Certification Books

I finished 3/4 of the book so far...not bad..it is a tough exam anyways...and you need to memorize a lot...the book is good....but you need to know how to benefit from it...i mean....sometimes in one small paragraph you find all what you need...and sometimes you read pages for nothing....

the book is based on the pmp knowledge areas.... which makes studying a bit boring sometimes....afterall maybe the material is heavy and it is not the books problem.....

I actually bought this book and rita's...so i believe it is a good start then you can jump into rita's...

I decided to withhold my review of this book until after I had taken (and passed) the PMP exam. For my test prep I used 3 resources:

1) An online SkillSoft PMP preparation course (free for me through the Army e-learning program).
2) Joseph Phillip's PMP Project Management Professional Study Guild (2nd ed).
3) This book, which I actually paid $89.95 for at Barnes&Noble.

I would highly recommend the SkillSoft course and Joseph Phillip's book to anyone studying for the PMP exam (and the SkillSoft course would cover your 35 hours of class time requirement).

This book, however, is useless as a study tool. The coverage of the material is overly verbose and confusing (not to mention the annoyingly arrogant tone of the author), and the questions on the 'bonus' CD are definitely NOT representative of what you will find on the actual exam. The questions (and answer choices) seem deliberately worded to mislead and some of the 'correct' answers are just plain wrong.

Save your money, there are much better resources out there.

The book combined with computer based test simulations are a very good preparation regiment. The book is very terse but cuts through to the case on what you need to know to pass the test.

The writing is not particularly great but is effective. It would be helpful to a bit more graphic representation of the various phases and processes. The practice tests at the end of the characters are helpful but they are not very representative of the actual questions in the CAPM test. I am not sure if the questions are representative of the PMP test.

Overall, a web-based practice test should accompany the book. The CD that came with the book was helpful but the questions again were not the best representation of the test questions.

The book did get me up to speed very quickly in prepartion for the test.

Don't Study this book if you are trying to pass the PMP Certification Exam. This book is out of date. Be sure to buy a PMP Examp Prep book that was written for the PMBOK 3rd Edition.

I studied from this book for weeks and never improved on the assessment exams. With one day before test day, and in a bit of a panic, I threw the book in the waste basket and purchased the Rita Mulcahy text which had been recommended to me repeatedly. The one day I spent with the Mulcahy book was worth more than the 60 days I spent with the Heldman text for the following reasons:

1. The Heldman book does not follow the same format as the PMBOK. I at first considered this an advantage as I thought the different format would help my brain learn the material in a different way. This theory did not prove true. The Mulcahy book follows the same format as the PMBOK.

2. The chapter assessments and practice exam questions are confusing and there are bugs in the software that cut off some of the questions and answers. I assumed the format was indicative of how confusing the questions would be on the actual exam. This turned out to not be the case and in retrospect I wonder if the questions were scored correctly at all. The questions I saw on the exam were much more closely aligned with the format of the questions in the Mulcahy book.

3. The Mulcahy book includes additional exercises and "games" that will prepare you for the exam very well.

Do not buy this book.

I think the authors of this book are more lucid than many other course materials I have read about these major domains. I liked the diagrams and their explanation, plus the terminology library is useful. It is getting older, though, and may need to be brought up to-date, especially the test questions.

The study guide is fine for experienced professionals. More like a reference encyclopedia. If a beginner use the Shon Harris book.

I studied with an online course and this book. The book actually explained area's that were vague on online.

Overall a good reference to keep around after the test.

A very good in depth guide, but very dry and hard to read as a result. I recommend the Shon Harris book in lieu of this as it will keep your attention much longer.

Dear Sir/Madam,

Thanks for your great help, I have a very good text book for my study.

Thanks for your efficient and reliable service too,

Jacky

This is a complete guide to passing the CISSP exam. It's mostly well written, handsome, and despite its bulk, I found it easier to carry around that the usual computer guide.

My beef is with the accreditation itself. Too much of the (ISC)2 required body of knowledge presented here is either out-of-date, irrelevant, naive, silly, or wrong.

