SiteLight: In The Trenches
Ok, I gave up on getting Kevin on the line for some audio. Maybe at a later time I can add it back in.
Today’s SiteLight is on Kevin Devin’s weblog and In The Trenches podcast.
What is this site?
In The Trenches, http://kevindevin.com, is Kevin Devin’s weblog and the home of the “In The Trenches” and “In The Trenches: Tech Chat” podcasts. Kevin is a system administrator for a company in Redmond, WA (no, not that company).
Why I read this site:
Kevin 1) is a great guy, 2) has a sultry radio voice :-), and 3) knows how to run a Tech Chat! He’s always getting into something interesting, and he communicates well about what’s going on.
Why you should read this site:
- If you’re in IT, ITT is a great site resource by one guy handling the same issues you are.
- Subscribe to the podcast - Kevin’s shows are always good, he’s very professional about it, and in my opinion the weekly (or fairly-weekly) Tech Chats are where it’s at. In Kevin’s words, the Tech Chat is “a mini Gillmore Gang [but] we’re not talking about the industry as a whole and where it’s heading, but rather, issues that each of us face on a daily basis, ‘In the Trenches.’”
Q & A:
Steve: What is your quest?
Kevin: World domination… isn’t that everyone’s quest?
Nah… I’m simply interested in networking with fellow sys admins in a different way.
Steve: What is your favorite color?
Kevin: Blue
Steve: WRONG! (waaaaahhhh!!!! thunder rolls)
Kevin: No… really… It’s Blue. ;-)
Steve: But seriously… How would describe your work in IT?
Kevin: I am a IT Systems Administrator for a building controls company located in Redmond, WA. This site is my responsibility within the organization, and I’m currently overseeing just under 170 PCs and 12 file servers running Linux and Windows 2000 Server. The desktops span from XP and Win2K installs, to a Mac G3, to Linux workstations. The facility is heavy into R&D so I occassionally get to play with some cool toys every now and then.
Steve: How did In The Trenches get started? Was it a blog first, a podcast first, or something else? How did you settle on thee topic/format?
Kevin: I first started off blogging in July of 2002 over on blog.thedevins.com. At the time, I was a one-man IT department and my blog, being ITish in nature served as means for me to network with my peers and to offer up some of my experience as google-juice to other Sys Admins.
The podcast was essentially a spin off of that concept when I was turned on to it by a blog entry I read on either Mike McBride or Josh Cooper’s blog. The term intreagued me, so I investigated. One of my first listens was to Dave Slusher’s Evil Genius Chronicles. Once I figured out all of what it took to create one, I was eager to see if I could do it myself.
My first podcast I thought would likely be my last. I even stated it within that podcast. I just couldn’t see having enough material to do one on a frequent enough basis to keep anyone interested. That’s when Dave Slusher gave me a swift kick in the ass. He told me to find something that I was pationate about and just go for it. If I didn’t have enough content to fill an entire show, enlist my buddies and get them involved. Also, it was either Dave Slusher or Eric Rice who said, keep you focus on your target audience and drown out any static coming from elsewhere. That inspired me to “just do it!”
So… that’s basically what I did. In early October, there were hardly any real tech shows beyond the Linux Link Tech Show. Taking Dave Slusher’s advice, I knew that I enjoyed hearing other Sys Admins talk about their jobs and the various obstacles that they face on a daily basis and how they resolve them. That’s when the name “In the Trenches” popped into my head. Besides, it made for a nice play on the letter I and T that I wanted to ensure were emphasized in a logo. Anyway… I wanted to so something that was not necessarily aimed at the end user, there are already radio shows like Kim Komando and Leo Laporte that are going awsome jobs in that area, and I didn’t want it to be anything on the Industry as a whole and it’s direction… I don’t get that phylisophical about this industry nor a technology to do that… I simply implement it—I work with it. That’s what I wanted. A show produced/hosted by folks who are getting their hands dirty on a daily basis.
A few shows later I changed the name from “Kevin’s Stuff — Audio Edition” to “In the Trenches — THE podcast for Sys Admins.”
Steve: “Audioblog” or “Podcast”?
Kevin: Potato-cast. I use Podcast as it’s the “term du jur”. In all honesty, I could care less what it’s called. However, in “going with the flow” I use the term podcast.
Eric Rice was the one who made the comment “potato-cast” early when I started… I got a kick out of that term as it expressed the same way that I feel about the name game.
Steve: You seem to be pretty comfortable behind the mic on the ITT podcast. How long have you been podcasting?
Kevin: My first podcast was October 7th, 2004. That was the first time I was ever “behind a mic” talking to others in a small room all by myself. The first few was quite nerve racking, but it became easier as I simply felt like I was talking to someone else on the phone.
Steve: I’ve been listening to the podcast Tech Chats almost since the beginning. What was the inspiration behind starting the round-table discussion format?
Kevin: Robert Klooserhuis, David Newberger had made first contact with me about the podcast. We exchanged Skype IDs and ended up chatting early on Saturday Mornings for a few weekends. The idea came up that it would be nice to be able to record these conversations for others to hear. That’s when I fired up the Mac and began recording our conversations. We had so much fun doing them that we’ve tried to create a little more structure to them to stay “on-topic.”
We looked at them as sort of a mini Gillmore Gang as heard on IT Conversations. The difference was, we’re not talking about the industry as a whole and where it’s heading, but rather, issues that each of us face on a daily basis, “In the Trenches.”
Steve: Does your employer know about ITT/Tech Chat, and/or do they care?
Kevin: Certain people within the organization do… I haven’t “officially” provided them with notice of what I’m doing. I wear my ITT shirt and sweatshirt to the office on occassion and my ITT coffee mug is there too. But, so far, no one has commented.
Steve: Do you have an idea of where you’d like ITT to grow or change in the future? Any hopes/dreams you’d like to share?
Kevin: That’s one that I’ve been torn on since the beginning. I get the greatest pleasure out of voice mails and e-mails of people who state that they are in the same boat as I am in and enjoy hearing someone else talk about it. If anything, I’d like to see a small IT/Sys Admin community emerge from this where egos are checked at the door and everyone is there to help. That’s what we do for a living—help others. Why not use these skills to help ourselves. To date, it’s been a great experience and I’ve met a LOT of people who I likely would have never met. And that’s saying something for a social retard like me. :-)
As for its growth… I struggle with that. Egos cost you money, so I try to keep mine in check. Besides, I haven’t done anything note worthy to get a big head over yet anyway. I do this because I enjoy it. Sure, I’d love to see it be a self-sustaining venture… not necessarily making money, but being self sufficient. My fear is that once it becomes monetized, it’s no longer going to be fun. But I can’t be certain of that fear… it’s a bridge that I’ll have to cross when I get to it. For now… keeping the target audience narrowly focused has allowed me to keep costs in check—your average listener does NOT want to hear about my backup woes… but other Sys Admins / IT Pros may very well.
