Currently there are three major organizations
which seek to provide Linux Certification exams :
In general our bias is towards the certifications
offered through the Linux Professional Institute (LPI). LPI
is a non-profit organization, which has used volunteers to
develop itself as a community project mirroring the development
of Linux itself. Linux enthusiasts have volunteered for LPI
for tasks ranging from taking care of its booth in trade-shows
all the way to preparing examination questions. LPI now has
sponsor organizations as well as paid officials, but is still
deemed to be an unbiased organization dedicated to creating
the best and standardized Linux Certification.
Red Hat is the only major distribution vendor
which is currently providing a certification for its own distribution.
Other major vendors like Suse, Turbo Linux and Caldera seem
to have put full support behind LPI. In general we prefer
distribution independent certification, but there could be
some valid reasons to consider Red Hat certification as well.
If your organization (current or prospective) predominantly
uses Red Hat distribution, becoming a Red Hat Certification
Engineer may be more relevant.
Sair Inc. was one of the first organizations
to offer a Linux Certification exam. It also offers a vendor-neutral
Linux certification. Sair got acquired by Wave Technologies,
a huge IT certification and training outfit, in January 2000.
Wave Technology in turn got acquired by The Thomson Corporation
in March 2000, becoming part of its Thomson Learning division.
Currently (mid-2000) Sair Linux and GNU Linux certification
offers more levels of exams as compared to LPI, so you may
find an exam which is more tuned towards your particular requirement
with Sair. LPI is also expected to offer more advanced exams
in near future. It remains to be seen how the two vendor-neutral
Linux certification efforts move in the future. Stay tuned....
To prepare for Linux certification examination
and to get hands-on experience with various aspects of Linux,
click
here.