For example, in the physical security chapter, security professionals are advised to encourage notebook PC users to avoid carrying their notebooks in computer cases because that will tip off potential thieves. That's just plain silly advice, at least in everyday life. I might follow advice like that if I were to visit a particularly dangerous city like Rio or Johannesburg, but a typical North American or European city, forget it.

In the chapter dealing with legal aspects of security, the author states that software piracy is just like the theft of a book from a bookstore. No, it isn't. Intellectual property is not a settled area of law and is continually changing. I'm not saying (ISC)2 should advocate software piracy but neither should they go around making definite statements about something that is still not well understood.

In the chapter on networking, much is made of the "ping-of-death" attack. Well, the ping of death is ten years out of date. It makes as much sense to study that for the CISSP exam as to study Token Ring over coax cabling for the MSCE exam: it's irrelevant.

So, if you are required to pass the CISSP certification get this book. If you want to learn about security, then my advice is to read up on UNIX system administration, subscribe to magazines like SysAdmin, and then read up on Windows and on other topics, and above all take every opportunity at work to think about security at your job. To be a generalist, the best thing is to learn from many different sources.

Vincent Poirier, Tokyo

Afterword: I underwent the exam last March and passed. I can't talk about the exam's content (as part of the agreement one signs upon taking the exam) but I will make one positive comment: the questions were more relevant and less naive than the study material had led me to expect.

VP, Dublin

It goes in better depth with hands on labs to work with while you learn or fine tune for the test.

The book is very well written and provides almost full coverage of the exams objectives.
The practice tests on the cd are mostly actual exam questions.
I passed the exam with 968 using this book as a primary study source.

This book is worth the price simply for the practice test software. I didn't use the text too much, just when I wanted to look specific items up. I passed this 70-270 exam about an hour ago with a score of 763, and I know I couldn't have done it without this practice software. It contains about 400 questions with explanations. I used this as a companion to an instructor-led training, which really fell short of what you need to pass the exam. I'm a newbie to IT, just recently obtaining by A+ and Network+ as well. So, if I can do it, anyone can...

My advice for exam prep: Take as many practice tests as possible, read and understand the explanations, and practice on your own system=pass

This kit is ideal for anyone wanting answers to their certification questions. Great detail, the only thing that could improve is if they took the exam for you.

Typical of the Microsoft Press books, the XP book covers most of what you need to know to be successful passing the 70-270 certification exam. You can't just read it, but should plan on performing all the exercises and make sure you understand what you are doing. If you want to know everything you'll need, then utilize the references identified in the second section. Windows XP is by no means dead as the corporate demand for Vista just isn't there. Anyone working in IT support should know all about Windows XP. Good Luck

This book is a neat book and all, but the questions are too simple compared to the actual test. I took the test today ... and passed but with no help from this book. I got most of my useful information from the examp PREP book, but not all of it. That book is better, but goes into certain details that you will NOT have to know. I would say to invest in the larger book, but not this smaller one. In fact, I would suggest not getting ANY book rated for the old test to prepare for the new network+ test form. Check out mcse.com for a good review and check out jeff richard's geocities site for good info on important areas to study. ...

I bought this book because I taught it would be like the Network+ Exam Prep and cram pack. But to my surprise it was not written for a beginner like me. I took the exam on the Network+ after reading the books and had no problem passing the exam. After rerading this book I was left standing with my mouth open.

My advice to any one wanting to buy this who is just starting in the IT field is to think twice and look for another resource.I'll try the Exam Prep and see how it works. I really don't want to fail the exam because of lack of information. Hope this helps some one.

This guide is really helpful. The Cram Sheet is excellent. It had a couple of typographical errors but the information served its purpose. It does prepare you for the exam while the questions are not verbatim it provides adequate information to pass. If you decide to get this guide please be sure to get extra software along with it besides the one that came with the book. I think you need in general an abundance of practice before sitting for any exam. The CD while gives a number of questions it could have provided more scenarios. You may ask is it worth the price to get the book ? Yes. Is it the only study guide you should use ? No. However, Thank you Coriolis for helping me get certified.

