Has anyone used this book?!

Amazon.com: CompTIA® A+® Training Kit (Exam 220-801 and Exam 220-802) (Comptia a+ Training Kit) (9780735662681): Darril Gibson: Books

REALLY!

MS loves them some money!

My apologies if this is old news, I haven't really been in the market for an A+ book. First I've seen MS in the CompTIA game.

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ptilsen

Note that MS Press is just a publisher. It's a bit odd that they'd publish training for another organization's certifications, but at least A+ is relevant to MS.

Note also the author.

Maybe he will have something to say on the subject.

N2IT

Maybe A+ is the new Security +!

Darril

I'm not sure that I'd say that A+ is the new Security+, but I can speak to the reasoning behind this book.

In short, Microsoft recognizes the value of the A+, Network+, and Security+ certifications. People that pursue and earn these certifications build a solid foundation of knowledge that helps them excel when they move into deeper Microsoft certifications. Even when people don't pursue the deeper Microsoft certifications, they are much better prepared to move into Microsoft-based desktop support and network administration job roles with the foundational knowledge gained by these certifications.

As a trainer, I've noticed how difficult it is for some administrators to advance their careers without basic knowledge. I remember providing some server training to a group of administrators at a large bank with a major data center in New York. Interestingly, many of them had titles of "Vice President" but they explained that it was a customer service issue - customers really appreciated when they were being assisted by a Vice President. We used their training room and some computers didn't have the BIOS configured to boot from the DVD. Some of these students didn't know how to change the BIOS and were reluctant to ask putting them farther behind than the rest the class. Similarly, some of them didn't know how to access a command prompt and identify their IP address. None of these students were Vice Presidents, though some had been with the company for many years.

Don't get me wrong. All of the students were great people and I really enjoyed the training and interaction with them. Their job role was probably very narrow and they were likely very good at what they did. I was happy to spend the extra time to help them fill in some of the gaps in their knowledge but I was only there for a week. My point here is that the lack of an IT foundation affected their ability to expand their job roles and excel within this organization.

Of course, everyone doesn't need to get the A+, Network+, and Security+ trio of certifications before moving into Microsoft certifications. Some people can gain enough knowledge without earning the certifications. However, this trio provides a great foundation and people that have them are much better prepared to excel later in their career.

I do know that Microsoft didn't make this decision quickly. I was in talks with editors for over a year about the possibility of doing a book like this before they ultimately decided to go forward.

Hope this helps.

Cisco Inferno

I agree. Too many people lack foundation level skills. I've seen it first hand. It is quite pathetic.

N2IT

Darril that makes sense.

BTW I was joking, since you are clearly known for your security book.

Darril

@N2IT. No problem. It did come off to me as an "inside joke". I was just thinking about some of the newer visitors coming here for A+ conversations might not know I'm the author of the Get Certified Get Ahead Security+ book.

It looks like you're building up quite an impressive set of certifications and knowledge. Congrats!

N2IT

Hopefully this one gains a lot of traction as well. I'll fire off a link off of my LinkedIn page. 7,000 connects, it couldn't hurt.

Thanks for the acknowledgement on the certifications. You have a few nice heavy hitters yourself.

Darril

Thanks. I appreciate it.

Vinhle1990

Hi all, I'm new to the forums and this'll be my first post.

In regards to the book, I'm reading it right now and I feel it's real good. It's well laid out, easy to read and easy to understand.
Would definitely recommend it!

Darril

Welcome to the forums Vinhle1990. Good luck with the A+ exams. You'll find that there's some overlap with the Strata IT Fundamentals exam though overall much of that material is older while the 801 and 802 exams are more current.

Vinhle1990

Thanks Darril!

I just realised you're the actual author of the text... Wow! Anyway, as I mentioned before I'm finding the book really good and would still highly recommend it. Have you authored a Network+ text Darril? I would definitely like to purchase it if there is when I'm finished with the A+.

Darril

Vinhle1990 wrote: »

Anyway, as I mentioned before I'm finding the book really good and would still highly recommend it. Have you authored a Network+ text Darril?

Glad you're enjoying the book and thanks for the kind words. Yes, I do have some Network+ resources available. Feel free to contact me directly and I'll point them out to you.

z3r0cool

just bought it!

Darril

@z3r0cool, It looks like we're neighbors:). Good luck with your A+.