Wentworth Institute of Technology: Dejan Petrovictag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//2422008-04-14T16:16:34ZMovable Type 3.34What a week!!!tag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.59632008-04-14T01:59:08Z2008-04-14T16:16:34ZAh, what a week!!! As you know, these past 10-11 weeks, I've been studying for Cisco Certified Network Associate (CCNA) exam. It was really hard, and I was starting to get really exhausted. Working at Cisco, being a Resident Assistant,...Dejan Petrovic
PASS. I was so happy I started jumping around the room (I was alone, of course). This meant not only that I passed, and got the positive result for 11 weeks of sacrificing my social life and free time, but that I would have four weeks to relax during my free time between coop and RA/DA job and get ready for the Summer semester.
On the other side, while doing my SRA job in the area that was without Resident Director for almost three months, I managed to maintain things under control, keep my staff well organized, and with their help keep the area functioning. As for everything I did at Wentworth, I got rewarded for my dedication and hard work this time, too. I received the Outstanding Junior Leadership Award. The Outstanding Junior Leadership Award is presented to a junior who has consistently been involved with an organization/club/leadership role at Wentworth. The student needs to regularly demonstrate enthusiasm toward and passion for their role on campus. This student also needs to serve as a strong role model for their classmates and display potential for success in future leadership roles.
As you can see, this week was very successful for me and I treated myself with a night out with my friends on Friday, a relaxing Saturday, and a visit to the Museum of Science today.
We'll see what the upcoming weeks will bring to me, and to this blog, too. Till that time, ENJOY THE LIFE.
]]>
MIssion accomplishedtag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.57032008-03-31T02:50:54Z2008-03-31T02:57:02ZYou've probably noticed that I skipped last week's blog. I tend to write blogs that will actually be interesting to you and I waited for some things to happen. And they did. Last week, I got a notice that I...Dejan Petrovic
All in all, these were very nice two weeks for me. We’ll see what comes next week.
]]>
CCNAtag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.53902008-03-15T16:57:37Z2008-03-15T17:08:53ZWhat is CCNA? CCNA is abbreviation for Cisco Certified Network Associate and it is the first level of Cisco certifications and is a prerequisite for all advanced certifications, including Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) and Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE)....Dejan Petrovic
CCNA? CCNA is abbreviation for Cisco Certified Network Associate and it is the first level of Cisco certifications and is a prerequisite for all advanced certifications, including Cisco Certified Network Professional (CCNP) and Cisco Certified Internetwork Expert (CCIE).
After completing the requirement for the CCNA, candidates are prepared to install, configure, and operate simple-routed LAN, routed WAN, and switched LAN networks. In order to achieve CCNA status, candidates must successfully complete the CCNA expert exam. As a computer networking major, this is a must for me. Furthermore, if I would like to get a second coop rotation at Cisco Systems Inc., I need to pass this exam and get the certificate. However, this is not an easy task. Practically, all the networking courses for 4 years of college are summed up in this exam. I have two books with total of 1400 pages to study and prepare for this exam.
I also have a lab setup at Cisco in order to have a hands on experience needed for the test. These last two weeks I managed to establish a satisfying pace in studying and that is why I skipped one week of blogging. All my free time I used to study for this exam. I have only 7 weeks left to pass this exam, since I need to complete it while being on coop. It is very difficult because most of the coops at Cisco are there for 6 months, and I will be there only 4 months (Wentworth Coop Semesters last for 4 months only). Therefore, I have whole 2 months less to prepare. Beside the coop, I am working as a Senior Resident Assistant and Desk Attendant, so I really have a limited time to achieve this. Nevertheless, I am sure I can do it and I will let you know if I succeed.
You might think that this certification is important only if you want to work for Cisco. Well, that is not true. CCNA or any other Cisco certification is an excellent proof of your expertise in computer networks, and affects your entry level paycheck right after college. When I say affects, I mean in positive way of course. Therefore, if you can, step on it as soon as possible. I know that even if I do not make it in these 7 weeks, I won't stop until I get it.
