Studying tips for the A+.....

Hello all,

I am looking for study tips for the A+. I am pretty good with computers but a lot of the stuff is new to me (IRQ's and the like, really obscure stuff). I want to get it before Jan 2011 and my tentative test date is Dec 17,2010 to pass both sections. (A+ shouldn't have to be renewed but I can understand the reasoning behind the renewal process other than money)

I have 2 A+ books, I am only going to use the one though [Sybex Comptia A+ Complete that covers 701 & 702 by Docter,Dulaney, Skandier] and because my Mike Meyers AIO is form the 6xx series, I will not study that.

So my question is should I get the updated AIO for Mike or just use the Sybex book and/or find some study groups?

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kidainny

Hey Vincent,

Welcome to the TE forum.

I used a few different resources for this. I can't speak on the Sybex, but the Mike Meyer's AIO is usually the standard. I don't usually recommend any of the Exam Cram Series, and i'll probably be crucified for mentioning this from other board memebers, but for the A+ i thought the Exam Cram 701-702 by David L Prowse was really helpful. I thought it was certainly enough to pass the exam but may not give you the most in depth understanding of the technologies that Meyer's book would do.

Another free resource you may find helpful if you're not aware of it already is Professor Messer's website. Professor Messer, CompTIA A+, CompTIA Nework+, Certification Training He has video's for the A+ and Net+ on his website. Hours and hours, covering all the exam objectives.

I would go through those videos, run through your book (Sybex, Meyer's Prowse book), and take a bunch of practice exams. Mid December is more than enough time. Good luck!!

earweed

Welcome to the forums!
I don't know how good the Sybex book is for this but I will say that several members here have used the Exam Cram along with Mike Meyers AIO and done quite well. Practically everyone who has used the Prof Messer videos have also done quite well.
Kidainny gave you some solid advice. Good luck with your studies!

ehnde

I am pretty good with computers but a lot of the stuff is new to me (IRQ's and the like, really obscure stuff).

I doubt IRQs are going to be very important with the new exam objectives. Older legacy devices had to be manually assigned IRQs, this isn't the case with new hardware. You pretty much just need to know what an IRQ is and that newer hardware has the ability to share IRQs.

As usual, correct me if I'm wrong here guys.

Priston

ehnde wrote: »

I doubt IRQs are going to be very important with the new exam objectives. Older legacy devices had to be manually assigned IRQs, this isn't the case with new hardware. You pretty much just need to know what an IRQ is and that newer hardware has the ability to share IRQs.

As usual, correct me if I'm wrong here guys.

I know the 701 won't have IRQs on it but the 702 might have some IRQ questions, the practice test from the sybex CD has maybe 7 questions about IRQs but I'll find out once I take the actual test (hopefully I can find a time in my unknown schedule this week)

Cisco Inferno

for the 701 i highly suggest you know the ins and out of a laser printer and setting that up/troubleshooting and memorize your six troubleshooting steps. know your wireless, and definitely know tcp protocols and their respective ports.

the 702 has alot of overlap, sometimes even the same questions, but they dropped the customer service part for more scenerios with extra reading and deciding what steps to take to solve a problem. I'd memorize all of the above including cmd line utilities and ntfs vs share permissions.
and file location in 2000/xp/vista.

good luck! go over the official objectives and dont be afraid to use google!
if any objective looks vague, go watch the corresponding professormesser.com video on it!

Cisco Inferno

use the sybex book. theres TONS of info, you dont necessarily need to remember everything though. start by learning important key concepts of every topic then work your way in. definitely make sure you know your objectives and study based on that.
I personally used CBT Nuggets as a primary source, but you wont be needing that. I even ended up shifting over to professer messer's video lessons at professormesser.com. He has free a+ videos that i find priceless. they are also based on 701 vs 702 and by objective so no hour long boring videos like in cbt nuggets, just 10-15 minutes on each individual topic with no confusion., but for getting important concepts in my head quicker, the videos helped. I also had the Sybex book at all times as a reference. also dont be afraid to use google. its just as good as a book when you want something defined.

VincentCecelia

Thanks for all of the tips guys. To sum up, I should focus on the following:

1) The Sybex book and Key Topics/Concepts
2) The cert. objectives from CompTIA+
3) Professor messers website
4) Laser printers and wireless networking

What about actual study methods? For example for a 'normal' test I would just review the information dozens of time over the course of a week or so and review notes i have written (easier to recall). But with the Sybex book, there is a lot of info and since I work full time, I want to effectively use the time I am setting aside each day to be sure I am recalling the information correctly. Any ideas?