12/17/2008 -- As we discussed last time, the Linux Professional Institute (LPI) updates to the 200-level exams are now expected to go live this coming April. 

To become certified at the LPIC-2 level, a candidate must pass two exams: 201 and 202. We've already covered the topics for 201; now let's tackle 202. The following are the top-level topics for the 202 exam along with the subtopics and weighting of each (each number is worth roughly 1.66 percent of the total exam): 

A complete list of the key terms and utilities to know for each subtopic can be found here.

Microsoft Closes 70-113 Pilot
The extended registration for Microsoft's 70-113: Windows Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuring closed today, Dec.17, having registered the targeted number of candidates. Registration was originally slated to close in October, and three free exam vouchers were offered to the first 3,000 candidates who signed up for the exam, but the number of candidates that signed up was less than desired. (Several people overseas complained that it wasn't being offered in their country.)

This exam differs from the standard Microsoft format in that it's intended to test a "candidate's abilities to actually perform tasks and solve problems in a virtual lab environment, like they would do it normally in the real world." Andy Barkl was one of those who took the exam early; check out his take here.

Fortinet Certification Now Available Through VUE
The exams for Fortinet's certifications are now available through the VUE network of testing centers. Fortinet currently offers two certifications -- Fortinet Certified Network Security Administrator (FCNSA) and Fortinet Certified Network Security Professional (FCNSP) -- and over 3,500 people worldwide hold one of the two certifications.

More information on Fortinet and their certifications can be found here.

Book of the Week: 'Hot, Flat, And Crowded'
Thomas Friedman's last book, The World is Flat, was as much a book about technology as it was about globalization. In fact, in many implementations and instances, the two are inextricably intertwined. Given my partiality for that book, I eagerly anticipated the release of Hot, Flat, and Crowded and viewed it as an update.

It didn't take very many pages before I realized that this isn't an update at all, but an entirely different book. Instead of focusing on how we arrived at where we are now (as its predecessor did), Hot, Flat, and Crowded just considers that a given and focuses instead on the need for a "Code Green" to heal and restore the earth. While Google, Texas Instruments and some others technology companies pop up every now and then, you'll find more on them in the current issue of any trade magazine than you will here.

That isn't to say that administrators won't enjoy this book, or shouldn't read it. With green being the new red, white and blue, it's important to know as much on the topic as possible. Written with the thoroughness that won Friedman the Pulitzer Prize three times, Hot, Flat, and Crowded is a great book to read over the holiday break -- and one of the best ways to bring yourself up to speed on a topic that will surely be brought up in many strategic planning sessions next year.