Customer Reviews

CompTIA A+ 2009 In Depth

5 star:		(15)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Jean Andrews, Ph.D.'s CompTIA A+2009 In Depth covers all of CompTIA's latest 2009 A+ certification exams and provides key terms, review questions, and a companion CD-ROM and web site with video tutorials to cover everything needed to troubleshoot computer hardware and software. The latest technologies are included in this in-depth tutorial which covers all the basics of PC repair, from older technology still being used to the latest cutting-edge computer equipment. This new edition also focuses on Windows Vista and XP in this top pick for any advanced computer library catering to the exam students.

I studied this book front to back over the course of about a month. The book nicely differentiates between what material is covered by the 701 or 702 objectives. I would have liked to have a soft copy of the entire book or at least the chapter summary questions. There is no comprehensive practice exam with it. Study the book and you will KNOW whats needed to pass both exams.

I passed both exams a day apart from each other and owe it all to this book.

I got the set of A+ books from the CompTIA website, and also this book. I have to say that Andrews goes more in depth in some areas, but is lacking in other areas. There were several questions on the tests that I wouldn't have known the answers to if I had relied only on Andrews' book, even though her book is quite impressive.

Gripes: I would have liked her book better if she had put the study material for the first test in the front, then the study material for the second test in the back, just like CompTIA's books separate it out. It's too confusing to mix the information together, especially when the end of chapter questions are all mixed together.

Flash Card Gripes: A couple of her flash card answers are either wrong or conflict with CompTIA's books. She said to push an expansion card sraight down into a slot and CompTIA's book said to angle it in. She said a TIFF is larger than a JPG and has more image information, but Bitmap was also a correct answer on the flash card. Some of her questions don't distinguish between Vista and XP/2000. My biggest gripe is her incorrect assertion that certain combinations of beeps during a POST have a standard meaning among all computers, which is nonsense. Each brand of computer can potentially have a different set of POST beep codes, and there can even be different codes between some computers of the same brand, depending on which BIOS is used on the motherboard.

In the end I would say that all of the books helped prepare me for the tests, although many of the questions were a lot different than what I expected, and not much like the end of chapter questions in any of the books. Although I studied very hard and was trying for 100% on both tests, I had to settle for scores in the 90's.

There's a LOT of material in this book, and it will be helpful to newcomers in the technician field or even technicians like me who've been doing this stuff for years. I highly recommend this book and its companion volume, CompTIA A+ 2009 Q&A. In-Depth will teach you the material (if you don't know it) and even surprise you with some tips you may not have known (if you're an experienced technician); the Q&A will get you familiar with the types of questions you'll see on the test.

The A+ Certification provides all the basics for knowing how to be a computer hardware technician, and I highly recommend the certification and this book. With it, I was able to knock out the two exams (Essentials and Practical Application) in about an hour, with scores of 810/900 and 840/900 respectively, on my first try.

12/10/2008 ******Update********* PASSED! I went from 50% on the CompTIA website's sample questions to passing both parts in 30 days. Very good scores!

I used this book (cover to cover), Mike Meyers's PASSPORT for a quick wrap-up, and CompTIA Q&A for lots and lots of practice.

Thank you, Ms. Andrews!

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This study guide and tech reference book is superbly written. If you remember when PC MAGAZINE was all the rage and had the best writers in the industry, then you remember informative, fascinating articles on everything to do with PC's. This book is at and beyond that level.

Furthermore, it corresponds very well to the official CompTIA A+ exam objectives that you should have already downloaded from CompTIA.

I do wish this had more practice questions. Each chapter is followed by only 15 questions, and they aren't tricky like some of the 60 sample questions you can also get from CompTIA. They are straightforward, chapter-review type questions, so I feel a need to buy a practice book.

Also, according to the CompTIA objectives current as of this review, Windows 7 WILL be on the exam, but this book was written earlier and says only Windows 2000, XP and Vista will be on the exam. That shouldn't be a big problem, because the CompTIA objectives mention three specific Windows 7 topics: Libraries, Homegroups, and changes (from Vista) to UAC.

Note that this book does tend to be weighted towards Vista. I'm becoming familiar with Windows 7 because that's what we have on our new laptops. I don't have access to Vista. I've never touched Vista, but this book is so well written, and Windows 7's interface seems so similar to Vista, that I don't feel worried about not having hands on experience with Vista. The many screen shots of Vista included in the book really have me confident that I'll do fine on the exam after studying this thoroughly.

I'm lucky enough to have XP and Windows 7 up and running, because XP is also covered extensively. As for 2000, if in a couple of weeks I feel I need a hands-on refresher, I can load it on to a very old laptop we keep as a back-up unit.

But operating systems are just part of the CompTIA A+. As for other aspects of the exam, such as hardware and networking basics, this book is fantastic, not only because of the writing, but because of clear, well chosen photos and very helpful graphs.

I'll report back in December after taking the exam!

This is very good book and recommend to anyone seeking the self study for A+ Certification Exams. Everything is covered with detail and A+ objective material is focused on to prep you for your exam. Jean Andrews has written an excellent book.

I thoroughly studied this book for 6 months, then took a sample test on CompTIA's website. This book did not cover the material that I was asked about on the sample test, so back to a new study source before taking the test with confidence. The sample test seems to be focused a little differently than what the Cert Blaster software included in this book (I bought the Resource Kit version) would indicate. I think there have been serious udpates to the ACTUAL test since the writing of this book, so while it's a great introduction and reference to many foundational concepts (a really good chapter on networking technologies), it's simply not test-centric enough to be a realiable stand-alone study source. If you want a great introductory education on this subject, this book will suffice. If you want that certification, it will not. I'm shopping for another test prep now.

I am not very far into the book but it seems to be very detailed and already I have picked up quite a bit of information. I am just using it to increase my own knowledge and it definitely seems that it will do that for me.

This book is a must for any one wanting to repair there PC. I mainly bought it to repair my PC and its everything I have needed so far, It is the best book i came across so far. I also just bought
Upgrading and Repairing PCs (20th Edition) and with these 2 books you cant go wrong. You will be in the repair business before you know it.

I used this book to study for my exam. I passed. It was easy for me to understand, and use. I would suggest this book to anyone currently trying for the certification.