Conflicting study material.
I've been self studying for the A+ the past few months and I'm now revising for the exams however I'm now noticing different study sources have different information which doesn't help with the learning process. I've been using Professor Messer Videos, All-in-1 study guide 7th ed, and Exam Cram 5th ed.
Today I was going over DVD types and storage capacity, one source states that a Single sided/single layer DVD has a capacity of 4.37 GB, the other source states 4.7GB and lists it as DVD-5. Also the capacity for a Dual Layer/double side DVD reads as 15.9GB from one source and 17GB from another, and is listed as DVD-18. All the other DVD capacities also differ somewhat.
I was also looking over 802.11 standards and there different ranges, one source lists 802.11b as 300feet and the other 38 meters (125feet), there are also other differences with the other standards.
The more I am revising the more I'm noticing the differences between these sources which are all produced for the same exam, I'm finding this rather off putting, as I fear it may cost me valuable marks. Even some of the questions on the practice exams have incorrect answers. Basically I don't know which source to believe and revise for the exams.
Today I was going over DVD types and storage capacity, one source states that a Single sided/single layer DVD has a capacity of 4.37 GB, the other source states 4.7GB and lists it as DVD-5. Also the capacity for a Dual Layer/double side DVD reads as 15.9GB from one source and 17GB from another, and is listed as DVD-18. All the other DVD capacities also differ somewhat.
I was also looking over 802.11 standards and there different ranges, one source lists 802.11b as 300feet and the other 38 meters (125feet), there are also other differences with the other standards.
The more I am revising the more I'm noticing the differences between these sources which are all produced for the same exam, I'm finding this rather off putting, as I fear it may cost me valuable marks. Even some of the questions on the practice exams have incorrect answers. Basically I don't know which source to believe and revise for the exams.
Comments
I can't comment much on the storage medium as its been a long time since I looked at A+ stuff. However the numbers 4.7GB and 17GB look more familiar to me than 4.37GB and 15.9GB. Perhaps space is manufacturer dependent? wouldn't be the first time.
As for the wireless, i'd be very surprised if 802.11b reached 300feet.That distance is more 802.11n Some sources claim 802.11n can go as far as 600 feet but they are most likely referring to mainly outdoors with a clear line of sight and a clear fresnel zone.
As a general rule these are the figures I would remember for exam
802.11a = 100 ft
802.11b = 150ft
802.11g = 150 ft
802.11n = 300ft +. uses MIMO and data rates between 130Mb to 600Mb
The 802.11n can go much longer than 300ft to be honest. Whenever I use a wifi analyser I can pick beacons from close to 400 ft away.
When I studied for the A+ i also noticed the discrepencies with the specifications. Don't get hung up about it. When you do the real exam they wont be so picky or pedantic and the right answer will be easy enough to spot.
Prof Messer (approx range)
802.11a = 35 meters (115ft) 54 Mbps
802.11b = 38 meters (125ft) 11 Mbps
802.11g = 100 meters (328ft) 54 Mbps
802.11n = 300 meters (984ft) 600 Mbps
All in 1 7th ed (max range)
802.11a = 150 ft 54 Mbps
802.11b = 300 ft 11 Mbps
802.11g = 300 ft 54 Mbps
802.11n = 300+ ft 100+ Mbps
Mike Meyers states in his A+ book that
802.11a = 150 ft 54 Mbps
802.11b = 300 ft 11 Mbps
802.11g = 300 ft 54 Mbps
802.11n = 300+ ft 100+ Mbps
Chris Bryant in his CCENT guide states
802.11a = 100ft
802.11b=100ft
802.11g=100ft
802.11n=160ft
I'd like to think that my version is a harmonic mediator between all versions and it's got me through all my exams without any issues.
LOL at your comment
Mike Meyers' text is the best (IMO) for prepairing for A+ and Sybex makes a great text as well, so those are my two top recommendations. Aside from this type of study material, I'd strongly recommend you have a copy of the objectives and simply take them point-by-point and create your own guide.
The differences between material typically arise form the way one author explains a topic vs. the way another explains it and frequently they say the same thing, just in different ways.
The more you actually use the material covered in the A+ objectives (i.e. experience) the better the different material will be to understand and re-use later on.
Hang in there. And I'd recommend you use one source to compliment your experience then use the 2nd source as a review to solidify what you think you already know.
Example:
DVD-5
You will likely find that the indicated capacity will be 4.7GB while the ACTUAL capacity will be 4.38GB.
The comment you posted is very similar to the argument that once took place regarding HDD size. So, you simply need to discern which the author is talking about, actual vs. indicated.
