Author Archives: Matthew Norwood

Don’t Just Collect. Consume.

I have a bit of a problem when it comes to information. I tend to resemble someone on the TV show Hoarders. I have loads of PDF files on my laptop. Some are on my iPad. Some are on my … Continue reading

Posted in efficiency, learning, vendors | 14 Comments

Drowning in Features

Have you ever bought a car without all the bells and whistles? You end up with some blank buttons in your dashboard. You’re not really sure what they are for, but there’s that little voice in the back of your … Continue reading

Posted in vendors | Tagged , | 3 Comments

You’re lying. Well, at least until we see the packet capture.

Maybe you’ve experienced this before. You are minding your own business without a care in the world when all of the sudden the phone rings. You: Hello? Them: There’s a problem and we think the network is the cause. Can … Continue reading

Posted in efficiency, learning | Tagged | 4 Comments

Is It Possible To Stay Vendor Neutral?

***Note: I am asking this question from a corporate IT perspective. I am not asking this from the standpoint of a vendor or reseller. Most of what I do in the networking world revolves around one vendor’s equipment. Not all, … Continue reading

Posted in cisco, vendors | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Make Your Job Easier

****Note – While I thought about detailing the technical steps necessary for delegation on different pieces of equipment, I decided to go with the more “architectural” or “philosophical” approach in this post. Besides, there are plenty of others out there … Continue reading

Posted in efficiency, security | Tagged , , , | Comments Off on Make Your Job Easier

How much do you REALLY know about technology X?

Think about something you know a fair amount about. It can be anything in the realm of networking. Now imagine yourself explaining it to someone. Not just anyone. Someone who has a decent grasp on it, but maybe not all … Continue reading

Posted in learning, routing, switching | 6 Comments

A World of Resources……

You’ll never learn it all. The more you learn, the more that holds true. However, that shouldn’t keep you from trying to learn it all. In light of that, you have to realize that some of the best resources don’t … Continue reading

Posted in learning | 3 Comments