11/19/2000 -- What do you get when you take around 25 computer techs, get them hopped up on enough sugar and caffeine to kill a rhino, and shove them into a conference room everyday for a week? Apparently, you get a new CompTIA exam.

Recently, I was given that very opportunity. I was selected to be apart of the creation process for the new exam being offered by CompTIA, Server+. As a subject matter expert (SME) I was inundated with stimulants, just like the rest of the techs, and made to pour my technical knowledge into test questions.

I arrived in Chicago Sunday, August 20, where I met my fellow would-be gurus. We had come in from all over the U.S. and Canada, as well as a few from such places as South Africa, Russia, Switzerland, etc. We were each selected from a list of candidates who had applied for the chance to help shape the face of the new CompTIA examination. Jim Vanne, the CompTIA representative who had been chosen to try and keep us motivated and moving in the right direction (kinda like tech herding), gathered us all at the hotel and took us out to diner for a chance to get to know one another. We went to a local Mexican restaurant where we compared backgrounds over chips and salsa and talked about the things techs discus (Bandwidth, Starwars, Video games, etc.) Afterwards, everybody broke off into groups, or headed off on their own, to do a little exploring before the morning revelry of 8 a.m.

That morning, we gathered in a conference room and immediately set to work. Cables appeared out of nowhere. Soon the room transformed itself into a spider web ensnaring coffee cups, laptops and dreary eyed computer geeks. We had 30 notebooks in the room and the Hub-topus had overflowed into a few hubs, a switch and a router or two. We had to rearrange the furniture so that all of the cables could reach and we could hold a forum to discuss the issues as we covered them. After some creative configuration of the hotel data line, we all had Internet access and were set to connect to the local CompTIA server so that we could get into the test parameters.

	How I Became an SME (and you can too)
	I would like to be able to tout my wondrous qualifications and talk about how CompTIA sought me out to be a subject matter expert (SME) for the Server+ but that just isn’t how it works. Becoming an SME is not too difficult. You must meet certain qualifications but, aside from that, the entire procedure is largely a matter of being in the right place at the right time. The first step is to stay aware of all the current exams as well as the forthcoming ones -- both new and old exams require SMEs. The new for creation, the old for revision. If you feel your self particularly suited for a certain topic or exam, check out the CompTIA Web site (www.comptia.org). You’ll find SME positions listed on under the exams for which they are required. You also need to be aware of a few things concerning the position of Subject Matter Expert. Primarily that this is a voluntary job. Aside from a $250 honorarium, CompTIA provides only lunch during the week of meetings. You are expected to arrange for your own travel and accommodations. You do get grandfathered in to the test (meaning you are automatically certified). You also get listed as a contributor to the creation of the test. If you can get your company to cover the expenses then it’s a great deal, if not, plan on spending around $800 for your room as well as food entertainment and travel. All in all, It is something that I suggest to anyone truly serious about their certifications. -M.B.

About that time, Jim arrived with the motivation. Never before have I seen such an assortment of junk food. Cookies, candy-bars, chips, soft drinks, chocolate covered coffee beans, etc. So much for the diet. Like any group of red-blooded technicians we were all strung out within the hour.

We began looking over each of the topics to get an idea of exactly what type of questions we needed. Another focus group had been given the task of establishing exactly what should be covered, how many questions for each task, and who exactly our audience is supposed to be. On top of all these requirements, CompTIA had specifics on how the questions could be worded, how we could reference the vendors, and the format each question had to follow. (I am bound by a nondisclosure agreement from discussing the details in specific, so I’m afraid I can’t give you exacts.) Most of the first day was spent going over all of this data so that we knew exactly what to work on for the rest of the week. Between the sugar, caffeine and technical mind bending, we were all half-crazed, strung out, junkie techs by the end of this session.

The next few days became a blur of early mornings, sugar highs, technical arguments, and question creation and review. It was during this review that I came across evidence of what this prolonged exposure to this environment could produce. Apparently, one of our guys had slightly overdone the stimulants, as I found this question floating among the others:

Luke has purchased a pair of new DROID (tm) servers to support the rebellion. R2D2 has a deaser hardware adapter for performing deaser tasks, and C3PO has a zaphner for doing zaphner tasks. Both Droids have hardware adapters available offline, which they can use to perform the other's tasks, thus providing some level of backup and redundancy. If deasing or zaphning should ever stop entirely, his home star will explode. MTBF for the adapters is 10,000,000 hours. What should Luke do?

Check Correct Answer

A: Purchase additional backup droids.

B: Trust in the Force that his Droids will never fail.

C: Direct both C3PO and R2D2 to switch tasks on a regular schedule.

D: Add additional offline deasers and zaphners in his existing droids.

E: Make sure he has spare parts available from sand people with a one-hour turn around.

Needless to say we all had a nice tension break with that question. Jim took this opportunity to let us know he had made arrangements for the group of us to knock off early Thursday and head into town to catch a diner cruise on Lake Michigan.

Thursday afternoon we cut out about 4 p.m. and headed to the train station where we shot into Chicago proper where we began our hike. The walk really wasn’t bad (not to mention, after our weekly intake, we could probably use the exercise.) We walked out to the Navy Pier to catch "The Spirit of Chicago." The cruise was really pretty nice. The crew put on a show and dragged one of the boys up to assist. The he was standing up on stage, wearing a bad wig and playing air guitar. Good thing he had a couple of drinks before hand. After the show we all mingled, drank, and wandered up on deck to see the city. It really is a remarkable view.

Stumbling back to the hotel late that night we prepared ourselves for the end of our week. Friday was the last of it. Many people were leaving early and would only be around for a short time. Friday morning, e-mail addresses were exchanged and slowly everyone filtered out. All 600 questions were finished, as was the initial review. As I gathered up all of my things and said my good-byes I realized that even though I was mentally exhausted, beginning the first stages of sugar withdrawals, and looking at a long trip home, I had been involved in something that few people ever get to experience. I had peeked behind the curtain, caught a glimpse of what all is involved in creating a new exam. I now know that writing them is ten times harder then taking them, but at the same time, it sure was fun.

BTW: The correct answer is "C".

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