]]>
Writing and the Wallstag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.52072008-03-02T16:13:02Z2008-03-02T16:30:13ZBeing a Senior Resident Assistant (SRA) brings along certain obligations, among which is organization of a Resident Assistant Community Enhancement (RACE) event. In Spring semester, each of the SRAs needs to organize one of the following RACE events: Passport to...Dejan Petrovic
The purpose of this event is to target all kinds of discrimination issues and emphasize the importance of diversity.
When we speak of diversity, we mean much more than just racial or ethnic diversity. We also consider socio-economic, geographic, international, intellectual, artistic and athletic, political, religious, sexual orientation, and many more. All these are areas in which we differ from each other.
Why is diversity important?
Diversity enriches our educational experience. We learn from those whose experiences, beliefs, and perspectives are different from our own, and these lessons can be taught best in a richly diverse intellectual and social environment.
Diversity promotes personal growth, and hence a healthy society. Diversity challenges stereotyped preconceptions; it encourages critical thinking; and it helps students learn to communicate effectively with people of varied backgrounds.
Diversity strengthens communities and the workplace. Education within a diverse setting prepares students to become good citizens in an increasingly complex society; it fosters mutual respect and teamwork; and it helps build communities whose members are judged by the quality of their character and their contributions.
Diverse environment recognizes and values talent. It eliminates barriers and ensures that everyone is treated fairly and has the chance to reach their maximum potential. Diversity encourages the exchange of ideas which not only broadens the scope of problem solving, but also improves the possibility that the problems will be solved.
My fellow RAs and I wanted to emphasize the negative consequences of discrimination, and use a radical approach in increasing awareness about importance of diversity. We created presentations which showed statistics about discrimination of all kinds present in the world today.
We also created a big WALL, a WALL of hate. For two days, we asked students to write hurtful, offending statements they heard someone said to them or to their friends. We let them express their pain on the WALL. This wall was covered at all times until our main ceremony.
In front of the audience of fifty students and staff members, we revealed the content of the WALL.
IT WAS SHOCKING!!! (The sole purpose of these photos is educational. I do not intend to offend anyone with the content in these photos, but to increase awareness about the negative consequences of discrimination, prejudice, and hatred based on diversity.)
You would think things that were written on the wall happen somewhere else and to someone else, but then you realize that every one of us experienced some sort of discrimination in our lives. After couple of minutes, when we allowed people to look at the wall, to make them feel and understand the pain of their peers, we reached the climax of this event; BREAKING DOWN THE WALL.
We gave everyone hammers and we invited them to join us in physically break down the wall, but symbolically start THE FIGHT AGAINST DISCRIMINATION and start EMBRACING DIVERSITY.
I thank everyone that helped us organize this event; the Housing Office, the Dean of Students Office and the Physical Plant (for building the wall). According to many positive reactions from the students and staff, our event was a complete success. A picture of a student breaking down the wall shows the emotions we managed to build up in people. This is just the start in our fight for a better world, and we have a lot of work to do.
]]>
Credit Cardtag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.51092008-02-24T18:03:15Z2008-02-24T18:11:57ZIf you are an international student in the States, an important thing to do is to get a credit card as soon as possible (if possible as fast as you should get your Massachusetts ID or Driver's license - that...Dejan Petrovic
If you are an international student in the States, an important thing to do is to get a credit card as soon as possible (if possible as fast as you should get your Massachusetts ID or Driver's license - that is so you don't carry your passport everywhere). I've been here for two and a half years, and unfortunately didn't pay too much attention to this, until now.
Why is credit card so important? Well, there is pretty much one big reason: building a credit history. Credit history is very important here in the States and in case you want to extend your stay here, like going to grad school or so, it would be nice that you became eligible for some loans or at least a credit for your education, apartment rental, or purchase of a car.
Being an international student, in order to get a credit card, most likely you will need to pay a deposit to get a Secure Credit Card. The amount of your deposit determines what your credit limit will be. Most often initial deposit is $300. After you get a card, most of the banks will monitor your behavior (purchases, payments, etc.) and after a while they will increase that limit. I know, there are not too many things you can purchase for $300, but you need to start from somewhere. Go buy food, movie tickets, T credits and similar with your credit card. Even if you have cash, just buy it on credit card and pay later. Everything counts. Even after six months your limit might significantly increase regardless of your deposit, and after a year, if you are proven to be a proper credit card user (did not miss a payment or so), you will be given your deposit back, and your limit will be increased.
