CBTnuggets: What is your outlook on them?

TechBoy22

Im posting this thread due to see if they have an value to them. As I plan for my future, I need to search for the right tools to help me. So.....

CBT nuggets: Thumbs up or thumbs down?

Mmartin_47

For 291 I try to shadow what he does. He does stuff at times (James) that he doesn't tell you about or if he does tell you, he doesnt' tell you how he did it..

Paul Boz

The Jeremy Cioara Cisco CBT Nuggets are absolutely on my top-list of training materials. He is by far the best training solution for cisco-related studies.

CGN_Spec

Paul Boz wrote:

The Jeremy Cioara Cisco CBT Nuggets are absolutely on my top-list of training materials. He is by far the best training solution for cisco-related studies.

I agree

royal

<sarcasm>That Jeremy Cioara doesn't know anything. He's only got his CCIE, MCSE, and CNE. What a novice!</sarcasm>

Daniel333

You gotta be kidding man! they are great. Check out the demos.

They are just expensive. I can't afford them so I use the vtc.com service for my random computer learning.

bwcarty

Expensive, but worth it. If you're already a MCP, there's a 10% discount code available towards anything from CBT Nuggets.

dynamik

royal wrote:

<sarcasm>That Jeremy Cioara doesn't know anything. He's only got his CCIE, MCSE, and CNE. What a novice!</sarcasm>

He hasn't written any books either.

scheistermeister

Paul Boz wrote:

The Jeremy Cioara Cisco CBT Nuggets are absolutely on my top-list of training materials. He is by far the best training solution for cisco-related studies.

x2! His are worth every penny. The Linux+ and the MCSE ones aren't as good in my opinion, but they are still good and serve their purpose.

IT_Admin

They are pricey however if you can afford them they're definitely a must have.

x3! I find Jeremy Cioara great for the 70-350 video series.

dave0212

I think they are brilliant , used them for a lot of my exams

I tried to get my boss to buy this http://www.cbtnuggets.com/webapp/product?id=428

dynamik

dave0212 wrote:

I tried to get my boss to buy this http://www.cbtnuggets.com/webapp/product?id=428

Why don't you just ask for a streaming subscription? It's only $1400/year and you still get access to everything. The archive server is great if you have a lot of people that need it simultaneously, but it's overkill for just a few.

http://www.cbtnuggets.com/webapp/product?id=301

networker050184

I love the CBT Nuggets, but at work we have free Skillsoft stuff. I used the Skillsoft practice exam for the ISCW and it was pretty good. I will try their video training for the ONT to see if its any good.

dave0212

dynamik wrote:

dave0212 wrote:

I tried to get my boss to buy this http://www.cbtnuggets.com/webapp/product?id=428

Why don't you just ask for a streaming subscription? It's only $1400/year and you still get access to everything. The archive server is great if you have a lot of people that need it simultaneously, but it's overkill for just a few.

http://www.cbtnuggets.com/webapp/product?id=301

Trying to get any cash out of the company is like pulling teeth

That's a great idea at the current exchange rates, would have been better a few months back though

brad-

I got the MCSA pack and to be brutally honest, they are a great way to learn, but will only get you about 1/2 way as far as certification questions go, if that.

If your goal is to learn and you have the $$, get them.

If your goal is certification(s), don't get only them...you'll need a couple other sources as well.

networker050184

brad- wrote:

I got the MCSA pack and to be brutally honest, they are a great way to learn, but will only get you about 1/2 way as far as certification questions go, if that.

If your goal is to learn and you have the $$, get them.

If your goal is certification(s), don't get only them...you'll need a couple other sources as well.

That is true they should not be your main source of study, but a great add on.

motogpman

I have used CBTNuggets for all my Comptia+ certs and now for the MCP 70-270 test. I have overlapped them with Testout CBT's as well. I like the CBTNuggets for the fact that they are all screenshot and live captured, where as the printout's and granular type material for the TestOut stuff is great. Combined you can't go wrong.

The only funny thing about the Testout material was the instructor wore the same brown shirt, without any logo's, the ENTIRE time. I could see that if it had the company's or MS logo's on it....

zen master

I think they're absolutely fantastic. Helped me through 70-270, 70-290 and hopefully soon 70-291.

Diminutive

CBT Nuggets is great, I've used the 290 & 291 ones and the fact you can play them at double speed and understand it is awesome.

I tried the test on a friend's Testout and it was pretty bad. I haven't tried the video portion.

Talic

The Linux+ one I tried was pretty bad, the guy had a lot of stuttering. Content was okay, I didn't finish it though.

I didn't try the others so I'm not sure about them.

TechBoy22

Thank you guys for the great input. Now my only other question about CBT nuggets is lab time. How do I get to do any labs if I go the route of teaching myself? I want to get into cisco certs and i figured the CBT nuggets looked helpful, but having equipment to practice on could be very pricy. Any suggestions from the people that have self studied for the Cisco certs?

Mrock4

TechBoy22 wrote:

Thank you guys for the great input. Now my only other question about CBT Nuggets is lab time. How do I get to do any labs if I go the route of teaching myself? I want to get into cisco certs and i figured the CBT Nuggets looked helpful, but having equipment to practice on could be very pricy. Any suggestions from the people that have self studied for the Cisco certs?

This is how:
http://www.gns3.net


Check out GNS3, Dynamips/Dynagen. GNS3 is just a GUI layout for Dynamips, but it's worth the time. It's free, and allows you to emulate a fair amount of cisco gear..notice I said emulate- not simulate. It's fantastic.

roswald

GNS3 is a great tool for building your own routing simulations and labs, but it lacks the functionality of a L3 switch. It's not difficult to set up, and I strongly recommend checking it out - I only wish I had known about it before I spent a bunch of money on equipment.

Renting rack time is a pretty good option but it can add up quickly. This seems to be the trend that most people use when pursuing the higher end certs due to the cost of equipment required.

Nothing beats having your own cisco gear, and you can build a pretty good basic lab for not too much money from places like eBay and computer salvage shops.

If you're starting off on the CCNA track and haven't worked with the IOS and CLI before, you'll definitely need some sort of a lab environment. I'm not sure exactly what you'd need, but a few routers and a couple switches should be enough. IMO I would probably try to pick up a 2950 off of ebay and emulate the routers with dynamips/GNS3.

Mrock4

IMO..you really don't need to buy your own switch for the CCNA. CCNP (BCMSN more specifically), absolutely. It doesn't hurt, but it's not something you will fail without.

I would use mindtech's online rack rental (super cheap) for the switch practice, or just network around, and borrow someone's switch for a bit to get familiar with it. Dynamips will handle the rest.

motogpman

Without trying to highjack this thread in regards to CBGNuggets, one thing I didn't mention about the Testout material is that the sims are inbedded in the CBT's which comes in handy. I haven't had anny issue with them running in XP, not sure how they would run in Vista. I haven't seen CBTNuggets having sims so that is why I try to overlap the 2.

steve77uk

I have the TestOut for 291, and I must admit, I do like it, found it quite useful as they draw a lot on a white board explaining stuff, erasing stuff for different examples. I find with others, such as CareerAcademy.com, they just use static power points, with TestOut, you see it developing from a clear board to a full blown system..

My two-penneth!

I also did like the CBT Nuggets for my Network+ exam, quite a lot of info on there I thought...

ladiesman217

I have tried one with the 70-270 and found it be one of the best training material out there.

jamesp1983

Paul Boz wrote:

The Jeremy Cioara Cisco CBT Nuggets are absolutely on my top-list of training materials. He is by far the best training solution for cisco-related studies.

I agree with this statement 100%. Jeremy is a great teacher.