MySQL DBA

[Eric Shubert]

I agree Trent. I'd be interested in hashing it over.

Trent Shipley wrote:
> I just finished the Master of Science in Information Management at ASU.
>  I guess there's nothing wrong with hiring a junior level JOAT to run
> LAMP, and there's certainly nothing wrong with doing this early in your
> career.  The main downside is that unless the customer/employer gets
> VERY lucky, they won't get the expert service a large firm would get
> through specialization.  In theory what these little companies should do
> is outsource the IT department. This is especially true of non-profits
> and small government departments where IT isn't strategic.  Outsourcing
> is more problematic for something like a b2c business where the IT is
> strategic.  Then you need a way to reconquer IT if your company grows.
> 
> What this indicates is a need for professional, multi-disciplinary IT
> consulting targeting small and medium sized businesses, non-profits, and
> government units.  The big guys don't want it.  You can charge enough
> and the meals are too small.  The little guys, like Red7 and Data
> Doctors, started as repair shops and may have trouble getting into the
> consultant/contractor rent-an-IT-department mindset.
> 
> I think there's definitely an itch here.  I think it would be fun to get
> together and discuss it.  I'm thinking maybe a professional cooperative
> as an organizational structure.
> 
> 
> 
> <with snippage>
> Michael Butash wrote:
>> In my experience in big enterprise to small offices, either you have
>> "the dude that kinda dabbles with everything", or you have quite
>> separate roles.  Primarily you would have a SQL Admin/Engineer (just sql
>> performance/operations/engineering), Linux Engineer (os, apache, sql),
>> and a Web Dev/Admin/Engineer (php coding, cms, site management).
>> Usually you also have Security and Network folk in the mix too to keep
>> things sane.  Sometimes you have one person that likes to dabble in
>> each, and can varyingly admin them all as so to *get by*, but they're
>> subsequently "jack of all trades", and typically "master of none" kind
>> of people.  
>>
>> Finding an environment where you can "dabble" professionally in
>> everything is typically going to be a low-pay, thankless job I would
>> say, as a company wants 1 person to do *everything*, but will pay low
>> because they don't know what they really need.  They're often trying to
>> find their magical unicorn employee that will do everything for little
>> pay.  Government agencies tend to be fond of these roles, but pay low
>> enough they really have no expectation of finding someone close, so they
>> settle for the closest that will actually apply.  They learn and cope as
>> they can, and move on once they pick one of those skills to focus on in
>> bigger companies that have already learned the value of the separate
>> skill sets among employees.
>>
>> -mb
> </snippage>
> 
>>
>> On Thu, 2009-08-20 at 16:27 -0700, Trent Shipley wrote:
>>> I am used to seeing jobs involving MySQL as part of positions being
>>> advertised for a LAMP generalist.  I never respond.  Not only am I not
>>> particularly competent in any of the components, I have a hard time
>>> seeing myself as competent to manage that kind of stack.  I actually
>>> doubt many people are really competent at managing a LAMP stack all by
>>> themselves.
>>>
>>> However, I was recently looking for jobs on DICE and I saw
>>> advertisements for dedicated MySQL positions -- with more emphasis on
>>> DBA that development.  I can imagine being a competent DBA.  I taught
>>> myself to work with Oracle and I like database work.
>>>
>>> In the early 2000's Oracle was complex, DB2 somewhat less complex, SQL
>>> Server was almost friendly in comparison, and MySQL pretty simple to
>>> administer -- almost a toy compared to the big boys.  How much more
>>> complex has MySQL gotten in the last five years or so?  What would be
>>> involved in gaining competence.  Do you think you could read up on
>>> MySQL, then find people stupid enough to let you work on MySQL
>>> databases, preferably for money so you could get experience?  How would
>>> you encourage such stupidity?


-- 
-Eric 'shubes'