According to most of the international students that got their credit cards at the very beginning, their limits, after 2-3 years, are $2000-$3000 or more. Keep this in mind when you are finishing college, and start thinking of renting an apartment, you will need to make a down payment for your first and last month rent. In Boston, those prices are high, and you will need at least $2000 for that. That is where your good credit history and increased credit card limit come in the game. I have a year and a half before the end, and I hope I didn’t start too late. We will see. But you should not make this mistake, and think about it on time.
P.S. Some banks to have in mind for your checking and savings accounts, as well as credit cards are: ING Direct (Orange – savings, Electric Orange – checking), Bank of America (checking and saving accounts, and Secure Credit Card ($300 deposit) or Student Platinum Credit Card (no deposit if you get it)), CapitalOne – they are the first ones that will most likely give a credit card without deposit. Good luck.
My worktag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.50092008-02-17T16:44:01Z2008-02-17T16:56:46Z As I told you at the beginning of this semester, my job at Cisco Systems Inc. is a great learning experience. So far I learned a lot, but as we know in ever-changing IT field, learning is a never-ending...Dejan Petrovic
As I told you at the beginning of this semester, my job at Cisco Systems Inc. is a great learning experience. So far I learned a lot, but as we know in ever-changing IT field, learning is a never-ending story. Let me describe you my work place.
I work in a building 500, Mad River Lab in Boxborough, MA.You would say that I work in a cubicle as most of the employees in IT nowadays do. Well, you are right, but not totally. I have my own cube with my nameplate and everything, but I spend 10% of my workday in the cube. Most of the day I am working in a big computer lab. Our lab obtains around 120 racks sorted in 12 isles and divided into five sections, with unknown number of switches, routers, servers, PBXs and other networking gear.
What are my job responsibilities? Well, let me start from the basic ones that I was doing at the beginning. As a Customer Advocacy Lab Operations coop, I am in charge of maintaining inventory updates, making sure the lab is neat and clean. So, those are basic assignments, not very exciting.
However, as my knowledge increased, I got new responsibilities. Now, major part of my job is solving cases for engineers. My colleague and I support five teams of engineers that provide technical assistance to enterprise Cisco clients. On an engineer request, we recreate our client’s systems in our lab, in order to identify the problem and assist engineers in finding a solution for their problem. Sometimes these cases are very simple, but most of the time cases are complex and require a lot of reading and preparation before we can set them up. You need to know the equipment, configuration parameters, which version of operating system (IOS) you should use, how to set up connection ports, etc.
When I started, all this was a complete unknown for me. Nevertheless, in these five weeks of my employment, there wasn't a case that my colleague and I did not solve. Man we are good :) Benefit of working in a company like Cisco is, is that you are surrounded by experts and you always have a person you can ask for help. If I cannot find a person with an answer in my location (Boxborough), I can always contact people in Cisco centers in RTP (North Carolina), Richardson (Texas) or San Jose (California). Cisco = the Human Network.
Well, I am still learning, at work and at home (preparing for Cisco Certified Network Associate exam), and I believe entire semester will be like that. As always, I will keep you posted.
]]>
Another coop weektag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.49312008-02-11T03:41:41Z2008-02-11T03:45:17ZBeing on coop does not give you much to write about. Days are pretty much the same. Work from 9am to 5pm every day. Therefore, you need to make things happen for you to make your life more interesting. Don't...Dejan Petrovic
Being on coop does not give you much to write about. Days are pretty much the same. Work from 9am to 5pm every day. Therefore, you need to make things happen for you to make your life more interesting. Don't get me wrong, work is great and I enjoy it a lot. I learn new things every day, but it is mostly technical stuff and I don't want to bore you to death
Nevertheless, there are several things that happened this past week that I found worth of mentioning.
First of all, the Patriots lost. It was a very sad day for the majority of Wentworth students. Instead of going into the history with the perfect 19-0 season, they lost. Even though some people will criticize me now, I will say that they played a lousy game, and they were defeated. I am sorry for that, but that is how the game goes. You cannot relax until everything is over. I just hope they've learned the lesson and will not allow that to happen again.
