Mind-maps for the CCIE...

ccie15672

All:

I posted in another thread that I used CueCard, Mnemosyne, and Freemind to help me study for the CCIE. So, liquid6 asks: How does one get started making a mind map?

Good question. A mind-map supposedly allows you to organize information in the manner in which your brain organizes it. I'm not 100% certain what that means, or if the mind-map I made is really a proper mind-map. I did, however, use Freemind to make a very useful map of information I felt I needed to organize and put down in the pursuit of my CCIE.

I can tell what wouldn't be very useful. It wouldn't be useful to make an outline of facts from a CiscoPress book in Freemind. The map would be absolutely massive and you would be duplicating information that is already put down elsewhere... the source you are copying from.

Instead, the information I put in the map was explanatory notes for things I particularly had a hard time remembering or sorting out in my mind. Essentially, by the time you go take the CCIE lab, your mind-map will literally only be very useful *to you* if you were to do what I did. It would only contain notes and tidbits for things that you, yourself, need a little extra help dissecting. Others might look at your mind-map and think its rubbish.

For instance, I really had a hard time with multicast helper maps. A lot of people do because it is so poorly documented. So after I sat down and bit-by-bit whittled this feature down to only the most essential commands, I made a small hierarchical map of facts and notes that explained to me, in my own words, how each command worked and where it went on a small conceptual diagram. I then drew little links between items that were related to each other.

I attached a couple of meager examples of this.


Derick
CCIE #15672

ccie15672

qp81 posted a link to a mind-map tutorial in the other thread...

liquid6

Derick - I really appreciate the thumbnails and an explanation on how you used it. Very useful. I'll start one on BGP, which I am currently studying, and see how it goes.

Thanks again,
liquid

qp81

@ccie15672:

where di dyou get those icons for numbering? I can't seem to find it ...awesome tools...using it for company brainstorm meeting tomrrow

ccie15672

Those icons should be on the left handside of the Freemind window... By default those should be visible.

qp81

hmm icons seem to be different on linux boxes... i'll check on my windows box

looks like its teh version I'm running....0.8.1 on windows and 0.7.x on linux

rossonieri#1

hey derick,
thank you for sharing - nice tools

qp,

hmm icons seem to be different on linux boxes... i'll check on my windows box

definitely.
just installed it on my fedora - the icons looked very different.

UnixGeek

Thanks for posting the screen shots and explanations. I'll check these out.

jrs91

I just started using freemind. I disagree about not reproducing what is already in the cisco press books.Yes, your mindmap might grow to be huge, but if it's organized, that's ok. That's what collapsable nodes are for. I am organizing by topic area, and then recalling everything I can remember. What I cannot remember, I go back and look at. It will make a very good quick reference as I get closer to the exam.

Like I said, I just started using it, but i think i t will be very helpful. I just finished reading EIGRP in the BSCI exam cert guide and in Doyle. Putting it in to a mind map, without referring back to the books, forces my mind to remember what it read over 140 pages and extract the most important parts. I end up reproducing some of the lists in the books, but that is the point. It helps solidy that knowledge right after reading.

I think that my new study routine will be Doyle->CCNP cert Guide->mind map->labbing on the topic just covered. I'm studying for the NP exams right now, but I'm going in extra depth because i'm going to proceed straight to the CCIE when I am done.

Derick, thanks for the mnemosyne rec as well. I wish I could load it onto a blackberry though. It would allow me to make use of downtime (commuting, lunch breaks, etc) without carrying a laptop or netbook everywhere.

qp81

i think a better routine would be(if you don't have cbt's)
study guide > doyle > lab > mind map

if you've taken it and failed like me I use this...workign so far
exam guide > cbt > lab > doyle > cbt > mind map > lab (if needed) per subject
rinse and repeat..
OSPF(20%), ISIS(28%) and BGP(36%) are the once I am heavily focusing on...
everything else just becomes review

start from a high level and then get into the innards(sp?) there's so much detail on doyles that you can probably get away with just using that... again YMMV