, big, helping hand with learning to use the computer.   Even though I had one in my classroom, I still had no idea of why I should have one of my own.   I had decided that I would never be able to use a computer the way most people did. That I would never figure it out.  I finally gave in to the “agony of defeat” and  accepted the fact that I simply didn’t possess the special kind of whizzy brain one needed to work the confounded machine.  The very idea was immediately dismissed.  You might as well have asked me to climb Mt Everest, blindfolded.
It was during a well-earned  Spring Break that I went to visit my son and his family.  One day when my son and daughter in law both had to work, he invited me to spend the day with him and my 3 year old granddaughter.   We had the office to ourselves, and he asked me if I would like to ”surf the internet.” while he was working.  Well, I had to admit to him that I knew next to nothing about it.  So he pulled up what I later learned was his home page and gave me some very rudimentary instructions on cruising the internet.   I think it took him all of 30 minutes.

How easy he made it all seem!  I wondered why all those  classes had seemed so hard.  I still believe to this day that my 3 yr old granddaughter probably could have taught me the same stuff.   And it was on that day that I actually began to understand why others found the computer so integral to their lives..  Well, dear Reader, I spent most of the entire day careening around on the bumpy waves of cyberspace.  I checked out recipes, needlepoint patterns, movie stars, music lyrics, and more.   I learned how to best roast a chicken, prune rose bushes, and was able to read several bios of some famous people.  And that was just a sampling of the information I found that day!!  I had no idea that one little machine could hold so much information.  I had heard many of my co workers talk about finding out this or that on their computers.  But I had dismissed it as so much hogwash.  To my mind they seemed a bit superior.  But no more.  Now I knew how to find most information I wanted, and I could be superior, too.  It was after that trip that I decided to have a computer in my life, at my home.

Getting started on a new computer was rather complicated and I couldn’t tell you now about all the hoop jumping we had to go through to get it all started.  It took some time to overcome the many glitches involved in the starting up process of a computer.   I do remember that it involved using the phone somehow.  I was lucky enough to have a neighbor to help me with that.  But when I sent the first e mail and got an answer back it was an amazing thing.  I equate it to how Alexander Graham Bell must have felt when he heard “Ahoy!” coming over his very first successful telephone call!!  All of a sudden I had become so much smarter than I had been just a few moments earlier.  I felt that the impossible had been accomplished and now I could add little computer tidbits into my conversations, too.  Just like so and so did, or the way this or that person had done.  And I was almost as smart as everybody else.  Well, with some exceptions, of course.

The very first thing I learned how to work with was e mail.  Now I had heard of it before, of course.  Wondering what in the world it would be like to receive mail that didn’t actually come from the PO.  And I still do enjoy sending and receiving e mail from my children and friends.  It’s what I enjoy most of all about using the computer.  It has become a daily ritual for me.  I do enjoy lots of the wonderful messages I get.   I have also discovered that all of those incredibly boring typing exercises that I had to do in 1958 have stood me in good stead.  Kind of like riding a bicycle.  I guess one never forgets.  We might forget the school cheer, our graduation motto, geometry theorems, or our locker numbers, but the one thing I have remembered is touch typing.  Kudos to that poor teacher who put up with our teenage angst!   I was so surprised that it stayed in my brain after 4 children, a divorce, and 20 years or so of teaching.  But the touch typing remained.

Another activity that I really enjoy is looking up recipes.  Heaven knows that I have recipes enough for every married female in this area.  But I keep finding more, and when I found out that one can access them on the internet, well, I decided I had to have them, too!  I have found so many interesting ones that I really don’t worry too much about the results.  I simply hit the print button and there you have it….another recipe to add to my enormous hoard.  After all a person only lives once, right?  So many recipes and so little time.  And if the dish doesn’t turn out as good as I thought it would, I can always blame the internet.

I love being able to check out the new books that have come out or when my favorite author will be getting his new book to the store shelves.  I enjoy looking up lyrics to old songs that nobody ever heard of, and that I remember from my childhood.  If I miss an episode of my favorite TV program, never fear.  It is right there on my computer screen.  And being able to retrieve favorite music is another subject that deserves a blog of its very own.   So much information right at one’s fingertips.

