Customer Reviews

MCSE Study Guide: Windows NT Server & Workstation 4 (Covers Exam #70-062,70-068,70-073)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(10)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

New Riders books seem to be great for introducing concepts, not studying for them. Although I used this book (and Exam Cram and Transcenders), it was my experience as a network administrator that got me through the NT Server 4.0 exam this afternoon. The numerous spelling mistakes were annoying. The NT Server 4.0 exam dwells a great deal on RAS, and this book simply does not have the necessary information you need to pass. This said, I don't think much of the SYBEX books at all. They're wishy-washy and not for serious MCSE studying. In fact, my company has withdrawn them from their reference library for this very reason. My advice? Read a few books, use the Exam Cram, take lots of practice tests (Transcender are STILL the best)and if you know your stuff, the NT Server 4.0 exam should be no problem for you. Some people are better at exams than others (I hate them), but I got through with 4 seconds to spare. Sure, read this book, but make SURE you read others as well.

Prepare well, and you'll pass.

I used this book and also took instructor-led courses to prepare for the MCP exams. It helped me a lot in understanding the core concepts and the architecture of Windows NT4.0. Also the questions after each chapter were very similar to the real exams. However, there are two major weaknesees of this book. First, it covers very little on RAS Server which was heavily tested in the certification exams. You can learn RAS easily by just trying every installation options and by reading Windows NT Books Online anyway. The second weakness is that it contains too much duplicate information in itself.I agree with the other reviewer that this would be a very good book if you can get it for 20 bucks.

I am currently studying for my MCP. I have passed the NT workstation exam and going for the Server in a months time. Reading this book alone will NOT pass you the exams, The book does not contain the detail or information that the exam questions will ask for. You are better off looking at other books on the market, which l am currently having to do if l want a chance to pass my server exam.

On the road to becoming an MCSE this was the most expensive book I purchased - and the least useful. When I bought it, the MCSE training materials section of my local book store was pretty bare and this looked like the most comprehensive book. Luckily, there is now a much bigger selection now, so all you budding MCSE's can pick better books. So, why don't I like this book? Complaint #1) This book could be one third of the size (and price) and contain the same information. The first third of the book covers NT Workstation in detail, from the beginning of the installation to configuring everything. My complaint here is that it seems to be written for someone who has never even installed NT before. Well, if you haven't at least installed NT before, this book is not the ticket to passing the test - you WILL need some hands-on experience. Weeding out the non-MCSE level info would make this section half as long. Then the second third of the book is about NT Server, BUT - get this - everything covered in the NT Workstation section is repeated. There is only 30 pages of new information specifically about NT Server. Big waste! Finally, the last section (a little less than a third) has NT Server in the Enterprise info. Frankly, by the time I got to the NT Server in the Enterprise test, I had given up on this book. I did not use it as my study material. The parts that I have read had some good info along with some glaring factual errors. It looks like it covers about half of what you need to know for the Enterprise test. Here are my two other complaints (a little more briefly): Complaint #2) As mentioned above, there are factual errors throughout the book. I didn't highlight them in my book, so I can't give examples, but they are in there. Worst of all is the CD-ROM sample test - LOTS of the "correct" answers were wrong, and the ambiguousness of many of the questions made this sample test useless. Complaint #3) I have read lots of technical books, and no matter what the subject is, some are enjoyable to read and some put me to sleep. It is hard to quantify except that the sleep-inducing books tend to be more detailed, covering every option on every dialog box and lengthy, often unnecessary explanations of everything. This book is a definite sleeper! Enough said... My guess is that this book was just an attempt by NRP to get out the first, most comprehensive SEEMING, all-in-one MCSE study guide. Now there are several others, and one of the other ones MUST be better. But to make this criticism constructive, here is my suggestion to NRP - hack the first section down to half its size, keep only the 30 pages of new info in the second section and beef up the Enterprise part. Remove the long boring explanations, run it through a spell checker, have a couple of MCSEs read it and check out the facts, dump the useless CD and drop the price to $24.99. Jeremy

For the money this book isn't very good. If you could buy this book for $20.00 it might then seem to be a very good book. Save your money and purchase NT4.0 MCSE Study Guide by Alan Carter

Although nothing compares to experience, this book does a good job preparing you for the exam while actually teaching you something about Windows NT. I found the New Riders series much easier to read than the Sybex, although I have used Sybex extensively in preparing for exams. I passed the workstation exam with a 921. My words of wisdom: experience will prepare you more than anything, but reading the book prepares you to answer the questions on the exams. My personal rule: always read more than just one book, and use the transcenders when available. Good Luck!

This book contains a decent amount of information for Workstation/Server/Enterprise. Having gone through the Core Technologies Class and working with NT on a daily basis, this book is pretty much for the beginner. It contains important information and a basic understanding for Windows NT. However, the sections are not organized efficiently. Each section alone does not cover enough material for the respective exams. You must read the whole book. What is missing in one section is covered in another, for the most part. The sysdiff and unattend concepts are missing from the book and is only mentioned as switches from the command line, for example. As I leaf through the pages, I notice that Core Technologies is stamped atop the pages. Looks like they were hard pressed to get the book to print, they appeared to 'cut and paste' from the Microsoft syllabus. For those critical postings - check the index, almost all of the topics have a page associated with it - just a fact. All ! said, this book is handy for the beginner and for quick reference. If you use this book and the Exam Cram books, you should fare well on the exams. Dont forget - There is no replacement for practical experience. Set up two PC's and practice the lab stuff. Good luck and good hunting.

This book rambled and contained many factual errors. I would recommend this book to no one who was attempting to study for a Microsoft exam. Total waste of time and money. Buy the Sybex books instead.

This book, along with hours of studying and hands-on experience allowed me to score a 960 on Workstation and over 850 on both Server and Enterprise.

Please note: The tests themselves are designed to fail people who have NO experience with the software! The books are only meant to cover areas you may not have frequently worked with and you need to use more than one resouce when studying for any MCSE test.

This book did not provide enough information on Unattended Installations, Planning, Trouble shooting etc. In fact it probably only gave me 50% of the information I required. I failed the exam costing me the difference between this book and a better one.