After the sad Sunday evening, Monday was very nice for me. I got recognized as a Resident Assistant of the Month of January 2008. I must admit that in my first year of being an RA, I wanted this very much and I was trying to go above and beyond in order to get it. And sadly, I didn't. However, now, I went above and beyond without even thinking about this recognition. And, as every effort I invested here at Wentworth so far, it paid off. In addition, I got rehired to be a Senior Resident Assistant in the Apartments for the next school year. This was also a recognition for my hard work and dedication to the position. All I can say to everyone is to keep with the good work, because it is definitely worth it.
This Saturday, we had a Centralized Student Leader Selection process. Being an SRA, gives me an opportunity to participate in the evaluation process of potential student leaders and to express my opinion in their selection process. According to what I have seen this Saturday, Wentworth will become richer for a number of great student leaders. I wish them luck in the rest of the selection process.
That was about it. Not much, but enough. The following week will be very busy for me, with a lot of duty nights, so I don't believe there will be much to write about. However, we will see. Life brings us surprises all the time.
Boston or New York Citytag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.48022008-02-03T18:10:20Z2008-02-03T18:19:27ZI waited for two weeks to sum up the comparison of Boston's and New York City's nightlife. Being European, means that clubbing is a very important part of my life. When I came to Boston, two and a half years...Dejan Petrovic
I waited for two weeks to sum up the comparison of Boston's and New York City's nightlife. Being European, means that clubbing is a very important part of my life. When I came to Boston, two and a half years ago, I wanted to check out the Boston night life scene. On my personal disappointment, there was no place in Boston for a fan of house music. Most of the Boston's night life is based on pubs, which is, of course, based on the Irish culture which is very present in the city, and clubs where hip hop, r'n'b and rap are the main musical choices of local DJs. Furthermore, all the clubs in Boston close their doors at 2am, which is incomparable to Europe where the peak of the night is at 2am.
In order to find a good place with house music, I was referred to New York City. I had to wait for two and a half years to get a good coop and afford such a trip. NYC is very expensive, and as I found out, you need to put aside $200 for one night. If you intend to go clubbing in New York City, you need to be prepared. In NYC, there is everything for everyone; you just need to find it. So, how does it go?
First, my friends and I checked out several places online and decided to go to the club "Guest House". This place had good review, so we decided to give it a try. We took the Chinese bus to NYC and four hours later we were in NYC's Chinatown. We went to eat something in order to obtain some energy for a long night in front of us. After the dinner, we went for a half an hour long walk from Times Square to West 27th street to the "Guest House". In order to avoid any inconveniences at the entrance, we came early and entered the club practically as first guests. Soon after, the place was packed. DJ started with his house selection, and you must expect that I was thrilled. Unfortunately, I wasn't. Since New York City is considered the center of the world in every aspect and that means for artists, too, every artist in this city is looking for his/her chance to succeed and become famous. Our DJ was one of them. He was creating his own music and his own style, which wasn't very good, at least according to my standards. Instead of entertaining us with the beats from famous DJs like Bob Sinclar, David Guetta, Roger Sanchez, etc., he bored us with his music for hours. If we were in Boston, we would probably leave, but now, since we were on a bus for 4 hours to come to NYC, we decided to stay till the very end and that was at 5am. At the time, your body needs some protein, so we had breakfast. We weren't very prepared, and we didn't really know where to go, so we ended up in McDonald's on Times Square. We sit there for a while, and then took the subway to the Chinatown, where we took the first bus to Boston at 7am. So, as you can see it was a hard core clubbing, but a disappointing one.
