7/16/2008 -- As I was reading the latest press release from Prometric -- which has been awarded a contract with the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office to deliver exams to patent attorneys -- it suddenly hit me how we can solve what's wrong with today's exam environment.

I've been bothered for some time by the fact that we still expect candidates to be physically present at a brick-and-mortar storefront in order to answer multiple-choice questions on high-end IT questions. I've ranted about this before, and each time, someone -- usually multiple someones -- points out the need for a candidate to verify their identity and to make sure that they don't cheat (I'll hold off on sharing my thoughts about the ability to cheat in existing test centers for now).

In other words, people can't be trusted; therefore, and we must proctor their actions by using VUE or Prometric centers. The Linux Professional Institute (LPI) FAQ says it best:

"Unfortunately, for Web-based exams in unproctored situations, you cannot get around the fact that someone else could take the exam for you -- or be right with you as you take the exam. At this time, there's really no way to securely offer exams online without a proctor present."

As I was reading the Prometric press release, however, I had an epiphany: If the issue is simply that you need someone to verify your identity and watch you take the exam, why do you have to go to them? Why can't the proctor make housecalls?

Suppose ACME Inc. wants Johnny Administrator to gain ABC certification so it can continue to say that its entire staff is certified. Johnny gains the knowledge needed through books, training, etc. Under the current scenario, he then takes a day off and drives to the testing center in City Y. There, he shows two forms of ID, walks into a closet of a room and answers 75 multiple-choice questions on the oldest workstation and monitor that the testing center owns. To remind him that he shouldn't cheat, he must leave his belongings at the front desk and take note of the closed-circuit camera overhead that may or may not be monitored.

Under the proposed scenario, a proctor would show up at ACME at the allotted time and be introduced to Johnny by his supervisor, thus confirming identity. The two of them would move to Johnny's workstation (which would most likely be far superior to that at any testing center) where Johnny would be given information on how to begin the test (either by logging in to a Web site, downloading an executable, or -- heaven forbid -- actually performing some actions on the live system). At the end of the test, the proctor would deliver the results to both Johnny and his administrator and then move on to his next appointment.

The benefits of this scenario are legion. Not only could multiple types of exams be given, but the proctor could actually be knowledgeable in the topic area (gasp!) and able to give meaningful feedback. The candidate would not miss more work than the time the exam consumes, and be able to work with equipment that they are comfortable with and use daily. The supervisor can have immediate feedback on their employee and know what areas they are strongest (and weakest) in.

I can't imagine a greater win-win scenario.

Book of the Week: 'LPIC-1 Study Guide'
I always find it somewhat humorous that the best vendor-neutral Linux certification is so broad in scope that it can't really be called an entry-level certification. To become LPIC-1-certified, you must pass two exams from the Linux Professional Institute (LPI). Those exams not only exhaust your knowledge of command-line options, but also expect you to know hardware, the kernel, security and a plethora of other topics.

Given that breadth, it's not uncommon for books about these exams to be meaningful to anyone working with Linux -- not just those cramming for an exam. The best of those books, by far, is the LPIC-1 Linux Professional Institute Certification Study Guide by Roderick W. Smith. Certified by LPI as one of its "Approved Training Materials," the book is both thorough and engaging. Instead of just walking through the objectives from start to finish, the chapters build on each other and the material is covered in a much more logical manner.

If you're looking for a good overall Linux book to fill in your coverage of general topics, you can't go wrong by picking this one.