There are a few other things I can do on the computer, although they are few and far between, I’m afraid.  At one time I could send the photos I had taken to my kids, but not keeping up with it has caused that information to disappear.  And accessing folders in order to send attachments is an impossibility right now.  So these two computer tasks are some of the challenges that I want to tackle.  I do hope you will come along with me on my journey.  I will try to make it interesting.

Sometimes I feel like a poor, scroungy, starving creature that has been stranded on a desert island for 20 years, has suddenly been discovered, and brought up to date.  And still has so much to learn. How can a machine snatch information out of the air???  How can this same machine be responsible for so much interaction between human beings, a world apart, and they might never actually see each other…ever??  It has always seemed to me like a magician pulling an elephant out of his hat. And to this day I still ask the same question…How can it all be??  I understand now how my grandmother, who was born in 1886, must have felt when she first watched television.  Or what she was thinking when we first walked on the moon.  Technology…an amazing thing!

From Barbara: #3

Posted on by

My sessions with computer instructors can be summed up with this phrase, “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.”  I realize that phrase may be overused but it’s a good descriptive.  The ”Ugly” session was a long time ago on a Friday afternoon, when the superintendent decided that we teachers should all become acquainted with a monster called “the computer.”  This class consisted of each of us sitting uncomfortably at a computer in the elementary school’s computer room and listening as he went on and on in a dreary monotone.  It had been a horrible week…what with progress reports due and a PTO pot luck supper.   It would not have surprised me if picture day was also included in that week from hell.  And if you have never herded a large group of  wiggly, giggly, excited second graders through the halls to the awaiting photographer…well, you might know what stress is, but you cannot know what STRESS is!   “Shh, be quiet!” never works in such situations, and it never will.

I had dreaded this class since first hearing of it.  And I fought mightily with my conscience not to call in sick that day.  As we all trudged into the computer room, I remember having a fleeting image in my mind of all of us being tethered together like the Roman slaves being lead to the salt mines.  To my mind all that was missing was a whip cracking over our heads.  A bit dramatic, I know. The teacher next to me gulped and moaned, fearfully, ”I have never been very good at typing!”  I said that I wasn’t very good at it either.

And then the “instruction” began.   Without any explanation from the presenter, we were all given a floppy disc and told to insert it in the little box with the two slots, take it out, turn it over, and insert it again.  Then we had to continue this weird operation over and over while hitting various keys.  This continued for what seemed like hours and hours with no explanation ever given.   It seemed to me a complete waste of time.  Then, horror of horrors, I began to hear other teachers saying things like, “Oh, wow, I think I’ve got it!!” Or “Oh, look at me. I am beginning to understand.”  I cannot remember how the rest of the class went as it has since become a big blur.   I do think I managed to get my screen turned on, but I knew I would never be able to remember how I was able to accomplish this since there were never any directions included, other than diddling with the infernal floppy disc and the box that had two slots in it.  Suffice it to say that I went home and cried for 2 hours.  In the years since I have wished somebody would please tell me what the heck he was trying to teach us.  I still do not know.

The next computer class I took (also under protest) was the “Bad” one.  It was about 2 or 3 years later. The instructor was an employee of the school system and I must admit he did know his computers.  And from his superior level he did try to get some kind of computer education in my feeble brain.  But his ability was way up there in the clouds somewhere.  And it didn’t help that the class was held every Friday from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm. My mind by that time had usually turned to mush.  He went on and on during one session about a book that he said was, “the definitive book about computers.  It will change your idea about using a computer.  A great book!”  So, thinking that the book would solve my computer problems I bought the thing. I was very excited as I took it home that afternoon, thinking that this book was going to make me a great computer user. I read about 2 pages and became immediately and completely lost.  I wound up throwing the thing in the back of a closet, completely disgusted, and I never saw it again.  Perhaps I used it to start a campfire for a wiener roast…I do not know.  All I know is it disappeared after that.  The class was way above my head and I wound up hating computers more than ever.    It seemed that “everybody got it but me.”

