On a level of 1-10, what is your skill level with computers?

hmm difficult one to judge really. I'm looking at some peoples answers and based on the criteria i wonder if people aren't over estimating themselves, i dont mean it as any offence byt if we are talking a 10 is knowing everything pretty much backwards hardware wise, right down to the inner workings of the integral parts. Plust knowledge of all the major OS', programming and such then I would end up putting myself nearer 2-3!

I know the hardware damn well, what to do if it goes wrong, how to repair the majority of faults etc. But I couldnt tell you the inner workings of my GPU. I know windows pretty dam well, i'm forever fixing friends software issues but i've never even touched linux, Mac etc.

to say i was a 6-7 would be a huge over estimation as that kind of level would require a huge increase in knowledge i feel.
 
Who says someone who said 5-7 doesn't know most of that? Quite a few people have extensively used windows & linux. Macs are based on Linux now, the hardware is all off the self stuff. To fix a majority of problems you need some software knowledge and an understanding of the hardware.
 
Tough... i dont think you can put up the number for yourself.. Other people have to give you the number i gues.. since that would be way more accurate :) ( Maybe an idea to have a bar under the avatar of each person, to see what other people think if what he knows,. you know, like a rating 1 till 10 or so)
on the other hand, it may not be such a great idea
 
I'm pretty familiar with hardware but I'm pretty much clueless on programming software. So if I'm looking at the whole hardware/software spectrum overall I'd have to say I'm about 6-7
 
Cromewell said:
Who says someone who said 5-7 doesn't know most of that? Quite a few people have extensively used windows & linux. Macs are based on Linux now, the hardware is all off the self stuff. To fix a majority of problems you need some software knowledge and an understanding of the hardware.
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i only meant some of them, i know full well that there are people there with that knowledge and i agree with their scoring, however i see others with a similar score and after viewing the forums i don't believe that they have the same level of knowledge after reading posts.

Of course i'm not going to go into detail on who but i believe its very difficult to give yourself a 1-10 rating over everything.

Now if it was broken down into its constituent components then people could possibly give a better account of themselves.
 
is this like, am I hot or not? Rate me 1 to 10.

Well, everyone's knowledge is different and there are different types of computer expertise. Can you configure high end servers and routers to manage large WANs or MANs, or even run the internet? Can you develop applications for high end use to professional users? Can you troubleshoot software/hardware problems effectively? Do you have the ability to set up 1000s of users, bind them to a domain (AD, OD, NDS) and set up major user permissions and group policies and effectively implement them?

Can you install an OS? Can you take apart a laptop screw for screw and replace major componets and put it back together and not have any extra parts or screws, and actually fix it?

I work with computers (macs, pcs, linux, windows, novell, etc) for a living, and there is one constant I have found working with them. There is never just one way to accomplish your goals with technology. There are many ways to get what you need done, and there may be some better ways over others probably there is not an absolute best way.
 
tlarkin said:
is this like, am I hot or not? Rate me 1 to 10.

Well, everyone's knowledge is different and there are different types of computer expertise. Can you configure high end servers and routers to manage large WANs or MANs, or even run the internet? Can you develop applications for high end use to professional users? Can you troubleshoot software/hardware problems effectively? Do you have the ability to set up 1000s of users, bind them to a domain (AD, OD, NDS) and set up major user permissions and group policies and effectively implement them?

Can you install an OS? Can you take apart a laptop screw for screw and replace major componets and put it back together and not have any extra parts or screws, and actually fix it?

I work with computers (macs, pcs, linux, windows, novell, etc) for a living, and there is one constant I have found working with them. There is never just one way to accomplish your goals with technology. There are many ways to get what you need done, and there may be some better ways over others probably there is not an absolute best way.
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Yup, Well said. My genius level is beyond everybodies comprehension here!!! Right now everything I know, is all I need to know. When I need to know more, I will think of it like Jimmy Newtron. I invented the computer by the way. Now if I plan on doing it for a living that is a different matter. I would have to go for formal training. :)
 
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Can I be honest without sounding mean? Noone here is above a 5, maybe a 6 at the outside. I have not seen one poster who can hit above that. The greatest majority are at a 4 or lower. Knowing how to throw cards in a computer and install Windows does not a guru make. Neither does just knowing your Windows and maybe the occasional anti-virus program, or cutting and pasting useless, out of context articles or other search engine results as a de facto response, or cutting and pasting the same 3 steps to solve a spyware problem over and over again. etc. You catch my drift. lol :D

I don't know where I stand. I don't care. I understand how a GPU works. I understand how a CPU works. I understand how RAM works. I think like a computer, which is a rare skill (but not exactly a covetted one. It essentially means that you are a sociopath that thinks with logic, not with emotion). There is nothing I can't fix when I set my mind to it. In 18 years of computers I have never had a machine beat me yet (diagnosing a computer over the web is like trying to fix a car over the phone. You have a success rate of about 10% or less, but you might be able to set them in the right direction). BUT. I would never give myself a rating. If I feel like answering, I will. If I'm not in the mood, I won't.