Two weeks later, actually last night, we decided to give NYC another chance. We picked another place called "Sol", which had nice reviews and offered more main stream music than just house. The trip to NYC was the same, but we started our night at Marriott hotel on Times Square in a bar "View" which is located on the 48th floor. Entire restaurant"s platform slowly rotates, so you have a wonderful view to all the sides of Manhattan while enjoying the buffet ($30) and your drink (>=$16). After that nice start (it is worth it, believe me), we walked for about 15 blocks until we reached "Sol". The place was promising with its very interesting interior, high ceiling, and sounds that we could hear through a closed door. Type of people that visits this place was completely different from "Guest House". "Guest House" was more stylish than this place. Here, people were more in hip hop style with either very tight or very baggy t-shirts, golden chains, pumped-up. Definitely not my style. I might sound snobbish, but I did not like it very much. Anyways, the DJ started playing main stream music, with a great choice of songs in general, but… Yes, there is a very big BUT. I do not know why, but for the entire night, the DJ was playing only 30 seconds of each song, with no transition in between songs and styles. It was like you take all your music on the hard drive and play 30sec shuffle. You just catch the rhythm and start feeling it, when he changes to something completely opposite. A disaster. After 18 years of clubbing, I believe I can be a judge of this. The only good thing that night was the dance challenge among locals that were definitely regular guests at this place. Electric buggy and break dance moves were like in videos of Fat Boy Slim. It was really fun. However, if we don't count that, and include some other things that I will not mention in this blog, NYC blew his second chance. Money spent for these two clubbing nights wasn’t justified at all. I am now sure that if we take price-performance analysis of Boston and NYC, and if we base it on these two attempts to have a good time in NYC, I must say Boston is better. I might give NYC a third chance, but not in the near future. I need to forget a little bit and find something different that will attract me to invest that time and money into it.
At the end, I must emphasize that you need to be over 21 years of age, to enter any of the clubs both in Boston and New York City. If you want to go clubbing and you are younger, well, go to Europe, and I can definitely recommend Serbia.
P.S. Now, I am going to get ready for the Super Bowl and cheer for Patriots on their way to history with a perfect season (so far 18-0, and hopefully 19-0 season). Go Pats!!!
Back on campustag:blogs.targetx.com,2008:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.46072008-01-21T01:38:15Z2008-01-21T01:43:18ZAh, the break is over. Even though it is very fun to be in school and on campus, it always feels good to go home, especially if you are an international student, that can go home twice or even once...Dejan Petrovic
Ah, the break is over. Even though it is very fun to be in school and on campus, it always feels good to go home, especially if you are an international student, that can go home twice or even once a year. These three weeks of break that I had were amazing. Like every other time, when going back home for couple of weeks, time just flies. Three weeks passed by and there were so many things I did not manage to achieve. Every day is filled with visits, gatherings with friends and family, partying, and in one word catching up on missed events in your friends' lives. As I said, three weeks was not enough, but I need to move on.
I am back on campus, now, starting with my every day duties: Senior Resident Assistant, Desk Attendant, and now one more thing. This semester, instead of having classes, I am on co-op. I started working at Cisco Systems Inc. as a member Customer Assurance Lab Operations (CALO). Everything is new for me at this job; all the devices, configuration languages, system procedures, everything. Therefore, every day is one great learning experience. CALO team is consisted of another Wentworth co-op, me and our supervisor. We depend on our own, and if there is something we do not know, we learn it by ourselves. Our working hours are 9am-5pm, with an hour long lunch break. We commute every day for 50 minutes to Boxborough, where our site is located. We are very lucky because we always avoid traffic. In the morning, everyone is going in, and we are going out of the city, and other way around. Conditions that Cisco offers to his employees are amazing. We have free breakfast every Friday, over-time parties, discounts in many stores, you receive a lap top to do your work, they offer you all the resources for CCNA certification (in your first coop), fixed relocation money, and many many more. After this first week, I can say I just love working at Cisco.
This is going to be a great semester, with a lot of learning and working, but it is worth it. I am looking forward to every coming day.
Stress relievetag:blogs.targetx.com,2007:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.42032007-12-07T14:36:03Z2007-12-11T00:03:55ZToday is the last day of classes. This week was packed with project submissions, presentations, quizzes and final preparations for finals. I knew this week was going to be busy, so I allowed myself to use last Saturday to do...Dejan Petrovic
Our wonderful host, Matylda, arranged everything in the house of her host family. Besides food, drinks, and music, Matylda added a Christmas flavor into the entire night. Like in the movies, she brought a cute old man, a pianist who entertained us with Christmas carols. Furthermore, he gave us the lyrics and asked us to join him in singing these short and merry songs.