My son was the best instructor I ever had.  He was much better than “Good”.  It is to his credit that I am able to access and send e mail today.  And I can look up recipes and other items of interest.  And for that I thank him profusely.  He was able to use plain language to teach me lots of things about using my computer.  But when it came to attachments, accessing folders and the like, I failed, in spite of his many efforts to help me. The fault of not following through is mine alone, stupidly thinking that once I learned how to complete a task, the information would stay in my head forever.  ”After all,” I reasoned, “That’s the way one learns to use, say, a sewing machine.  But, alas, a computer is not a sewing machine nor is it a vacuum cleaner.    And after a couple of weeks I had forgotten most of how to complete those tasks that I now want to relearn.  Much later he helped me learn to use my iPod and being able to write a few instructions down I can still work with it.  I will be forever grateful for his efforts and am sorry if I was not a good student.  Upon looking back I can now understand that it takes lots of practice for computer instruction to stick.

I did take a computer class at the community college in my area and she was very good.  But, alas, having decided to rebel, I admit to spending lots of time trying to get out of going to class.  Something I would never have done in HS.   As I remember she gave us some handouts that were designed to help us.    If I can just find them they will be so helpful in practicing some simple computer assignments for me to do.  I just hope they haven’t gone the way of the computer book.   But I have to take the blame for not learning that time, too.

My present instructor is another very helpful fellow and much like my son, able to explain concepts in a way that I can understand.  I have to say that I am so grateful for his help. But I have to write some of it down as that is the way that I learn.  And I think that many of us seniors learn the same way.  I like to think that we are thorough, not slow.  The most important thing I have learned about computers is that it takes repetition…repetition…..repetition. I really believe that this is the key in learning to use a computer…practice, lots and lots of practice.

Our kids have to use computers daily at their jobs and they are able to practice at work, while we at home can decide whether to use them or not.  And in my case I do admit to thinking that I always need to do something else.   And so the computer and its possibilities go to the back of my mind as I muddle through my day.  There always seems to be something else I have to do first and so the day goes by and there has been little or no computer-ing.  Will have to make time for it.

So there you have a short history of the computer education that has impacted me one way or another.  I am able to do a fair amount of activities on my PC, but I find that I surely would like to do more.  And I have finally learned that it takes a good instructor and practice, practice, practice.   I am sure that I was given that particular piece of advice, and probably never followed through.  What can I say?  Sometimes life gets in the way.  My only excuse, I’m afraid.  But relearning to complete those tasks on the computer has arisen as a new challenge.  You know what they say…”Hope springs eternal!”    Next time I will be blogging about the few things I can do on a computer and what that means to me.

From Barbara

 