There is no need for this rating nonsense. You should always assume that the user asking the question needs a reasonable explanation without all the technobabble. Yeah, I know the technobabble. Do you see me use it? No, never. This is a beginners help forum. Using babble is just going to scare them off. Keep with the real english and everything will work fine. :)

Just my two cents, take it or leave it.




Edit: On further thought, another smoke and a glass of pop.... I thought I would clarify where I'm coming from before you jump through the screen at me. There is so much to know about computers to give oneself even close to a 10. There are Apple's (the Red Delicious is excellent, you should try them), IBM compatibles, Solaris, SPARC, tablet PCs, minicomputers, mainframes, supercomputers. There's Windows in a dozen flavors, Linux, Unix, Mac OS-x, DOS (which virtually noone here knows about), RTOS, VMS, Novell. There's networking, standalone, routers, gateways, switches, servers, RIPs (I'll bet noone here even knows what a RIP is without looking it up on Google. They are pretty industry specific), thin clients, RAID arrays. There are probably 100,000 different software programs on the market. Probably more hardware than that floating around.

Then, let's talk about programming. Java, C++, Visual Basic, Python, Simula, Perl, ActiveX, Cobol, Fortran, Tcl/Tk, Ruby, PHP, etc. You get the idea.

So. Nobody here is obviously even close to a ten unless you narrow the scope of the scale, but the OP left it pretty broad. All I know is that I will remain humble, because there are a zillion people out there that know an awful lot more than I do.
 
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I have only owned a computer for less than 2 years, I am always learning and would have to rate my skills at a 1, I joined this forum in the hopes of expanding on what I have learned. I am a co owner of a forum, that has given me an intro into code and such, I am interested in computer graphics and have been teaching myself to use a program to create them. I look forward to growing.
 
8 i suppose, i dont know mac at all, everythign else im faily competant on, that is in general though, everyone has there little subject that they know everything about, for me that woudl maybe be netwoking

dragon
 
SirKenin said:
Can I be honest without sounding mean? Noone here is above a 5, maybe a 6 at the outside.
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I would agree if were saying 10 is the einstein of computers, but with the scale he gave, he said that a 10 is someone who you can just give the answer to, and they can figure it out.
 
[-0MEGA-];456749 said:
I would agree if were saying 10 is the einstein of computers, but with the scale he gave, he said that a 10 is someone who you can just give the answer to, and they can figure it out.
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no he said 10 was just give me an answer and i know what to do with it , i think what he means is just give me whatever problem you have and i can fix it..he goes on to explain in more detail in the rest of the post:


10 also = know how a GPU works and how it decodes, creates an image, how it determines a pixel's place within the monitors picture that is displayed, how it is given data and how it processes it etc (not just GPUs though)- basically, it says you know just about how everything in a computer and how everything in it works to the material it is used and why that material is used for it- its kinda like saying if you wanted to you could build you own CPU if you were given the materials needed to make it.
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this is why i put my post about myself probably being about 2/3 and many people over estimating themselves

don't get me wrong, there are plenty of people here with some amazing expertise and between all of the community we can most likely solve the majority of problems but i doubt there are many that can really, honestly put themselves up in the top tiers of a scale such as 1-10

As i said previously it would be easier to grade your self in specific sections of computing.

however all in all the idea of even grading yourself seems a bit pish to me :)
 
SirKenin said:
Can I be honest without sounding mean? Noone here is above a 5, maybe a 6 at the outside. I have not seen one poster who can hit above that. The greatest majority are at a 4 or lower. Knowing how to throw cards in a computer and install Windows does not a guru make. Neither does just knowing your Windows and maybe the occasional anti-virus program, or cutting and pasting useless, out of context articles or other search engine results as a de facto response, or cutting and pasting the same 3 steps to solve a spyware problem over and over again. etc. You catch my drift. lol :D

I don't know where I stand. I don't care. I understand how a GPU works. I understand how a CPU works. I understand how RAM works. I think like a computer, which is a rare skill (but not exactly a covetted one. It essentially means that you are a sociopath that thinks with logic, not with emotion). There is nothing I can't fix when I set my mind to it. In 18 years of computers I have never had a machine beat me yet (diagnosing a computer over the web is like trying to fix a car over the phone. You have a success rate of about 10% or less, but you might be able to set them in the right direction). BUT. I would never give myself a rating. If I feel like answering, I will. If I'm not in the mood, I won't.

