which CCNP library should i get

PhildoBaggins

Amazon.com: CCNP Routing and Switching Official Certification Library (Exams 642-902, 642-813, 642-832) (Certification Guide Series) (9781587202247): Wendell Odom, David Hucaby, Kevin Wallace: Books: Reviews, Prices & more


or


Amazon.com: CCNP Routing and Switching Foundation Learning Library: Foundation Learning for CCNP ROUTE, SWITCH, and TSHOOT (642-902, 642-813, 642-832) (Self-Study Guide) (9781587058851): Diane Teare, Richard Froom, Balaji Sivasubramanian, Erum Frahim

mikej412

It's usually better to use both -- unless you already have the knowledge and skills and just need to review for the exams.

What's your knowledge and experience level?

Unless you've been working for a Cisco Business Partner for a year or more you probably still need to learn the blueprint exam topics (and background information so the information makes sense) -- and that's the Foundation Series.

Then you follow up with Exam Certification Guide for your final exam preparation.

Customers and Markets > About CCNP

Books

Portable Command Guides contain all the CCNP-level commands for the certification exam in one condensed, portable resource. The books provide tips and examples of how to apply the commands to real-world scenarios.

Foundation Learning Guides (formerly Self-Study Guides), which are based on Cisco courses for the related exams, provide essential foundation learning and thoroughly cover topics addressed in those courses. These books assume no prior knowledge of the subject matter and take a detailed approach to tutorial-based learning. Book elements within the Foundational Learning Guide Series feature real-world case studies, configuration examples, and chapter-ending review questions, making them useful on the job, in addition to exam preparation.

Certification Guides help prepare candidates for Cisco certification exams. These books assume readers have attained the necessary learning foundation and experience for a certification test and are reviewing material before exam time. They include summary information that details critical information on key exam topics and a companion CD-ROM, which contains a powerful testing engine that can be customized with practice exam questions, simulation-based questions, and adaptable performance trackers.

Which book is right for me?
Foundationl Learning Guides and Certification Guides are intended to complement one another. Though they will cover similar content, they do so in a very different manner. Choosing one book over another depends where you are in the study cycle. If you are familiar with the base concepts, but need to assess your knowledge and review/practice for the exam, we recommend the Certification Guides. If you are new to a topic area and need more detailed discussions of the foundation concepts, we recommend you start with the Foundation Learning Guides.