Caldera‘s education department has always
offered certifications in Unix or Linux. Now they’re offering a combo
certification called the Master ACE.
The Master ACE is important for IT professionals because now they can show
expertise both in Unix and Linux, according to Caldera. It makes sense because Caldera is a Unix
company just as much as it is a Linux company. And with other businesses like
Sun hinting at more integration between their Unix offerings and Linux,
forward-thinking sysadmins will see the benefit of getting “legit” with a Master
ACE certification.
“Linux has its foundations in Unix. And up until now, you’ve been able to find
professionals who have Unix experience and certification, and you can also find
another camp who are going for the new Linux certifications,” says David
Acheson, director of education services for Caldera. “We’ve been able to bring
both of them together. It’s proof to IT professionals or their employers.”
To earn a Master ACE, you first must be certified with Caldera on two other
levels: CSA (Certified System Administrator, which was formerly the CUSA or
Certified Unix System Administrator certification) and ACE (Advanced Certified
Engineer). Both of these have three tracks: OpenServer 5 and Unixware
7/OpenServer 8 for Unix, and a Linux track that utilizes the CompTIA Linux+ and
the LPI level 1 exams.
Jennifer Heldenbrand, marketing manager with Caldera education services, says
for now, the best way to access certification training for the CSA, ACE, and
Master ACE is to contact one of Caldera’s education services partners. But by
this summer Caldera expects to offer its curriculum directly to customers.
Caldera looks to be positioning itself as the “go-to” company for businesses
needing support, services, education and products related to Linux and Unix.
Not only are its certifications “fungible,” according to Acheson, meaning that
they are distribution-neutral, but the company also recently announced it will begin offering support packages for Linux
distributions other than its own, including Red Hat, SuSE, Turbolinux, and
Conectiva. Acheson also called Caldera a “one-stop shop” with a “global vision.”
