Studying

JL15219

Hello all I just had a question about studying I have tried to just read the books like sybex, exam cram, etc. but find it a little boring and start to get sleepy and by the time I know it I am on auto pilot reading not really retaining the information. So I wanted to try the google the objectives methods since it is a little more active than just staring at the book, but what worried if I would be able to get all the information that I actually need for the test and how much longer this method would take than just reading the book since I do have to research. Those are my concerns and was wondering if anyone has actually done this method and watched the professor Messer vids and passed the test without reading a published book?

Patel128

Its possible, the book just has all of the information there. If you are the type of learner that likes to look it up online then I say go for it. Messers' videos are VERY good by the way. One person's way of studying may not be the best way for the next person, just find what works for you.

Darril

I've actually used that method with most of the certs I've taken in the past several years, mostly because when I take the exams early there aren't any resources available.

On a deeper level, I often ask myself questions as I'm studying and research the answers. It's not uncommon for me to end up with ten or more questions that I write down and end up researching them one at a time. For me, I often write out the answers to my questions so I can review the notes later. I get a much deeper understanding of the topics which is sometimes useful and other times just fills my mind with meaningless trivia.

A benefit you have is that you can test your understanding with realistic practice test questions. I would strongly recommend you do use some practice test questions so that you have an idea of how CompTIA asks the questions.

Good luck.

Good luck.

JL15219

Hmmm okay then I was just curious if it was a good way to study or not....I like the idea since it helps me not just falling into auto pilot reading but just had the concerns that I listed......hmmm

Slowhand

It's a great way to study. You have to remember that the authors of these books, (like Darril for example,) don't have anything to go on when they're first putting together their resources. All the books, videos, websites, etc. you're seeing out there are compiled from the expertise and experience of IT professionals and educators - along with white-papers and howto's written by the original creators of the various technologies - and then put in a nice format for the rest of us to read when we're studying. If you're finding the books dull, you should definitely be going out and finding other resources, such as videos or looking up individual topics from the exam blueprint.

I actually did this when I sat for my CCNA exam way back when. I had failed the 640-801 exam a couple of times and found myself frustrated with the formal study material available, particularly when it came to frame-relay and STP. I decided to go out and buy some CCIE-level books to read up on things more in-depth, and I spent a LOT of time on the Cisco website reading articles, setup guides, and case studies. I went well above and beyond "what I needed to know", but it helped me immensely when it was time to take my test. . . which I finally knocked out of the park.

The long and the short of it: you're on the right track. There will be many, MANY times in your career when you'll have to go out and do independent research on a variety of different things in order to understand how they work. Getting in the habit of doing "extra-curricular studying" now is only going to help you in the long-run.

paulgswanson

I pass A+ literally by exclusivley doing the transcender practice exams. And when i took the ectual exam, I *almost* broke out laughing at how easy the real exam was.

Hulnet

Give us the tips

paulgswanson

All I did was set the possibvle choice to auto scramble so if i took a differnt practice exam but got the same question it woulnt be in the same postion (ie Harder to memorize answers) and always hit check answer before i advanced and made sure i thoughly understood why i was wrong. Rinsed and repeated until A) I frequently got 80%+ in all domain areas. the poole of questions needed to reset in order to have a test over 100 questions long.

It took roughly 3months for me to be able to giggle at the questions. But keep in mind Iv been a desktop tech for over 4years.

JL15219

Okay thank you for all the responses.....

NB4L

This reminds me of when i started getting certs I had to learn how I learn!..