New to Networking

Corrsta

Hi all,

Apart from setting up my home network, I have no networking experience at all. I'm looking to get my CCNA followed by my CCNP in the next few years. I just picked up CBT Nuggets' training course for CCENT/CCNA and was wondering if anyone has used their training videos in the past. It contains about 30-40 hours of training, even though I've heard from friends that it takes 200-400 hours of real training to pass the exam. Does anyone know if their training program is sufficient to pass?

lantech

The CBT Nuggets have a pretty good reputation. With that being said, people who use videos usually supplement that with other material just as books from Odom and Lammle. The reason being is that the videos that are out there are good for a general understanding but the books go into more technical detail. At least that's what I keep hearing.

I did the Cisco Netacademy courses at my local community college and then got the books from Odom. It has been a couple of years since I have taken the courses and never got around to taking the exams until now. So I have some studying to do. But it's still good and I probably would do it the same way. I just wouldn't have waited so long to start getting the certification.

paul78

Roguetadhg‎'s thread here - http://www.techexams.net/forums/ccna-ccent/81293-how-study-ccent-ccna-tutorial.html

Iristheangel

It's best to study with a book. In IT, you're going to be reading a LOT of books to get the job you want.

JeanM

What the previous members said, CBT Nuggets is good but not enough alone w/o a good book (like the Sybex or CiscoPress guides).

Prasad Satav

Absolutely agreed with every one... CBT nuggets is definitely an awesome resource to get things into your brains faster...
But entirely depending on it is not a good idea..

It covers up everything briefly.. You have to read to get a better picture of the concepts..

I would suggest you to make written notes of whatever you pick from the videos.. because everything over there is on the fly.. looks very easy..and even easier to forget..

Written notes help it dissolve faster and you can quickly refer whenever you're stuck somewhere.. instead of running a 30-40 minutes video just for a small thing every time.

Labbing is a MUST indeed..!!

mapletune

hmm... just wanted to add, even though Jeremy Ciora doesn't cover everything in detail, after watching his videos, you'll have a hard time getting used to other people's teaching =p

Jeremy just has too much enthusiasm that other people will sound "dull" in comparison =p haha

I had to speed up other video tutorials, video bootcamps, to at least 1.5x speed so that i wouldn't fall asleep.

So that's my advice. If any video sounds a bit boring or slow-paced, just speed the playback up and it'll be much easier to watch =D

Cheers,
Mike

Corrsta

Thanks everyone,

Each of the 30-40 minute videos have been taking me over an hour to get through will all the notes I'm taking, along with constant pausing and rewinding to make sure I understand a concept before I move on. It is proving to be a great resource and I'm fascinated by everything I'm learning in it.

I'll also be sure to pick up some extra books and lab equipment for further practice.