Network+ Certification Passport, Second Edition (Mike Meyers' Certification Passport)

I bought this book as a study guide for taking the Network + exam, and as far as concepts goes, there's nothing in the book I would consider wrong. However, it's very short on useful specifics that will help you pass the test. I read the book from cover to cover and studied very hard, but it was sorely lacking in information on ISDN, WEP, CHAP, MS-CHAP, Tunneling Protocols and just about the whole section with regards to security which is a part of the current test. Don't buy this book by itself if you're studying for the test--unless you're just looking for a quick refresher.

By the way, it contained almost no information about Fibre Optics, their connectors, distance lengths, which are all a part of the current exam.

WARNING! DO **NOT** USE THIS BOOK AS YOUR ONLY SOURCE FOR PASSING THE EXAM. I just took the exam last week and I was amazed how different the questions were on the VUE test. I was sadly mistaken relying only on this book for the exam and failed it by 20 points. I've learned a $200 lesson. The exam has been slightly modified since the date this book was written. There were hardly any questions on the exam covering Novell, Apple or ISDN. I saw very few questions covering the basics on RAID, OSI, and cable connectors/cable lengths. The new test weighed heavily on wireless implementation and network troubleshooting (about 50 of the 85 questions or so covered Network+ Objectives 3 and 4). This Passport book covers only the very basics of networking and does not go into much depth at all for troubleshooting issues. This is a great book only if you want a very brief review before taking the exam. Having some real world experience will also help you greatly. In addition, the questions in the chapter reviews are a joke compared to the real exam. I would strongly recommend getting another book like Tamara Dean's Network+ 2005 In Depth, Exam Prep, or Exam Cram. The questions from Exam Cram/Exam Prep will more closely resemble questions I've seen on the real exam. Tamara's book does a great job explaining troubleshooting fundamentals in detail. Again I stress, do not underestimate this Network+ exam.

This book was all I needed to refresh my knowledge base of modern computer networking and pass the CompTIA Network + exam. My IT work experience dates back to the 80's. Your results may vary, but all I needed was a refresher, and this book was perfect.

If you are new to IT, you will need a more comprehensive reference in addition to this study guide. This book has great value as a study guide for those with years of work experience or previous formal training. Easy to read, and key EXAM items are clearly marked for quick reference.

I was introduced to the Passport series while studying for my Network+ exam. Since then I have used the Passport series for 70-270, 70-290 and 70-218, all tests were passed with flying colors. I purchased numerous other books but always come back to the Passport series. Couldn't pass a test without them.

This book does what it is meant to do ... that is prepare you to take the CompTIA Network+ exam. It is not the text to learn everything you want to know about networking. There are other books that are much thicker and more comprehensive that will do that for you. As with the other Mike Meyers books, this is the "Reader's Digest" or "Cliff notes" version of the material. It is the last book you read before taking the exam. It pulls the material together very well, is excellently organized and easy to study. The self test on CD the best available and maps extremely well with the real test. After using Mike Meyers, the exam was a slam dunk.