C. Williams, A+, N+, Inet+, CIP, CHDP, CIW-A

I just took my Network+ exam and did pretty well, and the book I mainly used to study from was the Network+ Exam Cram. I can't think of a question on the test that wasn't covered in that book! I also used the A+ Exam Cram to take the A+ exam and also passed only using that book! The Exam Cram series is great! The information is accurate, and the book price is more than reasonable for the help it gives you.

I was very impressed on the quality of the book and the time it took to arrive. I'm very satisfied with this deal and I don't think it can get any better than this.

Reinhard Palacios

MCSE, CNA, A+

Although some of the info is outdated, it's still a highly recommended book for the beginner because it explains complex concepts in simple terms. It gives details, pictures, and simple to follow steps that make it more valuable to me than most other books reference books. Check it out!-at these prices on Amazon what do you have to loose?

This book is so bad that it's kind of funny. It is full of so many errors that it actually contradicts ITSELF. Information is given on one page and contradictory information is given on the next. This book actually made me question, and even forget information that I knew before. If you want a laugh, go for it, but if you want to pass A+ (or learn anything useful) head for Sybex or Syngress.

This is the only book I used to prepare for the exams. And I passed it on my first try. Although it has served it's purpose. I suggest that people using it should take the time mapping it out to the "COMPTIA A+ test objectives blueprint". (...especially now that a new version is on the works and will be live soon, or is it already ???)

I've taken the time to read the book from cover to cover and it definitely contains information beyond that of the test objectives, making it a good reference material as well.

I bought this book to prepare for the A+ exam and am somewhat disappointed. The book focused too much on older technologies such as DOS and older legacy systems. For example, the chapter on system boards listed the Pentium MMX and the Pentium II 300 as one of the newest chips!!!

In Coriolis' defense, the computer industry can be challenging to keep up with. Even though I checked out CompTIA's web site before purchasing, I was disappointed to find that this book will probably not be sufficient to cover the NT and Win 98, and Linux portions of the new tests.

The book DOES offer a very solid foundation in the basics and does an excellent job of explaining the basics. Unfortunately I expected little bit more from a book with a Copyright date of 2000. I expect to have to purchase more prep material despite getting this book because it isn't as up-to-date as I would have preferred.

I got this book to study for the A+ exams. In the middle of chapter 2 I began realizing that this book is good for reference, good for learning computer history, great for computer history. But lacking in the newer hardware concepts.

I have been a tech now for more than 5 years and I recognize everything in the book, but so many new things have poped up in the market. For example the author mentions 32 of Ram to be the highest newest thing, please, that was a few years back. This book should really be updated to make it not only good as a reference or history book, but as a tool

Which, for me, it was. I used this book as a text in a routing class, and wanting to get certified later, I decided to buy it. Highly recommended.

Great for anyone looking to become CCNA certified. Todd is a proven author in the IT field.

This book has consistently been one of the most accessible overviews of the CCNA material. I have been using these books since the 3rd edition and I have yet to be disappointed. Although the book may not go into as much depth as some of the other books on the market, it presents the ideas in a very clear language. If you are looking to get a good idea of how IP networks are put together and a basic introduciton to configuring cisco routers, this book will be a huge help.

I am preparing for my CCNA and I am so happy to have this book to prep me for my Exams.
Todd knows exactly how to dissect the difficult topics. I've been putting off taking the exam for 4 years now. With this book I've got the confidence and knowledge I need to ace it!

Thank you Todd

M. Charles

My advice would be to start with this book first, then move onto CCNA Cisco press. Todd Lammle wrote this book as if you where setting in a class and learning from an instructor, some of the basic information that you need to know for exam will be covered in his text that can be easily be pick up by using his book. The only problem with this book is that he doesn't cover everything on the exam; as stated by the other reviewer. Cisco press is going to give you everything you need; but with dry content. The Cisco press content is not that bad if you start off with Sybex.

Book is excellent, price is not. I lucked out and found it at Job Lot for 6.99 brand new. I bought two books there for $14, would have cost me $90 at the book stores. So shop around for a better price.

This book starts at the beginning of what a new networking engineer needs to know and works through several examples of how this works in the real world today. It covers TCP/IP, AppleTalk, IPX, X25, Frame Relay, and more, if you count the appendicies. Unsurprisingly, it's also the best study guide for the CCNA. The writing is vague in places, but on the whole a review of the state of technology this clear is remarkable.

