70-680 how to learn

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Hi
Any tips on how to learn for 70-680?
I read the MS book, but it is damn hard for me, can't memorise these short cuts, can't even focus on learning, it is like reading "how to drive a car" or how to cook a soup, any ideas/tips how to prepare for it?
CompTIA Certs are easier comparing to this one

 

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Hey Marius,

How much experience have you had with Windows 7? There isn't really a trick to learning other than hunkering down and taking the material little by little, I think. If you haven't worked that much with the concepts in the book then it's not likely to sink in on the first go. I'd say to take your time and take notes on things. The things that you aren't sure of you can search google and find resources such as you tube videos or even asking on this forum to clarify things you might not understand. As for remembering the things, practice and revision is the key, just like anything in life that we try to learn. It's tough, but don't get discouraged!

 

one of my comps is on win 7 home premium (I use this comp only for games, for home office I have another one), I installed it, I know how to use it, where I stuck in the book is different types of installations, Windows PE and all this stuff about easier installing of win 7 on 100 computers at a time

 

What exactly are you getting hung up on? Have you actually tried to perform these installations? I'd suggest setting up a virtual machine if you don't have a spare that you can play with. Two good (and free) ones are microsoft virtual pc (http://www.microsoft.com/windows/virtual-pc/) and virtual box (http://www.virtualbox.org/). Attempt to make the installations using the automated methods in the book. Labs are your best friend because it's one thing to read about something, but once you do it (and learn from issues you encounter) it will make much more sense.

If you need help google is your friend and you can ask any one of us for assistance. You have to keep in mind that there will be times when you will encounter situations such as this. You have to provide a solution for a client and it might be with you using a technology with which you aren't too familiar. It can be frustrating, but at the same time a lot of fun figuring these things out. There have been many times that I have spent HOURS racking my brain over a problem. But once I figured it out I felt so good because I didn't give up and I learned something new in the process. This is just the beginning my friend, don't give up. Embrace the challenge!

 

There are a couple of links to resources at the bottom of my blog posting here . If there is anything you are unsure of about MDT and deploying images I can show you over Teamviewer or something one evening or weekend if you want.

 

thanks guys, I feel better, good idea to do notes, and I always forget about it,
thanks for link to blog

 

For most exams the key is good study material, repetition (Especially for commands) and labs. Download a trial of Windows 7 and you get 30 days to input a key (you can extend this 3 times giving you 90 days before the OS goes into restricted mode using the rearm command (Google it)).

 

why dont you setup a virtual network using virtual pc or vmware and then you can have multiple OSs running, you can do things like setup multiple user accounts with various permissions and then you can pratice.

Reading from a book is one thing learning by doing is another.

 

I'm planning on doing the 70-680 exam next, as I got a new job in October 2010 working for an I.T. company in Gloucestershire that support a wide range of clients, and as part of my role I am involved with day-to-day support of Windows 7, roll-outs, and basic installations.

The problem is I don't have time in the role to learn all the various parts of Windows 7 that may be exam questions - my experience of learning for the 70-270, 70-290, & 70-291 exams taught me that even working in I.T. in the real world, there are still areas you may not encounter often enough to remember how you do things when it comes to exam time.

As many of people have mentioned, virtualisation is a great way to gain extra experience, as is seriously pushing yourself to learn or enhance your skills in new areas - but it can be very time intensive.

When I am working towards passing exams, I tend to spend several hours a night, most days a week playing around with combinations of windows client & server OS, and trying to push things - particularly concentrating on areas I am not familiar with - of course, there seems to be more and more areas i'm not familiar with, the more and more I learn.... (Like cousteau said about sharks).

Failing that, my final bits of advice are simple.

1.> Google
2.> Youtube
3.> When you get stuck on something, try 1 & 2, When all else fails, contribute what you know to a forum, and request assistance - most I.T. folk are only too happy to share knowledge, but we all like a bit of balance between giving knowledge and receiving knowledge.

 

what he said ^ + repped

Youtube has many videos which I have mentioned before if you seach through my posts. There are various videos from trainsignal, palaestra training and learnsmart, and there are subjects ranging from basic pc use right upto managing and maintaining citrix and beyond.

 

I would seriously also consider looking at other training materials, The MS Press is flawed, The chapter 2nd chapter on deployment is a joke, makes no sense, it's a mish mash of pastedfacts all over the place, and to top it off people keep saying doing labs, well that is all very well but it's a waste of time when the labs you are trying to undertake do not work due to publishing errors lol.

Seriously read the 2nd chapter and your see what I mean it's a joke

 

I must admit, I have not ever read any of the MS Press books so can't comment on their content, however I can say that you definitely don't need to read the MS Press books in order to pass certifications....

 

Marisuz :: Try googling for Professor Messers Videos ( there are some free Win 7 Videos ) which i found very useful. May be you can also get the Sybex Book as the MS Press is a Big Letoff.


@ ChrisH1979 : Chris thanks for your Blog .. good useful info

 

Your welcome. Glad it helped you out

 

Yep the MS book is that bad I'm returning mine.

 

I've just ordered the Sybex 70-680 book (only £22 from amazon). It's not just this thread that has made me doubt the quality of the MSPress books and included practice exams, it's the fact that I'm struggling to get over 60% in the Boson exams, even after reviewing every answer carefully as part of the product testing. I'd be a rubbish braindumper!

 

It really annoys me when the official book is this bad. You have no appeal or come back if you failed the exam by say getting 1 question wrong because of the book. Microsoft should make damn sure their books are factually correct.

 

I disagree. If you fail the exam because you get one fact wrong then there a lot of facts you must have got wrong before you are in the position where one can make the difference.
At the end of the day, there is a lot of suggested reading in the MSPress book, the errata are freely available and it's really down to how much work you put in and how much hands-on you have. I don't have any real hands-on except on the consumer side , and the practice exams included seem to be getting a pretty bad press from members here in regards to measuring your ability to pass the exam.
For once I'm taking my own advice and getting a second study source.

 

The Boson exams are good as they are a lot harder than the real thing.

 

Sorry but if you are mislead into thinking the answer is one thing when it's another from the official exam book then it's unacceptable. Books aren't perfect but I do expect the answers and labs to be factually correct and there is no excuses otherwise. The errata on Microsoft's site is incomplete and if you look on Amazon's website the author started a thread with corrections and it's long and has errors that could mean the difference between passing and failing.

I agree you should always use more than one source to study from but why should people have to check that the info given is correct that what I pay money for to buy the material in the first place. And yes my example of failing by one question is fair but it's the principle of it that if you did fail on a question that they gave you the wrong answer. Personally I'm a busy person like a lot of people and don't have time to check every detail in a book to see if the author screwed up.