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Certification Goals
Currently reading:
 CompTIA
A+ Exam Prep
(Exams A+Essentials,
220-602, 220-603, 220-604)
by Charles J. Brooks
Paperback: 1464 pages
Published: May 28, 2008
Publisher: Exam Cram
Why am I reading this book if I have
years of experience? Well, for some people, passing
two certification exams totallying $336 means more than 10+ years of building,
troubleshooting, and maintaining PCs and peripherals
totaling thousands of dollars. Also, I don’t want to take
any chances that there might be something on the
exam I don’t know. Based on a previous
certification exam preparation and taking
experience, you can’t be too cautious.
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CompTIA A+ Certification
Exam Criteria
Primary Core Exam
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CompTIA A+ Essentials
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Measures
entry-level professional IT knowledge
equivalent to 500 hours of hands-on
experience. |
Secondary Exam Specialization
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CompTIA A+ 220-602
- Enterprise technician, IT administrator,
field service technician, PC technician,
etc.
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CompTIA A+ 220-603
- Remote support, help desk, call center
technician, specialist, representative, etc.
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CompTIA A+ 220-604
- Depot technician, bench technician, etc.
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Material studied from 8/05-1/07
for the
640-821
INTRO exam.
 CCNA
Self-Study: Introduction to Cisco Networking
Technologies (INTRO) 640-821, 640-801
By Stephen
McQuerry, Cisco Systems, Inc.
Pages: 528
Published: Mar 9,
2004
Published by Cisco
Press
 CCNA
Flash Cards and Exam Practice Pack
(CCNA Self-Study, exam #640-801), 2/E
By Eric Rivard, Jim
Doherty
Pages: 720
Published: Jul 31,
2003
Published by Cisco
Press
Evaluation: CCNA Self-Study Flash Card & Exam
Practice 640-801- 2nd Ed. 2004 CD-ROM – 640-821
INTRO - 258 Questions
October 2005: Received
approximately 50% correct on the CCNA Prep
Center test Module 1 of 2 geared towards the
640-821 INTRO exam. Some questions were much
tougher than the questions in either of the
two previously read certification prep
books. So, I bought the
newest Cisco Networking Academy CCNA 640-821 INTRO exam prep
book to study.
On the inside cover of both Cisco
Networking Academy CCNA 640-801 (821, 811) exam
preparation books is this statement:
"When you
finish the material in the entire CCNA
curriculum in the Cisco Networking Academy
Program, you will be prepared to sit for
the Cisco Certified Networking Associate (CCNA)
exam. The same professionals who prepared
the material in this book and the online
curriculum prepared the questions on the CCNA
exam. Therefore, this Companion Guide makes an
excellent study guide to help you prepare for
the exam."
 CCNA 1 and 2 Companion Guide, Revised
(Cisco
Networking Academy Program), 3/E
By Cisco Systems, Inc.
Pages: 1088
Published: Jul 29, 2004
Published by Cisco Press
Evaluation: CNA CCNA 1 & 2 Companion Guide
Rev. 3rd Ed 2005 CD-ROM – 251 Quiz Questions
 Cisco
Press and the Cisco Networking Academy
have a habit of providing outdated, obscure, and
sometimes erroneous exam preparation questions.
Therefore, I decided to supplement their
material with my
own
exam preparation materials. For better or worse, I used the chapter
questions from the CCNA authorized
self-study book and the CNA CCNA 640-821
INTRO book. Then, I bought a program that
allowed me to have more control of what I
would study for the exam.
My review -
PEST-Professional Exam System 3.14
CCNA Self-Study INTRO 640-821 2004
CNA CCNA 1 & 2 Revised 3rd Ed. 2005
Additional quizzes created from
study material
Router & Switch Configuration Syntax Formats
Common Port Numbers & Ranges
EIA-TIA 568-B Wiring & Cables
IOS Keyboard Commands
IP Address Classes
When I was done with creating
and revising those quizzes, I started to
revise the labs used in a router and switch
simulator program I bought from RouterSim.
The idea was to make the labs more concise and
to the point. I wanted something that
said, "This is what needs to be done. Now
go do it with the information provided.".
Network Visualizer 4.1 Complete Labs (100 pages)
Network Visualizer 4.1 Concise Labs (50 pages)
Network Visualizer 4.1 Simple Labs (24 pages)
Network Visualizer 4.1
Prior to taking the CCNA exam
on Jan 3, 2007, I went back to the CCNA Prep
Center (CCNAPC) and took the practice tests
for modules 1 & 2. I received 100% on
the module 1 test and 90%+ on the module 2
test, even though it seemed to have some
module 3 & 4 questions in it. Then I tried
this other
INTRO test
that the CCNAPC provided by an authorized
test administration company. Well, that test
was something of a joke (see remarks in
document), but I got 79/86 = 91.86%.
Additional CCNA exam study
planning and verification
CCNA Quizzes to Study and
CNA CCNA 2/E eLabs (2001)
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On 1/2/07,
I took the CCNA 640-821
INTRO exam, but didn't pass it.
Part of the problem was that the exam had questions and scenarios that
weren't like anything in the current Cisco Press
study material used to prepare for the
exam. It was like using an algebra
book to prepare for an algebra exam and then finding
calculus problems on the exam.
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Based on:
-
The Cisco
Press executive editor
agreeing there was
"no self-study
material out
there today that matches the difficulty of
the actual exam".
Studying the most current Cisco
Press books available at the time.
Practicing router and switch
network setup configurations.
Creating more exam topic quizzes
for additional preparation.
The Cisco Press website for the
official CCNA
INTRO Exam Certification Guide (CCNA
Self-Study, 640-821, 640-801) not having
updated material available to study and prepare
for the new
exam criteria:
The Downloads section did have
the
New Appendix D: CCNA INTRO Exam Updates
(PDF)
dated 5/31/05, but it didn't contain
anything remotely similar to the new exam
criteria. What it did cover were very
basic concepts I found hard to believe were
giving people trouble.
Cisco Press
books for the new CCNA 640-822 ICND1 exam not
due until the
fall of 2007.
Cisco Networking Academy: CCNA Exploration curriculum
not due until the fall of 2007
to prepare students for the new
CCNA 640-802 (822,816) certification exam(s).
I decided to re-direct my efforts
towards Rio Salado Community College courses
transferable to a DeVry University B.S. degree.
Cisco Networking
Academy
CCNA Prep-Courses
In my DeVry University ECT degree
program, these were the books I studied in the
Cisco Networking Academy program's CCNA prep
courses for
CCNA Exam 640-507.
 CNA
Program: 1st-Year Companion Guide, 2/E
By Cisco Cisco Systems, Inc., CNA Program
Pages: 1024
Published: May 9, 2001
Published by Cisco Press
 CNA Program: 2nd-Year Companion Guide, 2/E
By Cisco Cisco Systems, Inc., CNA Program
Pages: 719
Published: May 11, 2001
Published by Cisco Press
Cisco Networking Academy Certificates of Course Completion
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