For nearly 30 years I worked as a technician for the departments of Plant Pathology and Entomology at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. The last ten years as a network administrator / system administrator.

I've seen computer systems come and go and I have evolved with them and managed to stay a bit ahead of the curve. The main things I've learned over the years about system management and support has been:

  1. Build a solid foundation. (Take the time to learn sound practices as far as organization and arrangement of all the system elements, apply them, and then stick to them!)
  2. ALWAYS have a backup.
  3. NEVER take shortcuts - even when in panic mode (SEE #1; if you're always fighting fires, then your foundation sucks.)
  4. Use a soft touch with both systems and people,
  5. Never sacrifice quality for cost. Find a way to get what you really need. DON'T ask for more.
  6. And last, but not least, K.I.S.S. (Keep It Simple Stupid).


Even though I always strived to bring a degree of art and style to my work, it remained a technical profession and required primarily analytical skills. But since leaving my position at the UW, I have more time to explore interests that might be considered to be artful in nature.

And while I have been enthusiastically exploring other 'special' interests, I am still - and will always be - a hacker at heart and find myself still emersed in computer technology even while learning some new tricks.