Using CBTNuggets

Family_Guy

I'm about to begin study for CCNA and i've been browsing through the stickies and materials available to find what would be the best choice for studying and i've heard good things about the products from CBTNuggets. I understand that they are all videos, this make me wonder how I will achieve experience with the material. A simulator seems to be the easiest option however i've never actually seen any of these.

My question is, what simulator is preferred to go along side the CBTNuggets material, or rather, how would I find questions that I could answer with the simulator? I've used TestOut's material before and the simulators are graded once you complete them, if I was using a standalone simulator, how would it be graded?

Talic

I've had bad experiences with CBTnuggets, but it was the one for Linux+, not the Cisco ones.

The guy had a noticeable stuttering problem.

Daniel333

Testout is great. Simulators and all. CBTNuggets are video only.

But really, for Cisco, you don't want a simulator you are going to want the real thing. Snag some routers and switches off ebay. There is a lot to be gained from doing it for reals. As far as labs, your text book will have labs for you to run.

nel

From someone who is also studying there ccna i would strongly recommend getting a real lab. i pieced mine from ebay and ive learned so much having actual hands on experiance with the gear. it really does make a huge difference - i have also used simulators but have found them to be average at best and you dont get the "feel" for the equipment - and of course they have limited commands. besides what you pay for a sim you can pretty much buy a lab with.

For me i found the sybex / Odom (cisco) book to be enough for the ccent as its 90% theory. Although i have these 2 for the icnd2 i would recommend the cbt nuggets for the icnd2 - im not a video guy but have been impressed with jeremy ciora for these vids. He shows some great examples on the fly (with not every thing going to plan but fixing them anyway) and he goes slightly beyond the ccna to give you a better picture when necessary.

Also practice subnetting on subnettingquestions.com - its a must!

Slowhand

I've used both TestOut and CBT Nuggets, and I can recommend both. In regards to simulators and hands-on practice, I'm going to go with the general concensus and say that getting a couple of cheap routers and switches from eBay is a good idea. (My personal choices: 1721 routers and 2950 switches, those'll give you the most bang for your buck.) If you're going to spend money on simulator software, you might as well save it and buy the real thing. The practice you get with the TestOut simulations is more than enough to prepare you to play with the real IOS, especially to make you brave enough to really explore. The product, itself, is a only good for being "one resource", just like one of the study books. The best-case scenario: get a book, use the CBT Nuggets and/or TestOut, along with practicing on real equipment.

SV

I have used CBT nuggets when I had some difficulty understanding switch/WAN technology. I found it very helpful.

wbosher

I used CBT Nuggets for the ICND1 exam and found it was great. However, there were one or two questions on the exam that weren't really covered in the video series.

The general consensus seems to be to use at least two study methods. For me it was CBT and the Cisco Press books, what is missing from one is usually in the other. CBT explains things really well but can be lacking some detail, the book is full of detail but some things are a little hard to grasp at first. The two compliment each other well.

As for the issue of simulator vs real gear, I guess it depends on you circumstances. I live in New Zealand and Cisco gear (even the old stuff) is rediculously expensive, I saw a 1900 series switch go for $70 !! Getting some real gear for a good price is almost impossible, so I got RouterSim. It got me through ICND1 and seems to be doing ok so far with ICND2, although I do have some real equipment to play with at work.

If you can afford (and get your hands on) real gear, do that. Sims are definately 2nd choice, but may get you through. Good luck!!

janez_drk

I study now for ICND2...I have CBTNuggets and TrainSignal videos for ICND2...(also for ICND1)..
CBTNuggets are great..they teach you what you need to know for exam while Train signal goes more deeper..would recommend them..I also think that you don't need real equipment (especialy if you're going for ICND1), but if you can, get it