FROM BARBARA: #2

Posted on by
I have decided to use today’s discussion to describe some of my sad and dreadful experiences trying in vain to complete some computer tasks.  A sad travail indeed.  I can tell you that when I attempt some simple directions and they don’t work, my stomach begins to get tied up in knots.  My mouth goes extremely dry and a noticeable and unrelenting heat starts up my neck…all very uncomfortable indeed.  And when it reaches my ears, I begin to get very nervous.   Then suddenly I am back in that stuffy, second grade classroom with that ugly, dreadful she-dragon that taught us that year and didn’t like me at all.  Don’t look now, but I think I have just thought of a really great horror movie entitled, “Barbara Fights the Female Tyrannosaurus Rex That Taught Second Grade in 1950.”  I know, I know, it does need work, but who knows…it could happen.  But I digress.
Do others experience these same things, I wonder?  Or is it just me?  And it doesn’t help that my four kids are all computer whizzes.  And there I thought that when I was kissing their boo boos and giving them ice cream for breakfast (and telling them not to let anyone at school know). When I worked on their Halloween costumes and we had robots, witches, hobos, and pumpkins aplenty running around, that I should always be ”The One.”  Little did I realize then that someday the tables would be turned horribly around and I should become the student once again.  They have showed me so much patience and have tried more than once to help me with folders, putting photos on the computer, using files, sending attachments, and so on.  They have never become agitated  when they saw my eyes glaze over at the sheer amount of information they have gently tried to impart to me.  Ah well, tomorrow is another day
Well ”hope springs eternal”, as they say and I have once again become determined to learn these computer skills.  I know the kids are not ready for more sessions with the brain in my pointy head, but “never say die”, I say.  Which brings me to one thing I have learned this week.  I now know how to change the browser and have done it successfully about twenty times yesterday!!!  I have to admit that I put off trying the instruction I was given.  I wandered into the living room to watch Dancing With the Stars to, well, to try to forget the task that I knew must be attempted.  So after the show was over I wandered back to the dining room, made myself sit down in front of the computer, and gingerly began the task that I knew I had to try.  All at once the keyboard seemed to increase greatly in size.  And the few instructions that I had managed to hurriedly write down seemed woefully inadequate.  And that little girl sitting in that desk in the second grade briefly appeared in my mind.  But I ignored it all and jumped in.  At first nothing happened and the old frustrations began automatically.  But after several tries….Glory Hallelujah…it worked!!!  What a great feeling of accomplishment it was.  And I gloried in it.
“Hurrah”, I shouted to the cat as she sauntered past.  She looked back at me in a most disinterested way.  Then bounded into the living room for a more interesting past time, like chewing on her catnip filled ratty rats.  I almost broke my arm patting myself on the back.  Because a small completion for anyone else is a great big success for me.  I celebrated with a cup of tea and felt that I had at least won one battle with the T Rex.  And perhaps she became a little bit smaller in my memories.
The instructor gave me great directions and I was able to write some of it down.  Which helped a lot.  After all, that’s the way we were all taught, remember?  “Write this down…Write that down!!”  They would intone.  And we did. Which is a subject for another day.  So a battle has been won.  And only a thousand more remain.   I can change the browser (and I know what that means, too)  Who knows what is next?  I don’t know, but it will be something, I’m sure.  From Barbara

FROM BARBARA:

Posted on by

I am a child of the 50′s.  So if you can remember Elvis on the Ed Sullivan Show, or riding up and down main street in a 1954 Chevy (or older), while slurping a new kind of refreshment, the cherry coke, then you can relate to me.  If you can remember that the boys all wore their hair in a “ducktail” and girls had dozens of colorful can can slips in their closets, then we are certainly on the same page. Until computers and PC’s began to appear in our lives the most technological apparatus I had ever been exposed to was probably the “princess phone” in a selection of 5 or 6 colors.  Or a record player. Or how about the little transistor radios?   With the really weird looking square batteries. Those were considered “the thing to have” when I began to be aware of the actualities of life.

Now, of course, the technological advances are not only mind spinning, they occur at such rapidity that one can hardly keep up.  So while the advances keep coming, my confusion multiplies with each new announcement.  What will they think of next?  I have a really hard time understanding that my son really can take a picture with his phone…his phone!!!!  Not possible, I say!!!

So we begin a journey about how one, poor, sixty-something, retired school teacher will try to understand these “phenomenons”.  (If, indeed, there is such a word.)  Perhaps a shaky understanding will come about with these discussions.  We can only hope so.   And if not, then the whining and complaining can begin.

I will begin today by having a short discussion about my beginning experience with the computer.  At first I looked at them with not only suspicion but downright dislike.  I remember that I was teaching at the time when the rumblings began.  “Yes, well from an administrator’s viewpoint, a computer in every classroom is a necessity.”  This coming down from “on high”.  I recall thinking, “Oh yeah…well just try putting one of THOSE in my room!  It will just gather dust!”

But, alas, in it came all bright, shiny, and new.  I had taken, under squealing protest, a few classes presented to us, usually at the end of a very long, hard week.  During which the confused stares from all of us would be, I am sure, very hilarious to some.  So I knew how to turn the thing on but it sat there day after day staring at me and I simply pretended it was not there at all.  That was easy when you have 19, or so, active second graders to keep busy.

But came the day that the principal walked in and said, “Haven’t you even booted your computer up yet?” with an incredulous tone.  ”Does that mean to turn it on”, I wondered.  So it was booted up that day and little by little I did begin to use it.  I cannot tell you, dear Reader, how smart I felt when I figured out what the little ”x” did when one clicked on it.  And how useful that was!!!   Then I began to type up tests on it and get them copied off.  Wonderful!  And then when the principal wanted a list of this or that one could simply type that up, too.  There were lots of other ways I learned use the once accursed machine.  Checking attendance…changes in schedules…averaging grades.  Well I did have a truce with the thing and did wind up buying my own to have at home.