Because Cisco would not take the time to review this book it has changed what could have been the best book in the world to a confusing text of mumbo jumbo, especially to the novice. Here are a few of the errors. Page 35, Fig 2-8--AcK 6 not Ack 7// Page 45, Line 6-- relays and FRAMES for host Z, router A// P61, Fig 3-17-- Truth table should be 00,01,10,11// P424, Ans 3.1-- F=FDDI It's F followed by the interface number// p94, Fig 4-18 -- Router C should send 10.4.0.0 to router B// p115, Fig 5-3--The step right after the POST test is to look for a Cisco IOS, once the image is found then the router looks for the config file.// p130, fig 5-15 --Decent should be DECNET// p217, fig 9-9-- 255 is all ones 11111111 not 11111110// p219, line 2-- should be 2 to the 5th power not 25// p231, q 9.1-9.3-- The answers are filled in by mistake// p238, fig 10-3-- Address 172.16.1.1.0 should be 172.16.1.0// p314,fig 13-2 The figure shows a standard access list the narrative talks about an extended access list.// p317, line 20-- The prompt should be Router(config-if)// p319, line 7-- If you are talking about specific protocols like IPX or Appletalk the range numbers 100 to 199 will not work.// p321, fig 13-7 00000111 should be 00001111 for "ignore last 4 address bits.// p324, line 19--The prompt should be Router(config-if)// p328, last line--The prompt should be Router(config-if)// p331, line 15-- Should be standard rather than simple.// p373, line 11--The prompt should be Router(config-if)// p373, line 13--The prompt should be Router(config-if)// p417, fig 16-14--rame should be frame//

I used this book to help me pass the CCNA exam on my first attempt. I found the explanations in this book to be a big help in remembering the CCNA material. I also used the CCNA Virtual Lab e-trainer to practice using the Cisco IOS commands.

This book is the gateway to a career working with Cisco networks. A must for the beginner, and intermediate alike. This book along with Todd Lammle's CCNA study guide will catapult the network enthusiast into CCNA status. A great reference for the bookshelf thereafter.

This is one of the better-written Cisco Press books I've read. I read the book over an otherwise quiet weekend, and passed the CCNP Switching test _easily_ the following Tuesday. The material is presented pretty well, and it covered all the key content.

The book does suffer from some errors missed (or introduced?) in the editing process; this is a typical Cisco Press issue. If you've read many CP books, you know what to expect (i.e. frequent errors in examples and figures.) Maybe they consider it a learning tool (e.g. find the mistakes...) It's annoying, but not overly problematic, in this particular book.

The figures have little to do with the text. Obviously the author didn't try very hard to coordinate. I found the book very confusing it failed to explain why you are doing things it simply tells you what to do. I would not recommend it.

Don't waste your time. This book was so full of errors that it become confusing. The explanations do not match the diagrams. I had to make so many corrections to this book that I should have been paid to edit it. Surprized it's still on the shelf.

I used this book along with one Boson practice test and passed with a score of 900 on the first sitting. It tracks very well with the contents of the exam.

The chapters are fairly easy to follow having to go back and re-read only a couple of them. There are some terms that are used inconsistently but they would not prevent anyone from passing the test. The case studies at the end of each chapter seem pointless except for those that have several Catalyst 6500s lying around.

I found the information in Appendix B to be very useful, although it is not covered in the exam. It explains some of the terms that Cisco's web site often uses but never defines.

Overall, this book is well worth the money spent. There is no need to spend the cash for a second book when studying for the 640-604. It has all the information needed for this exam but you will need to have a solid understanding of it to do well. Good luck!

The book is generally very good. There is a wealth of detailed information presented in an understandable manner. Providing you have some knowledge of networking you shouldn't have to many problems.

My one gripe about this book is the amount of mistakes, There everywhere, from wrong IP addresses in diagrams, bad descriptions to plain wrong content. I know this because I've read the book five times along with many many documents available on the CISCO web site. So if you doubt what you read check it.

