Mailbag 10.7.2010

So im looking to get a couple of A+ certifications, which ones would be most lucrative? are you certified? What would be the best way to get my certs? Is there a class or should i just go buy a book?

A: No I am not A+ certified. And you shouldn't be, either. A+ certification is useless in todays world because of the rapid change in technology. If you want to be "Certified" you need a piece of paper that says you got a degree from a real school. This is not to put you down, this is to encourage you to go major in a computer related field. Once you've done that, you wont NEED to get any certifications.

if I'm interested in writing simple code and have experience with HTML and I've hello world'd in C++, but that's about it if i were to try and teach myself, what would you recommend

A: Just start doing it. Start by making the simplest HTML website you can (header, body, "Hello"). Then add on to it. Find things about certain websites you like and try to emulate them. Once you've gotten yourself fairly well versed, move into PHP and MySQL databases, you'll find the syntax there more similar to C++, even though it is still scripting.

any simple tips for learning/ remembering C# for a begginner, also make me a very detailed diagrm dispalying how a entire netork works, from user PC requesting data showing the path of the packets, ISP, Server proxies etc from a buisness perspective, this will get me a distinction on my college couse unit 1 on web desgin, many thanks xD

A; There is nothing simple about any of that. I suggest googling "IOS model".

unix or microsoft for a server? why?

A: Unix, without a doubt. They are a million times more secure and you can make them do just about anything.

Android or iOS? Which do you prefer?

A: Neither. I prefer to use an iPhone for my cell phone purposes, but both operating systems are handicapped. iOS has the potential to be great, but is crippled by not having Flash...not being able to compile Java...blah blah.

Thanks for all the questions! Feel free to send in more at any time!