I never thought it could be so much fun to do something like that. Especially, when I realized how many talents people in our group have. We had two solo performances, as well as several uncovered pianists among as that shared their hidden skills with us.
It was just great.
After the musical entertainment, we helped Matylda decorate the biggest Christmas tree, I've ever seen. It was at least 12 feet high and looked great. It looked even better after we were done with it.
The evening was completed with a chit-chat next to a fire place until early in the morning. I came back home at 6am, relaxed, happy and with another beautiful experience. I was ready to jump to work and prepare for finals. Next week will be busy and stressful, so wish me luck, and I'll let you know how it was.
P.S. News about the car. I cancelled my rent-a-car reservation. A friend of mine, here at Wentworth, got a co-op at the same place I did, and he has a car. Therefore, I will go to work with him. He will drive and I will chip-in for gas. I think it is a win-win situation.
]]>
Almost overtag:blogs.targetx.com,2007:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.40742007-11-30T14:49:43Z2007-11-30T14:58:54ZAs we are approaching the end of semester, you can feel the tension on the campus. Everyone is under a lot of pressure; projects, tests, presentations, and finals preparation. All these are, of course, followed by a lack of time....Dejan Petrovic
As we are approaching the end of semester, you can feel the tension on the campus. Everyone is under a lot of pressure; projects, tests, presentations, and finals preparation. All these are, of course, followed by a lack of time. You can see a lot of tired faces on campus, hear about many all-nighters and notice a slight fear in the eyes of students. All these symptoms are present mostly in freshmen. After their first semester, things will change. Students will know what to expect at the end of semester, accept the situation and start planning accordingly, and eventually living through the end of a semester as through any other day.
Having all that in mind, students really appreciate Thanksgiving break that always falls two weeks before the finals. That is the last chance to relax, and if necessary catch up with all the late work. That is how I use Thanksgiving break. Since I am an international student, I usually stay on campus while everyone goes home to spend Thanksgiving with their families. That means the campus is empty. Nothing happens, no one is around and it is very, very quiet. Every year so far, I applied to be on RA duty during Thanksgiving. Oh, don't worry, I am not a workaholic. Duty nights are usually shorter and there is nothing going on. Furthermore, you receive a great appreciation from your American colleagues. Other than working in the evenings, I use those free days to work on some projects that are due in last two weeks of semester. That really helps, since that significantly decreases a workload in last weeks. That is what I did this year, too, and again I am very happy that I did that. There is only one day during Thanksgiving that I don't do anything. That is Black Friday. On that day, I use to go all over Boston and check all the sales. You can get huge discounts on anything you want: electronics, clothing, food, cosmetics... This year, I did not buy a thing, but I did the shop screening, made a list and got ready to do some shopping before I go home for the Winter break.
Well, that is how things are these last days of the semester. I am finishing this now, so I can continue studying.
P.S. I gave up on buying a car in this semester. I reserved a rent-a-car and we'll see what will happen when I come back from the break.
Wentworth Pride Daytag:blogs.targetx.com,2007:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.38672007-11-16T14:32:32Z2007-11-17T16:09:42ZEvery year, at the beginning of November, group of Resident Assistants organizes a Hockey Luau. It is a celebration of the beginning of hockey season. This program changed names in years, and this year the name was Wentworth Pride Day...Dejan Petrovic
After the BBQ, that lasted for almost 2 hours, everyone got together and left to support and cheer for Wentworth Hockey team in their first home-game of the season. The bravest ones were body-painted in WIT colors despite very cold weather. Since Wentworth does not have a hockey arena, all home games are played in the arena at the nearby Northeastern University.
At the end, this was a great night. Our team won 5-1 to Western New England team and hopefully, this was a start of a very good season.
P.S. I still did't buy a car. Bear with me, it is a difficult process. :)
]]>
FWD, RWD, AWD?tag:blogs.targetx.com,2007:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.37502007-11-09T14:28:28Z2007-11-09T14:33:36ZYou might ask what this is, now. Well, as you know I got the Coop position last week. Nevertheless, my coop company is 35 miles away from Boston, and I need to buy a car (no public transportation operates to...Dejan Petrovic
You might ask what this is, now. Well, as you know I got the Coop position last week. Nevertheless, my coop company is 35 miles away from Boston, and I need to buy a car (no public transportation operates to this place). I did not know how difficult is to search for the car when you have limited funds and so many things to take in consideration. Every person that sells the cars, describes the car with attributes like 'runs great', 'mint body', and 'like new'. However, these cars, cars that I can afford, are 12-15 years old, with >100,000 miles on engine, and bunch of other stuff, so you know those attributes cannot be true.
