Passed with a 867!

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I did it! It took a lot of preparation but its done! I used all kinds of study material. The main book was Lammle's Network +. I also used the Exam Cram as a second reference (and lots of practice tests).

 

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Congratulations

NB

 

well done that man!

Gonna tackle N+ next myself.

What made you use that book over Mike Myers?

 

Well done on the pass! Good Luck for the future...

 

Actually when I started looking at certifications I didn't know about this site and all the great advice it has so I did a search for reference material. The Lammle book seemed to have a lot of material, good reviews and some practice tests. Since I didn't know about Meyers at that point the Lammle book seemed as good as any. I also did not use the Meyers book for A+ but instead used the Jean Andrews book which is a good one for A+. I did this for two reasons. First I didn't know about Meyers at that point (I got the A+ and N+ books within a couple of months of each other). Secondly (and this is a bit embarrassing) is that my wife actually picked up the Andrews book at a local book store.

Last year, my position was eliminated and I found myself "retired". I say retired because I was eligible (with age and service) to be retired (but this wasn't my choice for timing.....). Anyway, I've always loved computers (which of course my wife knew) and was considering an "encore" career in them. I took a cold A+ test and got 50-60% and thought I should pursue that. My dear wife in trying to help went out to the local book store and looked through what they had and thought the Andrews book was the best (they probably didn't have the Meyers book....!) So, that's how I got it. Having watched Meyers on PrepLogic videos I know that I also would have enjoyed and got a lot from his book! These books and lots of practice tests worked for me!

 

I've just started the Security + since that will require renewing ever 3 years after December.

 

Congrats!

 

Congrats!

As someone looking to study for this, on a self-study basis, which reading between the lines you did to, can I ask how long it took you all in all?

Thanks

 

Congrats mate

So what's next?

 

Of course your mileage will vary ..... I got my A+ 2006 certification at the end of Feb. (right before they cut it off here in the states). I then started looking for A+ 2009 material because I wanted to be "current". I didn't find anything that was specific to the "Bridge" test expect a couple of practice exams. So I looked at the full 2009 stuff and the bridge practice exams. I got the A+ 2009 at the end of April. Then I started on the N+ studying. I was close to being ready in a couple of months and then life struck (father in hospital/nursing home, oldest daughter getting married ....) and I put it off about a month. So, it took me about three months for the N+.

Now keep in mind that I am a retired MS Chemical Engineer so I essentially have no network experience outside of setting up a network in my home (no servers only switches and routers). So I started cold and got to the certification in about 3 months. Someone with experience should be able to do better! Of course being retired, kids gone, ..... does often give me big blocks of time to study (when life doesn't get in the way ....

Good luck and remember to work hard because it will probably take it

 

Thanks for the info, it's much appreciated, received some learning material in the post today, so shall give a look tonight!

 

Just out of curiosity, now the exam is still fresh in your memory

What would be the main area(s) to focus on?

 

Well, I have noticed that many, many, many people on various forums (ie here and ProProfs) fret ALOT about subnetting. So I took that pretty serious and looked at several different author's/trainers approaches to it. So, I feel like I got a pretty good handle on it. In reality, when I took that test I only remember maybe a couple a questions that needed that knowledge directly and maybe a couple of more where it was really useful. Now keep in mind that each test will be different. My testing center told me that they download the tests every night! So, there is a big pool of questions that are used when your test is delivered. If you do the math, because of the quantity of material, unless you get very unlucky you probably won't be pounded too badly in any particular area. I seem to remember that the test SPREAD the question topics around fairly well. So, here is my point. If you find yourself really struggling on an area like subnetting but are really up on all the rest, you'll probably do OK.

Also, do NOT rely in any practice questions that you find at the end of a chapter to show that you know your stuff. In all the books, and CD that come with the books I have not found any that I felt really pushed me to prove my knowledge. For example, when studying for the A+, I used the Andrews book. Each chapter had 15 questions at the end. When I went through the chapters I would generate anywhere from 75 to 120 questions or notes of my own! So, you can see that a lot of material will not be represented by the questions in the book. This is also why I generally use multiple practice tests too. Maybe I'm crazy but it works well for me!