Pearson vs. Boson vs. Sybex?

in CCNA & CCENT
Hey guys im gonna take the CCENT exam and want to buy a book to star studying. I already have the video course from cbt nuggets. Im between the official cisco guide with sim library(pearson), the sybex book that includes both ccent and ccna and the Mcgraw hill Boson guide. I want to know also wich simulator is good for practice because all three include one. thanks guys as always!
Comments
what sort of labs did you do ? complicated configurations with multiple
technologies or just the basic configurations of everything ?
I can't remember off the top of my head, but I think the simulations track pretty close to the material in the book. I think there are three different types. One is a scenario where you do a basic configuration, there is a command line area on the left and an area on the right that walks you through the configuration and gives you hints. It will also ask you questions and you type what you see in the command line.
Then there are configurations that are a little more in depth and troubleshooting problems where you figure out what's wrong with the network. You can either free style it on your own or follow their guided troubleshooting which is what I did.
I've never used packet tracer, so I can't give any comparison. The Pearson Simulator is very structured. One of the things I wish I had was something where I could just fool around with commands outside of a configuration or troubleshooting scenario.
If you have the Cisco book it should come with the lite version of the Pearson Simulator that you can try out and see if you like it before purchasing the full version. That might help you make an informed choice.
It's not a fair comparison. The Pearson Simulator is basically 150+ labs that are in exercise format. They walk you through the whole lab step-by-step. Some may want that level of "hand-holding". One advantage is you don't have to waste time setting up various topologies and can just move from one lab to another.