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Any Database Administrators?

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I'm currently on my way to attaining a Network+ cert (among some others), a BS in Computer Science with a minor in IT, and in general terms, want to devote all my work efforts to climbing up to an administrative position in IT/networking.

I was looking at DBA jobs and they sound really interesting. I've never dealt with databases before, so I'm going to do some research into MySQL and Oracle (assuming that's the right track). One of the things I like about the job description is that DBA's are pretty much always on-call. I'd love to have a job with that amount of responsibility wheter it's DBA or Network Admin, etc. (be married to my work lol).

Is anyone here a DBA or something similar? Any advice on learning paths or general job market outlook? Any insight into day-to-day tasks of a DBA?

Thanks.
 
MSSQL is another database you'll want to be come intimately familiar with. I don't think it's too far of a stretch to say it's the most used enterprise database out there. Oracle is a good one to pick up as well, but it tends to be more specialized.

Either way, keep in mind that you will be learning the concepts of a database, not the database itself. Much like learning a programming language, it's not the language that's useful but the concepts. You'll end up translating the concepts to different technologies as they emerge.
 
Have you ever worked with databases before? If not, I would offer two suggestions. One, you can lease a web server for $5 a month and install wordpress or whatever that utilizes a database. Then you can login to mysql and play around with it. Two, install virtualbox and install Ubuntu server (this comes with mysql, php, apache) or install Windows XP and WAMP.

If you really want to invest into being a database admin then get a $500 computer with an i5 ( any VTx processor will do) and at least 4 gigs of RAM. Purchase a technet subscription from MS, MS Press SQL book and have it.
 
oh yeah, you get to do lots of interesting stuff, like deleting too many log files that cause disk problems, or figuring out why ssh change from v1 to v2 broke or....

getting your foot in the door somewhere is the most important thing. I doubt many companies will hire dbas or such based on certificates. good luck though,
 
DBA??? Are you looking to develop or administer? Administration is nothing, but the dough is development. If you are looking into development, don't go wasting any money $500 is way too much for someone still in school or just getting out. Go to a used book store and spend $5 on a book, or better yet, you can probably get a bunch of stuff online for free and start using Microsoft Access. Start by organizing your own stuff like MP3's and typical files on your system. Learn table structure and basic query commands. Sybase is another good one. If you specialize in an industry, your rate will go up. The more diverse you are (DBA, Network/Server Admin) the more you will realize how all components work with or against a database and how simple things like Microsoft patches and Anti Virus scanning can ruin a DB. Learning about infrastructure overall will only make you more valuable DBA to a company or organization.
 
Thanks for all the input guys! I will start messing around with Microsoft Access and take it from there.
 
slapyomoma said:
DBA??? Are you looking to develop or administer? Administration is nothing, but the dough is development. If you are looking into development, don't go wasting any money $500 is way too much for someone still in school or just getting out. Go to a used book store and spend $5 on a book, or better yet, you can probably get a bunch of stuff online for free and start using Microsoft Access. Start by organizing your own stuff like MP3's and typical files on your system. Learn table structure and basic query commands. Sybase is another good one. If you specialize in an industry, your rate will go up. The more diverse you are (DBA, Network/Server Admin) the more you will realize how all components work with or against a database and how simple things like Microsoft patches and Anti Virus scanning can ruin a DB. Learning about infrastructure overall will only make you more valuable DBA to a company or organization.
Click to expand...
I definitely want to know the ins and outs of whatever job I'm responsible for (in this case, knowing database development) before expecting anyone to work under me if I were an administrator. I am going to take some classes on the side that deal with DB development and see if it's my kind of work. I want to make sure I'm making use of the Computer Science degree I'm working toward, so having a development type of job would be great, as opposed to forgetting 50% of my programming degree and dealing with just IP networks. Website database development is something that's looking pretty interesting to me, though I still plan on getting certified in the networking field. Then, from whichever type of job I settle into, I plan on mastering it to the point that I can be trusted with a management/administrator position.
 
Read "database design for mere mortals". Its the definitive high level view of relational databases.

If you want to start with mysql, that's fine, install it via apachefriends or some similar wamp stack installer. Its easy and has the gui phpmyadmin built in.

Next get some data. Years ago aol released a ton of data from their search engine because there were no freely available huge data sets. It caused an uproar. Google up aol stalking. Now you have something to mine other than a cd collection or address book.

As a college student with limited funds you might want to learn how to search a particular tld that has very different and "flexible" copyright laws, for pdf versions of popular tech publications. Careful though comrade, those sites are often laden with driveby malwares so tighten up your firefox or use vmware and a linux live cd.
 
Read "database design for mere mortals". Its the definitive high level view of relational databases.

If you want to start with mysql, that's fine, install it via apachefriends or some similar wamp stack installer. Its easy and has the gui phpmyadmin built in.

Next get some data. Years ago aol released a ton of data from their search engine because there were no freely available huge data sets. It caused an uproar. Google up aol stalking. Now you have something to mine other than a cd collection or address book.

As a college student with limited funds you might want to learn how to search a particular tld that has very different and "flexible" copyright laws, for pdf versions of popular tech publications. Careful though comrade, those sites are often laden with driveby malwares so tighten up your firefox or use vmware and a linux live cd.
 
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