That was a long time ago and I still don’t know very much.  There will be lots of things I can learn to do, but will take some frustration, I am afraid.  So will be filling you in on how I do.  Some of it will be impossible for me, but maybe, just maybe I can add a few computer “doins” to my list.

Will keep you informed.
From Barbara

Biography: After earning an education degree – Barbara spent a full career teaching children. Recently retired, she enjoys the lifestyle of the great southwest. Barbara likes art, music and her favorite college and NFL teams. She writes about her struggles with learning about technology in the Alida Connection online blog-  in the regular feature: “From Barbara” . Check back often!

 

Goal Setting Leads to Computer Security Success

Posted on by
Reply

What are your computer security and networking goals? Do you want to pass a specific exam and receive certification? Do you want to improve job performance? Do you want to increase your expertise and knowledge base? Setting a goal is an important first step in helping you achieve that goal.

Here’s the catch: it’s easy to set a goal, and much harder to achieve it. Often, people make a goal but have no path, no direction to help them along the way. Or, they set goals that are so grand that they are impossible to reach. Here are a few goal-setting tips to help you reach the goal you set for yourself.

1.      Make it specific. A goal of “I want to get my Security+ certification” or “I want to use information I learned in Network+ to configure security protocols on wireless networks” is much more specific than “I want to know more about computer security.”

2.      Give yourself a completion date. In his book Life’s Greatest Lessons, Hal Urban calls goals “dreams with deadlines.” We are less likely to procrastinate and more likely to get going when we have a specific target date in mind.

3.      Align your goal with the motivation you have to reach it. The more motivation you have, the more excited you are about reaching the goal, and the harder you will work to get there.

4.      Identify the resources you will need, the people you can count on to help, and the steps you need to take to reach your goal. If you find that the goal is too broad or too vague, adjust the goal and go from there. Additionally, if you identify potential roadblocks you may face, it is easier to deal with them when they arise.

At Alida Connection, our passion is helping you reach your computer security goals. We give you assistance every step of the way. If you want a company that cares about your success in achieving your goals, we are the ones to help you get there!

-by Angela Hoffman

6 Steps to Alida Connection training approval within your work center

Posted on by
Reply

Getting your boss on board with training in today’s economy is tough! Training is usually an added budget item after all the operations are accounted for. This should be just the opposite but our managers have very limited resources to work with.

Consider these 6 steps to get your training approved and to move you in the right direction:

1. Create a written plan and present it to your management for approval. This plan MUST show the return on investment (ROI) to the company. If you take the time to make and present a well thought-out plan you are showing that you are serious about training and if you show the ROI – you are showing that you care about your company.

2. Show that you know how to work with management and schedule a specific chat with your manager about training. Talk about the benefit to the company, to the management, to YOUR department. Show that you are serious by bringing information about how this affects the company’s bottom line. Get on your boss’ calendar and spend 5 minutes to show your value. Show your value by GETTING the certifications that you say you will. The Alida Connection has a dedicated learning strategist that can help you along your way with the latest brain based learning techniques.

3. Talk to your co-workers, friends, and others in the profession. It will be easier if you know others who advocate training. They can give you ideas. Point out the monetary savings, better grasp of information and identify an organization that gives multiple student discounts. Consider doing On-Line, Blended, and Mentored learning through Alida Connection. The different formats help learners come up to speed on their own terms.

4. Determine and use the correct method for your company’s/agency/Department’s approval process. Most organizations have a specific method that you must follow to get approvals. Also some companies have a dedicated training staff and purchasing department. Find out if your company offers the exact training that you want and then talk to these groups to get their approval ahead of time. Also, recognize that budgets are limited – so find out what the total budget is per year. Knowing this helps you know whether a certain class can be done within your organization.

5. If you run into difficulties – please let us know and our personnel will help you overcome them. We can assist you with pricing (volume discounts), budget (alternative payment methods – company matching education funds etc…), location (we travel all over the world (ask Tim about Afghanistan), etc.).

