Re: Recertification Requirements Revisited

[alt]

On Mon, 26 Jul 1999, Chuck Mead wrote:

> On Mon, 26 Jul 1999, Jared Buckley spewed into the bitstream:

> >     2)  If we do recertification, when do we require it?
> >         a)  On an Fixed Time Schedule - i.e. require recert every two or 
> >             three years.  Variations on this theme include:
> 
> Why do this? When the determining factor is in the next statement.

I think there should be a time factor, and two to three years should be
the maximum. Test results from 3 years ago should not be considered good
indicators of present competence. 
 
> >               o  Recert on "major" (<-- undefined) revisions or at a 
> >                  fixed time interval, whichever comes first.
> 
> Revisional recert is the way to go. Example: from RH5.0 thru 5.2 I wouldn't have
> required a recert but for 6.0 I would and this applies to the issues outlined in
> the next two points as well.

I disagree because I don't see how this could be done. We are not
certifying Red Hat competency; we're certifying Linux competency. All of
our exams, except for the T2-series, are intended to apply to all distros.
Perhaps your system would work for telling us when to update the distro
specific exams, but I can't see how it could be used with the other tests.
You might argue that we should go by kernel versions, but I disagree with
this since the kernel does not have much impact on many areas. IMO, there
can be no substitute for us keeping an eye out for changes in the industry
and being prepared to develop a new version of any exam when needed.

(On second thought, I'm not enthusiastic about us deciding to put out a
new T2 when a vender increments the whole number part of the version. I
think we should study all new distro releases and determine whether there 
are enough real difference to justify developing a new test. The distro
version numbers are probably more reflective of marketing goals of the
venders than of actual technical advancement.)

> All of these are really related to the same issue. Vendor releases containing
> major changes will require a re-cert. They can take it when ever they want, in
> my view (but I'd expect their employer is gonna dictate!).

Please consider my comments above. How would we apply that for tests other
than the T2's? 

-Scott



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