_____
"Grammar and spelling aren't everything, but this is a forum, not a chat room. You have plenty of time to spell out the word "you", and look just a little bit smarter." by Phaideaux
***I'll add you can Capitalize the word 'I' to show a little respect for yourself too.
'i' before 'e' except after 'c'.... weird?
I would go with indicated capacity like the post I have quoted and I am quite sure they will never give two answers that could all be right. I am also sure if there is a question it will specifically ask for either actual or indicated if it doesnt or if it has two similar answers then you will have to read carefully like in the MS exams I always found 2 correct answers but after going back to the question again then you realise that there is only one that can be right.
I bought a laptop with a 620GB HDD but it only has about 580GB available and its the same with every other HDD advertised and there has always been arguments about that.
I guess the problem is just brain capacity, it's hard enough having to know just one data transfer rate/capacity information for each thing let alone a two or three possible ones
This morning I was revising Firewire, where I've now discovered IEEE 1394b can have cable lengths up to 10meters, although the Mike Meyers book just states 4.5 meters to cover Firewire in general. I just hope I don't get a question that asks "What is the maximim cable length firewire supports?" with both 4.5 meters and 10 meters being selectable answers, but only one answer allowed.
I've had a few questions like this in practice exams where there are two correct answers, but the most dated seems to be the correct answer. Another practice question was asking the width of the PCI bus, with both 32bit and 64bit being selectable answers, with only one answer allowed.
There was also one on Bluetooth asking the about it's general range, again there were multiple possible correct answers depending on whether it was class 1,2 or 3, but the question failed to add this detail. Maybe they were just poor questions?
I think I just need to book and do the exams as soon as possible.
The questions were quite different from those I'd encountered on practice exams, with lots of questions on troubleshooting, operational procedures and conduct plus networking to a lesser extent, and also a good amount of scenario based questions.
There was very little on hardware and operating systems which was rather surprising considering they make up 27% and 20% of the objectives and of the questions there were they mainly required two answers.
Thankfully I didn't have any conflicting questions, although there was one on IPv4 network classes where there was two correct answers but only one answer was asked for, I'm convinced there were other questions like that as well.
I'm not quite sure how the scoring system works but I'm convinced some questions are weighted more than others, there is no way I got 93 out of 100 questions correct. I did notice at the start of the exam it stated some question don't count towards the pass mark as they are not on the objectives/learning material but are still in the exam. It also would have been nice to know what questions I got wrong, and what the correct answers were.
If I had to give one bit of advice it would be read the question carefully and don't rush.
I'm curious, could you provide an example, with the numbers changed to protect the integrity of the exam?
The question asked which of the answers were a Class A IP address, but there were two that fell within that range, although one was within the private range, but still a valid address.
its fun and imterrsting
In general, when in doubt on a specific technology, just Google it and/or look at Wikipedia. A+ isn't a secret collection of proprietary or obscure information. Everything on the A+ can be quickly found on the web.
Also, let me be clear: On these matters, I genuinely trust Wikipedia articles more than Comptia certification books. Comptia, for the most part, will also follow reality, not what's published in any particular author's book. There will be incorrect information in the books, so if you find a conflict Google it and figure out the truth. (The same does not apply to Cisco and MS material -- when it comes to certification material, treat those as virtually infallible.)
It has been a long time since I took A+, but I don't remember any of this type of thing being a serious issue, so at the end of the day I wouldn't worry about it that much. It's not that hard, and you're unlikely to fail over a couple of medium length/size limitations because two books had different numbers.
Complete: 55/120 credits SPAN 201, LIT 100, ETHS 200, AP Lang, MATH 120, WRIT 231, ICS 140, MATH 215, ECON 202, ECON 201, ICS 141, MATH 210, LING 111, ICS 240
In progress: CLEP US GOV,
Next up: MATH 211, ECON 352, ICS 340
LOL...yeah, you see this a lot in IT. In my experience, the best option is always to go to the source. If you are studying for an EC-Council exam, use EC-Council material, a Microsoft exam, use microsoft material, ISC2...ISC2 material. Unfortunately, I don't think CompTIA releases official material.
Not sure what to do next, I'd prefer to be in an IT job before taking more certs, but I'm not sure if an A+ is enough to get me a starting role somwhere. My main area of interest is hardware and networks (I like taking things apart
Congrats! If you are just getting started I would reccomend moving on to the Network+ and Security+. Great ways to get a foot in the door and learn a lot of the basics.
Thank you
I think I'll have a look at Network+, I quite enjoyed the networking section part of A+.
All I really want out of these certs is to be able to land a Computer/Network Technician job, where I get to troubleshoot, install and configure hardware ideally in the field, I have no interest in being desk based on a screen all day. I've had a look at some MS certs but they seem more suited to admin or helpdesk roles.