There is no need for this rating nonsense. You should always assume that the user asking the question needs a reasonable explanation without all the technobabble. Yeah, I know the technobabble. Do you see me use it? No, never. This is a beginners help forum. Using babble is just going to scare them off. Keep with the real english and everything will work fine. :)

Just my two cents, take it or leave it.




Edit: On further thought, another smoke and a glass of pop.... I thought I would clarify where I'm coming from before you jump through the screen at me. There is so much to know about computers to give oneself even close to a 10. There are Apple's (the Red Delicious is excellent, you should try them), IBM compatibles, Solaris, SPARC, tablet PCs, minicomputers, mainframes, supercomputers. There's Windows in a dozen flavors, Linux, Unix, Mac OS-x, DOS (which virtually noone here knows about), RTOS, VMS, Novell. There's networking, standalone, routers, gateways, switches, servers, RIPs (I'll bet noone here even knows what a RIP is without looking it up on Google. They are pretty industry specific), thin clients, RAID arrays. There are probably 100,000 different software programs on the market. Probably more hardware than that floating around.

Then, let's talk about programming. Java, C++, Visual Basic, Python, Simula, Perl, ActiveX, Cobol, Fortran, Tcl/Tk, Ruby, PHP, etc. You get the idea.

So. Nobody here is obviously even close to a ten unless you narrow the scope of the scale, but the OP left it pretty broad. All I know is that I will remain humble, because there are a zillion people out there that know an awful lot more than I do.
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YUP... I'm a 10 definately.
 
This is what I know and work with professionally...

Windows 9x/2k/xp/server/ad/exchange

Linux - I run SUSE 10.1 on my desktop at work and my laptop

DOS - I use it for boot disks

Novell - netware 6.5 servers throughout my work, all windows boxes are bound to NDS

OS X/classic and yes i actually have apple certifications

Hardware repair certs - apple, HP accredited specialist (enterprise products), HP laser printer, Epson, Canon, Gateway, and Sony (though I barely ever work on laser printers, even though I passed the certification so I am not really a practicing tech when it comes to that stuff, I need a service manual to diagnose them). I fully understand how OSes, memory management, hardware, etc work, but I couldn't design a motherboard in auto cad inventor or anything like that.

I can repair/configure just about anything that is set in front of me. Some items may require some research for me to implement it properly, but in the end i can get it done.

I have video producers and digital audio recording studios as clients for my side work.

What I don't know:

Programming - umm I can write a script LOL and thats it
Video Editing (though I build RAID rigs all the time for video editors)
Audio Editing (i can build a studio no prob tho)
Web developement (but I do know a bit of HTML, Java, and CSS, but am no way a dev)
Grahpic arts - ya i suck at photoshop compared to actual graphic artists
Hardware developement
Applications - I by no way am familiar with every app out there, there are tons I don't know
Database work - I hate data base work, and find it utterly boring, but I did learn MYSQL kind of a while ago with PHP, but I used templates
various - I am sure there are plenty of little various things I do not know at all I can't think of any off the top of my head, but that is beacuse I don't know them, lol

Bottom line, you can't generalize computer knowledge into one category. I mean do companies have one guy for IT, helpdesk, admin, developement, database, networking, repair etc? No, they departmentalize because it would be impossible for one person to actually learn all that stuff.

If you are trying to figure out people's expertise on this forum, perhaps make it by category

Examples:

Grahpic Design/Computer Animation
Database Programming
Software Developer
Hardware Repair
Hardware Developer
Software/Applications (basic useage, internet/email burn cds)
Networking/Security
Production software suites (ie office apps, dvd authoring software, post design stuff)
Web Developement
Technical writer

The list could go on and on.

As for myself I would rate myself as a constant learner, and I also don't specialize in any one specific field. I am a jack of all traits and master of none, or perhaps a master of intergration. I don't think there is a numerical value I could rate myself with honestly.
 
[-0MEGA-];456749 said:
I would agree if were saying 10 is the einstein of computers, but with the scale he gave, he said that a 10 is someone who you can just give the answer to, and they can figure it out.
Click to expand...


cool.. didnt see that :D that pushes me from -4 to about 8 or so i think :)
 
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