an interesting question considering you can read the forums without signing up.

i agree, there arent too many forums left where  you can ask an educated question and get an even more educated response back instead of being flamed.

that's ok... no one begins their INFOSEC profession knowing everything there is to know about the field.

i know i didnt, hell there's plenty of people that have forgotten more about INFOSEC than i'll ever know!

i'll do a plug for LSO since you  have signed up, that there is a pretty good amount of information on the site for people getting into security, check out the core & advanced competencies sections on the site.

the forum is new, we had to redo the site and we lost most of the data from the old site, so the forums are pretty bare but its impossible for them to be out of date.

but on a better note, basic memberships are free and you get a bunch of content for free now.

our plan is to get all the challenge servers back up this month (dec)

I think with all the talent in this forum anyone can learn a lot and do not feel like your questions are too basic or worry that you will get flamed. If you have a question just ask (well it dose have to be kinda on topic). Don and the rest of the gang are here to support anyone wanting to learn or discuss Security, Ethical Hacking, Certs, IT, heck just about anything computer related. Anyway I just want everyone to know that the members here are very open to chat with anyone and we do not look down on others with less skills (we all started at some point).

Post away!

Slimjim100

I do think that the reason why some members are not posting is because they feel they're taking but not giving to the forum.  That's what I was feeling anyway.  Asking all the questions but not enough experience or knowledge yet to give back to the forum.

Thanks for the update, Chris.  I just logged in and see what you were talking about in regards to the Core & Advanced Competencies. Just reading up on those now.

Dman, quite the motivational message!     You sure seem to be able to relate where I am right now.  Just hope I can make it out of this like you did.  It's quite hard getting out of regular tech support and into an IT Security position since they all seem to require years of professional security experience and you can't get that experience because no one will take you without it. confusing, eh? That's why I'm getting all the security certs I can (one-shot attemps). Are you currently a consultant then? (ethical hacker/pen-tester)

mn_kthompson,

Maybe you can help us figure out the best way to get others to overcome their shyness. Most visitors don't have the resume or knowledge of people like Dan Hoffman, Chris Gates, Ed Shoudis et al. That's why they have columns. The boards are for everybody. So if most visitors to the forums have less ability, then the simple questions will actually add more value to the community and it's members than articles on how to hack into SQL Servers and crack passwords with rainbow tables. The basics are great for all.

As for your feelings on the focus of the site, I have to disagree. The site name is Ethical Hacker. Most articles that may show how to break into something, also show how to prevent it. We cater to the security professional and the overall IT professional community at large. We're here to help you, not the script kiddies. We have no desire to be an underground hacking site. This is why we setup the site in magazine format with columns, features, calendar of events, etc. As mentioned in other posts, no one has ever been flamed for asking a newbie question. On the other hand, people asking blatantly how to attack someone for malicious intent are flamed off the board.

So, in short, I think all of your preventive content would be a perfect match.

P0et,

I feel your pain as well. I went from being a partner in a software company in the tech boom of the 90s to being unemployed. This was also immediately after 9-11, so no one was hiring. To make ends meet, I did manual labor jobs with immigrant workers in the middle of the night, until I could get whatever tech job I could find. I finally got a temporary job making less than $30,000 per year. After much hard work like you're doing right now, I not only make a pretty decent living, but I also feel like I have a career not just a job. With an attitude like yours, you'll be fine. It may just be hard to see it right now.

As for members taking more from the forums than they give, I would argue that by not posting at all, they are taking more than giving. By posting a newbie question, as mentioned above, this gives back. So even if newbies are not teaching you how to do a pen test that includes firewalking doesn't mean that it is not helping the community. It's just helping in another way.

I hope that makes sense.

Basically, having high level and low level questions sparks conversation with all members. This is what makes this community worth visiting time and time again.

Don