At the end of the day there are very few good books around that cover the BCSN exam in detail. This one does

The book is complete and "takes you by the hand" all the way !!!!

Where is the Zero star option when you need it?!? I bought this book because I read reviews and some recommendations from people here. I think that it's a terrible book. Let me explain: the examples given and metaphors are just plain horrible, and it gets more confusing trying to follow what the author had in mind than learning from Sun online docs. It's full of typos and mistakes. Spelling checker anyone? The explainations of NIO are not requested by the exam so another useless topic in the book that I suspect was added to populate the volume and justify a higher price. The topic on lock on records which is very important and appears in every exam given by Sun is not described in much details neither. The index at the end is just useless (so many words are missing.) Most chapters are not related to the exam (why is there a thread chapter in there since you are supposed to have learned that from the K&B book for the Prog exam already?) I found so much more info in the archives of the JavaRanch forum and for free, that I would advice everyone to do the same and browse this wonderful Web site instead of wasting trees and your money on that book as I unfortunatly did.

The primary reason I cannot recommend this book is that it fails to properly address the point of its existence. For example:

o The authors devote a chapter to threading, even though the the prerequisite SCJP exam covers this topic.

o The authors devote a chapter to NIO (New I/O), even though Sun explicitly prohibits the use of NIO on the exam.

o The authors presume that the SCJD student knows Swing, even though Swing was removed from the prerequisite SCJP exam.

You can verify these points at Sun's training website:
http://training.sun.com/CA/catalogue/courses/CA-CX-310-252A.html

Finally, the book is full of typographical and other errors.

I bought and read the book for SCJD. However, after I got the assignment from SUN, I found I can't pass SCJD only by using this book because this book just gave me a rough idea and rough sample code about what is SCJD. To successfully pass SCJD, I recommand you go to javaranch.com with this book.

First of all, the book assumes you have passed the SCJP v1 certification, where AWT was a major topic and threads weren't. If you have taken the second version, you will know more about threads than what this book tells you. However, that is a problem that can be ignored if you know it.

A bigger problem is that there are so many typos in the code examples. Ofthen they will not even compile, comments are misleading, and text describing them is insufficient or wrong.

Also, when they are discussing something that I already know (like threads), I can see that the explanations are bad. They are not necessarily wrong, they just lack the necessary context for the reader to understand what is being said. Without that context, what is said is actually wrong at times.

After two chapters, I gave up adding corrections when I saw an error. After three, I stopped saying "No!" when I found something that was actually wrong.

I have stopped reading after the RMI section, because I found the Sun description to be better. Maybe the remaining chapters can redeem the book, but I doubt it.

I think it could be a good book, but it needs thorough review, and it should have been done before publication. The quality simply isn't good enough to warrent the price.

I ordered the 4th edition, because it was cheaper. I've never seen the 5th edition though. In the 4th edition, they spend too much time talking about 1900 series routers, Pre IOS Version 12 and Pre Y2K stuff. When I studied for the CCNA exam, this book was only 10% useful. It's an OK reference book if you don't have anything else though.

This is the 1 and only source I used to study for the exam and I passed it on my first attempt scoring just over 900. I found nothing in the book that ran counter to my experience and found it to be thorough and detailed. I did however have 2 years of working with Cisco Routers/Switches behind me before I began studying, so my learning curve was nowhere near that of someone trying to get a "Book Cert" with no hands on experience.

I just was looking through the books and noticed that this it the 4th edition. The 5th edition has the latest info, and Sybex finally has updates on the web site. Great concept for continually changing tests....

I read the book...All of it,
When I start solving exams,,,,,I was disappointed...Its good that I didnt take the exams depending on the book and the 4 bouns exams included in the CD.Now I start to review most of the topics from :
CCNA Self-Study
CCNA ICND
Exam Certification Guide
Wendell Odom, CCIE No.1624

That made me need more days before going to the exams.

A great book for the aspiring CCNA. This is the #1 CCNA book on the market today. Grab the latest edition for the most up-to-date test coverage.

The only thing that would have made this book better, would have been error correction. Be sure to check Sybex's website for all the errata corrections.