The main problem with certs can be demonstrating by googling the cert title or number + "dumps". You will find the exact questions and answers for most tests. (More on "most" in a moment.) I don't mean a detailed outline - I mean the full text of the question, the possible answers, and which one is correct. Memorize the answers and you pass the cert.

As someone who periodically participates in hiring, I don't see much value in certs. I've had the experience of people who had certs who didn't know their stuff. I've never known any employer who given a choice between someone with many years of experience and someone with a cert, would choose the latter.

There are other problems with certs. I've always found the format is quite ridiculous. Why should I memorize things? If they test concepts, that'd be one thing, but often certs are "which of these commands is correct" kind of questions. What, am I trapped on a desert island with a datacenter to administer and no manuals?

That said, certs can't hurt. I find them valuable to study for though less to actually take. Vendors outline everything to get a basic knowledge, and that's useful to go over. The only time I see real value in certs is

• Your employer is a government agency or some kind of big bureaucracy and they require the cert for a position.
• Some vendors will only extend certain partnerships ("Gold VAR" or whatever) to companies that have X number of certified technicians
• Your company is providing services and wants to be able to say "all our techs are certified in X" for marketing purposes

All that said...the exception to the above is the certs that do have some value. These are the certs that you have to pass a lab for: RHCE, Oracle Certified Master, Cisco's CCIE, etc. A CCIE is highly valuable - those guys bill very well.

Diaspora is still very much alive.

Particularly because "two different states" could mean "Rhode Island and Delaware" which is very different than "Alaska and Florida."

In the early 90s, I used to read the cypherpunks email list. During the PGP, Clipper chip, etc. drama, the cypherpunks were discussing practical ways of encryption. They wrote code and collected practical how-to guides on encryption. Lots of good stuff - how to automate encryption on your email, how to make an encrypted "cryptobook" laptop, etc. And no one used it. Today encryption is used only for shopping. When's the last time you got an encrypted email? It isn't for lack of technology.

They get to the target in 30-60 minutes. If you are so confused that you're going to change your mind in 30 minutes, don't launch.

In most cases, you're talking about a few minutes before and during takeoff and a few minutes during landing. During that time, read a book.

I've certainly used tablets, phones (for apps), and laptops all other times during flight.

There is no one on this planet who can't live without the Internet for the duration of a flight. If you are so insanely important, buy the plane's service.

Seriously, why not link the source instead of some spammy blog?

This is seriously one of the best parodies of a Wikipedia fanboy I've ever read.

When you're done with one of those ebooks, can you give it to me? Oh. Well, you can donate it to...oh. At least you can sell it used to...oh. Anyway, you can always lend it to...oh.

Wikipedia is not progress.

Everyone should consider Wikipedia unreliable.

He already has. (Novel's premise is that the Eugenics Wars have already come and gone - they just weren't the big military conflicts people expected.)

Editors don't change headlines here? I guess you've never had an accepted submission.