Final Technical Class

We have finally reached the end of the technical classes and I am going to miss working on those kinds of projects. I really learned alot about networks and computer systems that I didn't know before and liked the wide range of topics that were covered. Some worked out for me better than others (especially the database management block) but overall I enjoyed it and would like to learn more about some specific courses, particularly accounting and network management. Program managemet was interesting and something I could see myself trying to get certification in but I sometimes have trouble counting on others to do work that I could do myself so that may not be the best career move for me. I am looking forward to the Kirkpatrick series starting in a couple of weeks and trying to nail down the last three CLEPs I have to complete for the elective requirements. I will definitely be busy through the end of the year but I am sure completing the course and receiving my degree will make it all seem well worth it.

Project Management Starts

I am looking forward to this class since I have worked with alot of project managers and would like a better understanding of what they did. They recommended it to me as a career but I was unsure if a) I could do the work and b) if it was something I would enjoy doing for the next 20 or so years. I, of course, was sent the wrong version of the text and will not receive it until Wed or Thurs but at least I will have it in time to contribute in my group this week. I am also nervous about the workload since this is the first of the 4 week courses. I hope I will be able to keep up.

End of Class Post

We are in the last week of school and I have learned more than I thought I could about systems design and database management. I really had a hard time with the SQL program and getting all the different comands and constraints down. It really reminded me alot of using DOS before the creation of Windows, where you had to have a command for everything you wanted to do, or maybe more like HTML, since it is all about scripts. I guess that is how long SQL has been around but I don't think it would kill the program to make it a little more user-friendly. If I took an intensive, attended class on it, I could probably get a grip on it but I don't plan on doing any database administration for a long, long time.
System design and administration was easier for me to keep up with and have a better understanding. I do have a (very) little experience with that but I was able to take that experience and tie it into dataflow management for an office and make it work for me. Flowcharting information for an office seems to me, at least, to be very similar. Getting into the specifics for lines and shapes and one-of-one/many endings was a little confusing but re-reading and using Visio made it easier to figure out. I could see myself getting involved in that type of work alot more than anything doing with databases, that's for sure. Overall I got tons of exposure to information I would never have had otherwise, so the class really accomplished what I was hoping for.

I have been back in class for a couple of days now and it is getting hard to get into the swing of things. It is starting to come together but I didn't realize how hard it would be to get my mind back into it after the 6 month layoff. It is almost like starting over. The database class seems like it will be interesting. I have worked with access but don't have alot of experience with oracle and none with DBMS. I don't have my book for the structure course yet so I don't really have a handle on what that will consist of but the class reading material should get me through the assignments. I hope to have my book by Friday so hopefully I will be able to catch up and get the work posted by the weekend.

Initial Post

This is the first blog I have set up. This class schedule looks like it should be pretty interesting. I will make my initial blog posts later on this week once I have read more class material.