I created a list of 10-12 cars with decent description and price. Now, the other problem is that these cars are located all over Massachusetts. I need to create a plan in order to check them all out in one day, with the least time and fuel consumption for my friend that will take me there. Ok, so you think that is not that hard, but wait, that is not all.
After buying a car (with a million prayers that it will not break during next year), you need to register it in DMV. That requires additional costs for registration, title transfer, inspection, sales tax and of course insurance. I am an international student, and even though I have a driver's license for 12 years now, out of those 12 years, only 1 year is here in Massachusetts. I needed to check the insurance quotes in order to see if I can afford all that. Couple of days ago, I did an online estimate for insurance for the best type of car that I could get for the money I have. Yesterday, I got a call from insurance agent and the information I received was very encouraging. I guess that they accounted those 12 years of owning a driver's license.
Ok, so costs are calculated and I know what my upper limit is. But, when I presented my list of 12 cars to a friend of mine that is good with cars, my choice got cut to 5-6 cars. RWD means rear-wheel drive. RWD means that I would be all over the road when the first snow hits Boston. So, that one is off. AWD means all-wheel drive. This is the best option for winter, but that is the option I cannot afford. The last and actually the only option I can afford and would be good for me is FWD. Of course, now you've guessed, front-wheel drive.
Now, that you've read all the problems I am encountering, please, wish me luck. I will, of course, let you know about the outcome of my adventure.
Co-optag:blogs.targetx.com,2007:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.36202007-11-02T04:27:39Z2007-11-02T04:33:27ZBeing a student at Wentworth involves at least two semesters of mandatory co-op. It means you will have to find a job in relation to your major and work full time for a whole semester. During that time you do...Dejan Petrovic
That was all for this week. Now, back to studying and we'll see what the next week will bring.
]]>
Mid-term weektag:blogs.targetx.com,2007:/wentworth/DejanPetrovic//242.34932007-10-26T13:46:38Z2007-10-29T20:51:56ZWow, what a week. I've never had a week like this since I came to Wentworth. So many things and obligations, and all in one week. I am usually good in time management, but this time I wasn't the one...Dejan Petrovic
]]>
As you can see, this week was very successful for me and I treated myself with a night out with my friends on Friday, a relaxing Saturday, and a visit to the Museum of Science today.
We'll see what the upcoming weeks will bring to me, and to this blog, too. Till that time, ENJOY THE LIFE.
]]>
After completing the requirement for the CCNA, candidates are prepared to install, configure, and operate simple-routed LAN, routed WAN, and switched LAN networks. In order to achieve CCNA status, candidates must successfully complete the CCNA expert exam. As a computer networking major, this is a must for me. Furthermore, if I would like to get a second coop rotation at Cisco Systems Inc., I need to pass this exam and get the certificate. However, this is not an easy task. Practically, all the networking courses for 4 years of college are summed up in this exam. I have two books with total of 1400 pages to study and prepare for this exam.
I also have a lab setup at Cisco in order to have a hands on experience needed for the test. These last two weeks I managed to establish a satisfying pace in studying and that is why I skipped one week of blogging. All my free time I used to study for this exam. I have only 7 weeks left to pass this exam, since I need to complete it while being on coop. It is very difficult because most of the coops at Cisco are there for 6 months, and I will be there only 4 months (Wentworth Coop Semesters last for 4 months only). Therefore, I have whole 2 months less to prepare. Beside the coop, I am working as a Senior Resident Assistant and Desk Attendant, so I really have a limited time to achieve this. Nevertheless, I am sure I can do it and I will let you know if I succeed.
You might think that this certification is important only if you want to work for Cisco. Well, that is not true. CCNA or any other Cisco certification is an excellent proof of your expertise in computer networks, and affects your entry level paycheck right after college. When I say affects, I mean in positive way of course. Therefore, if you can, step on it as soon as possible. I know that even if I do not make it in these 7 weeks, I won't stop until I get it.
