A+ Certification Complete?
While not 100 percent comprehensive, Jeff Durham finds that this study package from New Riders comes pretty close.
by Jeff Durham
10/25/2000 --
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| Title |
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A+ Certification Complete, Version 1.1 (includes book, workbook, CD-ROM) |
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| Authors |
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Glenn Berg |
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| Publisher |
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New Riders |
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| Publication Date |
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March 1999 |
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| ISBN |
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Test Prep - 1-56205-892-4 / Fast Track - 0-7357-0028-1 |
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| Price |
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$44.95 (U.S) |
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| Pros |
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The questions and subsequent explanations in the Test Prep are thorough and informative. |
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| Cons |
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Some information included is not really needed towards exam success. |
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| Verdict |
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A great overall study package for passing the A+ exam (and a good value, too). |
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There is no doubt in most people's minds as to the popularity of CompTIA's A+ certification, which consists of two exams: Core and DOS/Windows. One way of realizing this growing popularity is at your local bookstore's computer bookshelf. A whole myriad of publishers have come out with study guides and complementary software packages to aid the learner in preparing for this exam. One such package available is the A+ Certification Complete version 1.1 from New Riders Publishing.
For those unfamiliar, the A+ Certification is a testing program sponsored by CompTIA that certifies the knowledge of entry-level (six months experience) computer service technicians. The test covers a wide range of non-vendor specific hardware and software technologies.
With the purchase of the A+ Certification Complete product, you are given three different components: The A+ Fast Track book by New Riders, which functions as the text book, A+ Test Prep, which is a study book of corresponding practice test questions, and New Riders Top Score Test Simulation Software, which is a CD-based tutorial designed to supplement the material found within the text.
The Fast Track book is structured and organized very well, following the CompTIA objectives line-by-line, and delivering adequate information about the various tested subjects. However, at times it delivers a well-rounded discussion of a subject, but leaves out some key components necessary for the test. For example, while I found the sections on cabling to be well-written, information such as maximum cable lengths were left out. Overall, it gets down to business with what you need to know for the test, as opposed to forcing the reader to plow through subjects that they'll never find in the actual testing environment.
The CD is largely intuitive and well-organized. There's more questions here than you could ever want for. My one complaint was, with no diagrams ever being present on the test, it would be nice to see the space that is used for diagrams and graphics on the CD utilized towards more questions. One good aspect of the software is that it's all inclusive, offering the reader something they can take along for use with a computer when taking both books is difficult.
Where this product really shines is in its Test Prep booklet. The descriptions and explanations of answers provide immediate feedback on the subject it's covering. When reading through all the materials, I found myself gravitating towards the Test Prep more and more as I could readily ascertain what I knew and didn't know, then read the explanation to see how I could improve my knowledge on that particular area. The only downside I could find to the Test Prep book is that some of the questions dealt with the historical context of certain devices, practices and ideas. For example, I found some questions that dealt with the origin of the mouse, and the history of the 286/386 to be largely unneeded, as questions of this type do not appear on the actual A+ exam. That being said, the Test Prep is the touchstone of this box product, giving the reader a good mix of challenging questions and informative descriptions.
At $59.99, with the included $50 discount coupon for taking the test, the A+ Certification Complete version 1.1 is a great value for the money you spend. With a lot of singular books out there ranging anywhere from $60 to $80 dollars, getting both the Fast Track, the Test Prep, and the software is a nice bargain for those looking to take the A+ exam. While you cannot expect any one product to have all the answers, the A+ Certification complete is a great overall study package for passing the A+ exam. 
Have you read this book? Let us know what you think! Rate it below or visit our Forums.
Jeff W. Durham, MCP, A+, i-Net+, Linux+, is the recent co-author of the Security+ Short Course. E-mail any questions or comments to .
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