Customer Reviews

MCSE Windows 2000 Core Four Exam Prep Pack (Exam: 70-210, 70-215, 70-216, 70-217)

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

 

 

You can not go wrong with this product it is best, it tells you
straight up what to study for the tests. Unlike Microsofts versions
which lead seem to lead you astray, and lost. Plus it tells you the
tips and tricks to use when taking the test. It tells you how
Microsoft Exams try to trick you in picking the wrong answer. You get
a understanding of how everything works in plain english without
having to hunt down and research for the answers like the microsoft
version of these books. A number of my friends, also swear by these
products and this book. If you want the BEST then this is it.

These books are adequate for general review, but you must supplement them, both with experience and other books. My four main problems with them are:

1. Badly edited and reviewed for acccuracy. I have been designing and installing networks for five years, and found several outright factual errors in each book, and not ones that could be attributed to changes in the software since publication. Some of these were trivial, but I was left wondering what else was incorrect.

2. Practice tests have problems, the biggest being scoring answers as wrong when in fact you get them right. This happens because the format the testing system puts the answers in is different from the answers it uses to check the test with, especially in the non-multiple choice questions.

3. Is there ever going to be a product that delivers as advertised? The "update" feature on the testing system, which is supposed to download new questions, has no new questions to download, and this after giving them some personal info. I thought that perhaps they had dumped support for it in favor of the online practice testing they have at their website (for which you have to register, again), and then found the "practice" tests were nothing but the exact same written sample tests found in the back of each book.

4. Worst of all, in my opinion, and the most expected problem when I purchased them, was the inconsistency of the text. The books are written by different people, which is fine, but sometimes it seems they fill in sections by giving you step-by-step instructions on how to perform mostly mundane tasks without actually explaining any functionality, thus giving you alot of useless fluff.

I cannot recommend much in the way of an alternative, except perhaps the MS Press Core books, except I have heard that some of those are pretty bad as well, and they don't come with a testing system, however bad, that is an alternative to shelling out another $100 per test in order to take the MS-appproved ones. Again, these books helped me pass my tests, but only because I tempered them well, with my own experience and supplemental reading.

I beleive that these books are not only for passing the exam but also for learning what is need in those subjects. I used these books and I pass the four core already. I plan to buy the other ones for the electives too. In these books they show you screen shots which are not needed in the exam but you need them if you need to work with W2K products.

Let's face reality, Micro$oft modifed the MCSE 2000 exams so that simple memorization wouldn't be enough to pass (ie: the MCSE NT 4 "Paper Certification"). They were designed for people already in the IT/Computer industry. If you're not working in a tech related field, and you don't have at least SOME access to the hardware/software, you're gonna have issues.

That said, lemme say that these books are perfect for "Real World Techies".

I can't speak about other books in this series, but I can say as a former programmer and current IT Manager (yes, I got coder's burn out), I breezed through the first 4 tests with these books.

Read through one, take a practice test (I'm partial to Transcender), go over the weak spots, take another practice exam just to make sure I got it down, and take the exam.

I averaged one test every two weeks. Passed every time.

This is not to say the tests are easy. Nor are these books "all inclusive" But I manage a 10 server 50+ node 3 domain network that was entirely NT 4/Win98. Doing the migration after I passed the tests was a breeze.

I only needed one other book outside of these 4...and that was because TCP/IP sub netting can be a pain in the butt. (as we are all aware)

If you're a techie, and are thinking about taking the exams, buy this cluster of books. If you're solid with the basics of NT4, you'll never regret buying these.

I've passed 3 exams out of 4 so far and honestly I'm disappointed. 70-210 was the last one and it was the best book so far. Server and Network are quite off the real exam topics and were not the most effectife resourse in my training. Another funny thing I've noticed is if you look at each book Amazon.com individual rating it's much lower then the whole set's one.

With everyone working towards MCSE 2000 it is great top know that Coriolis is working hard to ensure that everyone has the best opportunity to pass the Windows 2000 Exams on the first shot.

Within this four book set is vast amount of information each book working towards on exam. Book 1 Covers the 70-210 Windows 2000 Professional exam taking it from the installation to troubleshooting and everything in between.

In Book 2 the Windows 2000 Server, 70-215 exam, is laid out in an orderly and understandable fashion. The author takes nothing for granted and presents information in detailed format, there doesn't seem to be any wasted space in the book.

Book 3 is the 70-216 or Windows 2000 networking and finally book 4 covers the 70-217 exams with topics like DNS, WINS, Active directory, groups setup and security. Each book comes with a sample test of the specific exam and there is a cd with each book hundreds of practice question in various formats.

I have been buying Exam Cram series books as a last resort just before my MCSE/MCSA tests, when I knew I would have no time for a more substantial volume. With every new book, I was getting more and more disappointed. This one was the last straw. I have barely opened it, and now it's for sale.

All Exam Cram series feels rushed to print, and this is no exception. There are numerous typos and factual errors, and content is laid out in the most illogical fashion possible. Sample test questions are really basic and in no way mirror the real Microsoft thing. There are virtually no case scenario questions.

I have switched to Microsoft Press official prep guides now and they are worth every penny.