]]>
We also created a big WALL, a WALL of hate. For two days, we asked students to write hurtful, offending statements they heard someone said to them or to their friends. We let them express their pain on the WALL. This wall was covered at all times until our main ceremony.
In front of the audience of fifty students and staff members, we revealed the content of the WALL.
IT WAS SHOCKING!!! (The sole purpose of these photos is educational. I do not intend to offend anyone with the content in these photos, but to increase awareness about the negative consequences of discrimination, prejudice, and hatred based on diversity.)
You would think things that were written on the wall happen somewhere else and to someone else, but then you realize that every one of us experienced some sort of discrimination in our lives. After couple of minutes, when we allowed people to look at the wall, to make them feel and understand the pain of their peers, we reached the climax of this event; BREAKING DOWN THE WALL.
We gave everyone hammers and we invited them to join us in physically break down the wall, but symbolically start THE FIGHT AGAINST DISCRIMINATION and start EMBRACING DIVERSITY.
I thank everyone that helped us organize this event; the Housing Office, the Dean of Students Office and the Physical Plant (for building the wall). According to many positive reactions from the students and staff, our event was a complete success. A picture of a student breaking down the wall shows the emotions we managed to build up in people. This is just the start in our fight for a better world, and we have a lot of work to do.
]]>
I work in a building 500, Mad River Lab in Boxborough, MA.You would say that I work in a cubicle as most of the employees in IT nowadays do. Well, you are right, but not totally. I have my own cube with my nameplate and everything, but I spend 10% of my workday in the cube. Most of the day I am working in a big computer lab. Our lab obtains around 120 racks sorted in 12 isles and divided into five sections, with unknown number of switches, routers, servers, PBXs and other networking gear.
What are my job responsibilities? Well, let me start from the basic ones that I was doing at the beginning. As a Customer Advocacy Lab Operations coop, I am in charge of maintaining inventory updates, making sure the lab is neat and clean. So, those are basic assignments, not very exciting.
However, as my knowledge increased, I got new responsibilities. Now, major part of my job is solving cases for engineers. My colleague and I support five teams of engineers that provide technical assistance to enterprise Cisco clients. On an engineer request, we recreate our client’s systems in our lab, in order to identify the problem and assist engineers in finding a solution for their problem. Sometimes these cases are very simple, but most of the time cases are complex and require a lot of reading and preparation before we can set them up. You need to know the equipment, configuration parameters, which version of operating system (IOS) you should use, how to set up connection ports, etc.
When I started, all this was a complete unknown for me. Nevertheless, in these five weeks of my employment, there wasn't a case that my colleague and I did not solve. Man we are good :) Benefit of working in a company like Cisco is, is that you are surrounded by experts and you always have a person you can ask for help. If I cannot find a person with an answer in my location (Boxborough), I can always contact people in Cisco centers in RTP (North Carolina), Richardson (Texas) or San Jose (California). Cisco = the Human Network.
Well, I am still learning, at work and at home (preparing for Cisco Certified Network Associate exam), and I believe entire semester will be like that. As always, I will keep you posted.
]]>
I never thought it could be so much fun to do something like that. Especially, when I realized how many talents people in our group have. We had two solo performances, as well as several uncovered pianists among as that shared their hidden skills with us.
It was just great.
After the musical entertainment, we helped Matylda decorate the biggest Christmas tree, I've ever seen. It was at least 12 feet high and looked great. It looked even better after we were done with it.
The evening was completed with a chit-chat next to a fire place until early in the morning. I came back home at 6am, relaxed, happy and with another beautiful experience. I was ready to jump to work and prepare for finals. Next week will be busy and stressful, so wish me luck, and I'll let you know how it was.
P.S. News about the car. I cancelled my rent-a-car reservation. A friend of mine, here at Wentworth, got a co-op at the same place I did, and he has a car. Therefore, I will go to work with him. He will drive and I will chip-in for gas. I think it is a win-win situation.
]]>
That was all for this week. Now, back to studying and we'll see what the next week will bring.
]]>