Earning a living underway in the IT field

[mxtommy]

Hey

Been reading sailnet for a while now, and was hopping to get a little advice. I remember reading that some of you are in the I.T. world. (can't remember who though.)

Currently I'm 25, and I'm hopping in a few years (3-4) to take off and cruise. Prolly just east coast / carribean. Already got the boat, just need to pay off student debts etc

What I'd like to know is peoples takes on working remotely over the internet. Is it reasonable? Is anyone here doing that? Is it via consulting? or by taking contracts on one of those sites where you bid on them? Maybe starting your own business? Or do companies hire people working abroad? The main problem I see with most "jobs" would be a fixed schedule. We all know how fixed schedules and sailing go together

Also, I'd like to know peoples opinions on my current carreer path. Right now I have a solid foundation in advanced Linux administration, working on high availibility clusters using load balancers etc. Loads of experience in MySQL/MSSQL databases also. Recently I've just taken a new job as a network administrator in wide area networks (service provider level), and if I continue this way, in 2-3 years I could be Cisco CCIE certified.

Anyone have any thoughts?

Also, anyone hear anything regarding "cheap" internet access in the more remote areas? I was thinking 3G and wifi would be fine for most of the east coast, but in the more remote areas I don't know. From my research I havn't really found any viable options presently (that I can afford anyways), but maybe someone knows something that's in the works for 3-4 years away? Comparing to 3-4 years ago, there's a big enough improvement that I can hope there will be "something" in the near future.

Thanks!

[kd3pc]

It is tough right now to be (and remain) in the IT field sitting in an office next door to your boss. In this post 9/11 world, it is a challenge every day. There is always someone willing to work for $12 an hour, and it seems there is an endless stream of mid managers who will hire anyone who can say linux or cisco, or whatever, and they have the certificates, only to discover they don't play well with others, are not reliable, ill dressed, ill mannered, etc.

Many IT jobs have been and continue to be sent off shore or are simply being eliminated in this economy. Best of luck but don't count on gainful employment, while live aboard....in IT or elsewhere.

dave

[hellosailor]

As a WAN administrator you should realize there is, by definition, no internet access in "remote" areas except satellite internet, which is either very affordable (by historic comparison) or still damned expensive (for private pockets) these days.

Ditto what Dave said, you aren't going to be administering anything by sporadic remote internet, you'll be limited to contract bids or piecework on programming, and you'll be bidding against everyone from India and China who can work the same way.

IF you are a star programmer and you earn a reputation as such--sure, you can work from anywhere and customers will still seek you out by name. But routine work? Lots of competition.

[kbyte]

Forget about the IT stuff- get a certificate from the local bartending school, and fill in at Tiki bars wherever you go.

If you must have 3G and WiFi, use it to keep up with the technology so you can get a job when you get back.

[ckgreenman]

If you DO find a company hiring remote Linux/Unix admins allowing flexible schedules let me know. I could use the additional side work, hehehe