6. Never give up! Remember that the squeaky wheel gets the grease. If you are unable to get the training approved this time – be sure to speak up for next year’s budget, speak up for next quarter’s budget, and speak up for the next opportunity to be sent to class. The more training and certification you have the more valuable you are to your place of work.

For more information on how getting certified helps your company – see our web site at: www.alidaconnection.com By: Tim Hoffman

What do certifications mean?

Posted on by
Reply

Alida Connection is computer and network security technical training company that has an eye on how you can advance your career. Are you at a crossroad? Are you thinking of those jobs that hold higher pay, higher prestige, more responsibility and more rewards? What is this?

Certifications play a big role in how far you will go in your career. Today’s job market is heating up with a lot of focus on those positions at the top and at the higher levels. As they say, if it was easy – anyone could do it. So why should anyone be looking at certifications?

First, certifications show employers that you are dedicated and have commitment to your chosen profession. Certifications give the employer a sense that you have credibility and have knowledge of current best practices. In fact, in most studies, you will find that the great majority of employers believe that certifications come in third place only to strong interview skills and the ability to communicate as the most important assets in a potential employee.
With that said, what are you doing to keep your skills current? While we offer online courses that lead to an array of important IT and computer security certifications – it is only you that can decide how important the end is to your career path. Only you can make time in your schedule, decide where and when you will make the commitment to take classes, identify opportunities like internships and volunteer with non-profit organizations that need your help.

Even when you already hold a certification or two you may find that your employer is expecting you to consistently improve current skill sets. According to a recent CareerBuilder study, the percentage of employers who report that they want their employees to sharpen their skills in the following areas is: time management (62 percent), customer service (45 percent), Microsoft Excel (44 percent), leadership (39 percent), interpersonal skills (33 percent), business etiquette (26 percent) and business ethics (17 percent).

There is no doubt that holding the right certifications for the job you seek will open the door and improve your chances of getting an interview. However, that recognition may not be a silver bullet because many other job seekers are quickly coming up to speed to get those same certifications and, in fact, many are going farther to take increasing higher level certifications.

Certification in and of itself is no guarantee that you will get the job. So, then, what is?

Certifications are particularly important when offered in conjunction with the right number of years of experience. Having experience along with the certifications in your chosen field coupled with a demonstrated success pattern will do more for your chances of getting the job than just about anything.

Let us help you get the certifications you desire and when you complete your course of study ask us about help with your resume and job search. YOUR SUCCESS IS OUR GOAL.

By Tim Hoffman, CISSP, ISP, GCIH, C|EH, Security+, Network+, CTT+, MCP-MCSE-MCT (NT4), CVI, IBM PSS, VBSS GB

CISSP Bootcamp In Springs End of April

Posted on by
Reply

Have you been planning to take the CISSP to enhance your career or because your job requires it? Here are a few tips:
1. Study, study, study ; – ). Just kidding. Yes you do need to study, but also,
2. Test, test, test. This is a 250 question six hour exam. For six hours you will be answering multiple choice questions. So, in addition to knowing the material you have to train yourself how to answer the questions and get used to it. CCCure.org is a great resource for practice tests, and you can use a limited version online for free after registering.
3. I recommend taking at least a 10-25 question test about 5 days a week, until you get about two weeks out, then up it to 25-50.
4. If you are using the Shon Harris book she provides bulleted summaries at the end of each chapter. If not, make your own bulleted summaries. Speak these into a computer and make a CD. Then, every time you get in your car, listen to the CD. After a while you will have these summaries memorized.
5. Finally, if you have thought about a bootcamp, AlidaConnection is offering one here in the Springs 25-29 April. This is much more than your typical bootcamp and does much more than just help you prepare for the exam. The timing of this course is perfect for the CISSP exam in Denver in May or the one here in the Springs sponsored by the local ISSA Chapter in August. Give Alida Connection a call to find out more to include the benefits and discounts, especially for ISSA members.

Well, stay tuned for more test taking tips. If you have comments or questions feel free to fire away.
Dave Willson