I work in IT, mainly in software but I do some hardware as well. I can easily build a computer from scratch, set up network of 10 computers or so, troubleshoot almost any computer problem and fix it, and put in new hardware such as a backup device or wireless devices.
I am mostly self-taught on most of this and it seems rather simple to me. Based on how lost most people seem to be at this type of thing maybe it isn’t so easy.
What I want to know is how people that are multi-skilled view the relative difficulty of the things that I described. For instance, I have always been amazed at the skill that carpenters and plumbers have. Likewise for mechanics, telephone system technicians, and machine shop workers.
Given an almost equal amount of skill for computers and some other skilled trade, which one would take the longest to both become functional and to master?
Depends on what scale you’re talking about. If you’re adding cards to PCs and networking a handful of computers together, that’s not all that hard. If you’re networking 300-400 PCs together and designing an automated controller system to keep them up at all times, that’s a little tougher.
Generally hardware is much easier than software, as software varies a great deal more and is working with usually a great many other pieces of software. Once you understand the basic theories behind the hardware, it’s usually much easier to troubleshoot.
The one thing that hardware can be troublesome with more than software is the dreaded “intermittent” problem. If you can’t reliably reproduce a problem, it can be much harder to fix. Most software problems are pretty consistent and easy to duplicate.
Keep in mind that by hardware I mean module replacement, as parts are usually so cheap and plentiful these days that it’s more practical to swap out a whole assembly rather than do component level repair.
I think its mostly relative to the person’s personality. I, like you, am suited to computer hardware repair. I can build a machine in a couple hours from scratch, setup a relatively complex network, and also do software support. On the other hand I wouldn’t know the first thing about building a strong wooden frame, laying carpet or tile, or even fixing a leaky toilet. I guess its more about the attitude than the complexity of any given task. Patching a hole in drywall is probably about as complex as putting in a new hard drive when you get down to the step-by-step instructions.
A great many construction trade skills come from years of application, drywalling can’t be learned properly in a couple of weeks, although the principles can.
To be a commercially useful electrical/electronic technician, the sort who can pretty much be assigned a task of almost any sort and left to do it will take maybe four years to cover the basics and another decade to be truly competant.
Bricklayers again will take a long time to hone and develop their skills.
I can show a complete noob how to assemble a computer in less than a week, but showing them how to install software, and perhaps understand things like security, backup and usage of software a great deal longer.
Electronic/electrical folk such as myself often need to know industrial process computers in huge detail, so that itself may take plenty of time to learn.
…and then there’s something else, its what you cannot be taught, almost an instinct to know where to start work, if you have a fault on some system, a good technician may not be too familiar with it, but will head almost to the very spot where the fault lies.
This is what takes the time, the honing and polishing.