Customer Reviews

BCMSN: Building Cisco Multilayer Switched Networks

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(8)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(6)

 

 

I think this book is excellent. The coverage is indepth and easier to read than any other book on the subject. I found that the case studies were very realistic. I am a consultant and we have to be accurate and complete in our work for customers. Thus I take offense at the Man from Germany's comments regarding these areas. I found an update for the test that fixes all the problems on the publishers site so this book is excellent with that fix applied!

This is a great teaching(learning) book. Very few books get the point across as well as this one does. Aside from keeping your interest, as the book progressed from fundamentals to the later advanced chapters, I felt I was learning throughout the entire book. One of the best attributes of this book are the case studies. Each one builds upon the last until you have built and programmed a complex campus network. I was delighted as the lights went on with each progressive insight. I was less than happy with the CD and the answers to the study questions, and feel sorry for the authors as the editing staff did a poor job of catching mistakes. There is an errata sheet on the publisher's website, and it did address the errors. I am told a second edition will address these issues. By the way, I passed the exam first try with a 792. Not my greatest score, but also not squeaking by either. I recommend this book despite the errors.

Found the book easy to read and easy to understand. Its is an excellent book if you wish to have an overall understanding of the campus network. The example that is used at the end of the chapters helps you understand the process of configuring the campus network from beginning to end. There were errors in the book but you can download the corrections at http://www.ccprep.com/NetCerts/index.htm. This book definitely help me in passing my switching 2.0 exam (BCMSN) on my first try 879. Read the book and study it well and you should have no problem

This book is very well written with a few minor exceptions. The step by step methodology used by the authors' was very easy to follow. When I finished reading each chapter, I went through the test questions and used the testing software.

The mistakes in the testing software were very minor and I simply downloaded a fix from the web site provided in the book.

Overall a very good book, I am pleased with it and plan to buy the other course guides in the series.

While I like the format of this book I cannot overlook the number of errors and inaccuracies it contains. The Testing software it comes with is of no use as it rarely knows the correct answer. The questions in the book are not much better as they too were filled with errors. I HIGHLY recommend getting a CISCO guide or waiting for SYBEX to publish one.

An experienced Test Taker,

Dan MCSE CCNA

I'll give this book credit for the fact it is easy to read but that's about it. I had thought the Cisco Press book was lacking until I read this one. It's a decent book on switching but I didn't find it very useful for passing the CCNP switching exam. I would recommend the Cisco Press and the Todd Lammle books. Reading the two of them will surely prepare anybody for the exam. The McGraw Hill book just doesn't have the depth and isn't very accurate. I also noted that the technical editor is a CCNA/DA. I find it hard to believe that a technical editor can provide much insite on a study guide for a certification that is beyond what he has. Spend your money on Todd Lammle's and Karen Webb's books and let this dog lie.

I used this book as a add-on for the test preparation. Topics like switch configuration and network design were covered in a need-to-know manner. The case studies are way too long and tedious to read. The tests are erronous all over. There was not a single chapter where all the test questions were valid. The CD-ROM is of no help for the test preparation. The answers concerning routing (think of the RSM!) are 75% wrong. You can easily evaluate this by reading the ACRC course doc. or even in the book itsself. As a supplement to the course documentation this book is OK. For test preparation, have a look into a original Cisco course doc.

I highly recommend this book to anyone looking to expand their knowledge of Multilayer Switching as well as preparing for the Switching exam. While I did find errors in the exams, John Bass responded promptly (in a matter of hours) to my questions regarding the errors and directed me to the fixes. Could you ask for much more? Nice job, Thomas, John, and James!

The book has some mistakes in it i.e. Ethernet frame description and cross cabling diagrams. In addition, I did not feel comfortable following the book.. Other Cisco books from Cisco press did a better job in maintaining interest.

A good book I give it 4 stars. It has some extra material which is good for a review or as a reference. If you are patient enough to read through the Case studies done it will help you a lot. Many answers to the questions are wrong while their explananations are correct. Basically Typos there. I have taken the Cisco class for BCMSN also I I think this book helps in making sure you understand everything in a nice short and precise way and prepares you for the test. Happy reading.