CCNA: Cisco Certified Network Associate Study Guide, 5th Edition (640-801) (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description

Here's the book you need to prepare for Cisco's CCNA exam, 640-801.

This Study Guide was developed to meet the exacting requirements of today's Cisco certification candidates. In addition to the engaging and accessible instructional approach that has earned author Todd Lammle the "Best Study Guide Author" award in CertCities Readers' Choice Awards for two consecutive years, this updated fifth edition provides:

• In-depth coverage of every CCNA exam objective
• Expanded IP addressing and subnetting coverage
• More detailed information on EIGRP and OSPF
• Leading-edge exam preparation software

Authoritative coverage of all exam objectives, including:

• Network planning & designing
• Implementation & operation
• LAN and WAN troubleshooting
• Communications technology

From the Back Cover

Here's the book you need to prepare for Cisco's CCNA exam, 640-801. This Study Guide was developed to meet the exacting requirements of today's Cisco certification candidates. In addition to the engaging and accessible instructional approach that has earned author Todd Lammle the "Best Study Guide Author" award in CertCities Readers' Choice Awards for two consecutive years, this updated fifth edition provides: In-depth coverage of every CCNA exam objective Expanded IP addressing and subnetting coverage More detailed information on EIGRP and OSPF Leading-edge exam preparation software Authoritative coverage of all exam objectives, including: Network planning & designing Implementation & operation LAN and WAN troubleshooting

Communications technology Featured on the CD SYBEX TEST ENGINE Test your knowledge with advanced testing software. Includes all chapter review questions and four bonus exams! ELECTRONIC FLASHCARDS Reinforce your understanding with flashcards that can run off your PC, Pocket PC, or Palm handheld. Also on the CD, you’ll find a CertSim sample test with simulation questions, and the entire book in searchable and printable PDF.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 720 pages
• Publisher: Sybex; 5 edition (February 11, 2005)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0782143911
• ISBN-13: 978-0782143911
• Product Dimensions: 9 x 7.5 x 1.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.4 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (47 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #400,555 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book was a huge help on the exam., November 22, 2005

By	Jody (Olean, NY) - See all my reviews

This book does a very good job of mapping to the exam pretty closely without going into too much detail on things you don't need to know, or skipping too many things that are vital to pass.

Todd's method of discussing topics are tactfully approached so they are not confusing to the reader, and his explanations are clear and easy to understand.

The book came up a little short on NAT configuration, and you might want to go over some of the switching stuff again before taking the exam.

Overall though, I would say if you already have some experience you could probably just read this book cover to cover and take the exam (640-801).

15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Behind the Times., April 9, 2007

By	Josh Whitley (Tulsa, OK United States) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Five years ago, I took a course on the CCNA exam, and the Sybex book was the standard course material. The Cisco books at that time were overly wordy, dry, and difficult to learn from. This seems to be the major reason Sybex became the textbook of choice for Cisco material. I had good success with that book and passed the test on the first try with little complications.

Then, a few months ago, I decided to go back and tackle the new CCNA exam and get certified again. Naturally, I went back to Sybex and bought this book. After a month of study, I felt I had fully grasped all the concepts in the book and began taking practice tests in preparation for the 640-801 exam. I was disappointed to find that I was repeatedly failing the practice tests. I spent some time reviewing and slowly came to realize that there are a variety of topics you will face on the new CCNA exams that aren't favored enough in the Sybex book. Frustrated, I went and picked up the Cisco Press: Official Exam Certification Library, which consists of the "CCNA Intro" and "CCNA ICND" books. I thought at first that having two books for this material was overkill. After several weeks of reading through these books, I am startled at how much raw content is in these two books that is directly relevant to the test. Even more obvious is how basic the Sybex course material is in comparison.

My personal experience is this: Cisco seems to have toughened up their exams quite a bit since they switched to the new CCNA exam, and Sybex doesn't seem to have kept up with this. Considering Sybex has also tried to squeeze the entire CCNP course material into a single book, when Cisco has four separate books for the same material, I'm not surprised that the CCNA book feels compressed. In particular, the areas I'm finding the biggest gaps between the two are as follows:

Cat 2950 Switch configuration - This is kept to a minimum in the Sybex book and only the most basic commands are offered.

General Routing Troubleshooting - A big theme in the practice tests I have taken thus far is the ability to properly troubleshoot various router setups. While the Sybex book gives you all the basic show commands and gives a very straightforward configuration for each topic, it simply isn't enough. There should have been several chapters dedicated purely to troubleshooting. The Cisco material did not provide dedicated chapters to troubleshooting either, but they take much longer to explain the topics than Sybex did.

Various Miscellaneous Topics - There are a variety of commands, terms, and concepts that I never saw until I started taking practice tests and picked up the Cisco Press CCNA Flash Cards book.

In closing, I will say that I like the way Todd Lammle writes. He is very easy to understand and Chapter 3 of this book (which covers IP subnetting) is a very well written chapter. This book is by no means "bad". It just isn't enough to pass the exam on it's own. If you have yet to purchase any material for the CCNA, I strongly recommend you spend the extra ten dollars and pick up the Official Exam Certification Library from Cisco Press. While it may be a little more difficult to read, it will be worth it when you go to take your test.

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Easy read but not good enough any more, December 9, 2005

By	Mr Test Taker (USA) - See all my reviews

I believe this book **USED TO BE** one of the best CCNA books out there, but CCNA has changed and this book failed to catch up. After reading the 4th ed of the study guide, I started trying some of the test engines. I realized there were many questions that I simply had no clue. I went to a book store to grab the 5th ed, but still couldn't find some crucial information that definitely appeared in the current CCNA. As some reviewers already mentioned, NAT is an absolute joke - the guide only mentions three NAT types but you are actually expected in CCNA to be able to configure NAT. There are many other topics that are not covered by the 5th ed. Also (Again, as other reviewers put it), sections of Catalyst1900 series can be omitted - the possibility you see questions about 1900 in the current CCNA is virtually none.

Although this book has some positive traits, the coverage is simply not enough for the current CCNA. Make sure you buy an extra CCNA (ICND) book from Cisco that includes 2005 update to fill some missing topics in this study guide. I don't say reading this study guide is a waste of time - it is still a good book that is easy to read so people new to Cisco will get benefits out of it. You just need an extra book or two if you want to pass the current CCNA. Did you notice that most of reviews that gave the book 4/5 stars were put in here in 2004 or before?