For the AIX Newbies

I assume most of the readers of this blog have years of experience with AIX. But it's important to recognize that new users regularly come to this operating system. Often these pros previously worked on other versions of UNIX, or even another operating system altogether. If you're new to AIX, you should be aware of the numerous available options for getting up to speed.

We'll start with free sources of AIX information and education. The amount of high-quality, freely available information may surprise you. Of course I'll start by mentioning this blog and recommending that you sign up for IBM Systems Magazine. (Even if you're not new to the platform, why not get a free copy of the magazine?)

You can also view these quicksheets and quickstarts and these Nigel Griffiths videos. Then there's the AIX Virtual User Groups. Be sure to check out both the upcoming sessions and the highly informative replays.

The other primary source of free AIX education is IBM Redbooks.

Everything I've listed to this point is freely available. Still, to get the most from your experience on AIX, you should also invest in training. Which classes should you attend? This depends largely on your background and experience, as well as, of course, your available time and monetary resources. IBM's training website is a good starting point. There's an AIX Users and System Administration roadmap to plan your training, which can take the form of instructor-led online classes, traditional classroom training or self-paced virtual courses.

Here are some more specific roadmaps:

* AIX Security, Network Administration, Problem Determination, Virtualization and Performance

* PowerHA SystemMirror for AIX

* AIX Systems Management, Clustering, Internals and Cloud Computing

Once you select the training you want to take, you can consider ways to save. IBM Education Packs can be used for either for IBM classroom, online or onsite training courses. They can also be used to attend IBM technical conferences.

Finally, here's a list of one-day IBM Power Systems training events that run through June.

Non-IBM vendors provide training as well, including Jack Morton and M/UX Data Systems.

Think about someone who's new to AIX. What other sources of information would you recommend to someone just getting started with the operating systems? Please leave your suggestions in comments.

 

Comments

[Jeff S]

Can't beat playing around on a test system!

[Ksangeek]

Other useful ones are
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AIX and Power Portal : http://rootvg.net/
Articles provided by IBM Certified Advanced Technical Experts : http://aixhealthcheck.com/index.php
Waldemar Mark Duszyk's AIX Lessons : http://www.wmduszyk.com/?page_id=145&langswitch_lang=en
Tutorials to .com on AIX : http://www.tutorialsto.com/os/aix/
AIX Mind : http://www.aixmind.com/