Rating: 
Summary: Fairly Good Resource, Needs Work Though.
Review: This book does indeed provide a fair amount of information. However, there are many things that Mike Meyers and his editors obviously overlooked. There are some typos that contradict one another (ie. ECP - Enhanced (Extended?) Capabilities Port). This typo can really confuse someone who does not have access to find out which one is correct. It needs to be a little more in depth and provide more on CD's and software. Overall, a useful resource, but I wouldn't use it as my only textbook.
Rating: 
Summary: Great reference and study book
Review: everything you need to know to pass the A+ exams.Michael Meyers wants you to make your own questions in the beginning and in the CD-ROM he asks for extra money for questions. There is only 50 questions for A+ core exam and 50 questions for A+ DOS/Windows which is not enough. The more questions you see the better grade you will get. I think you need to get a test book for that exam. I passed A+ core with the 95% and A+ DOS/Windows with 87 %. Good luck.
Rating:
Summary: Good broad approach to the topic
Review: I got 3 books to use to pass the A+ Exam, this one and A+ Certif. for Dummies and A+ Exam Cram. I passed 1st time w/ 98% on the Core and 80% on DOS/Windows and 6/6 on the Cust Satisfaction.Having said all that. This book provided a good wide and fairly indepth approach to the topic. I actually used what I learned in this book to build a computer and network it. His background and depth give you the background to use in conjunction with the more narrowly focused books that helps you figure out what's happening rather than just memorizing. It is fairly fast reading, so don't be intimidated by the # of pages. Areas of weakness are (aside from the editorial typos) the limited CD rom questions w/o having to spend more money. No end of chapter review questions. Doesn't specifically mention how things relate to the Exam. Software coverage was very basic which would get you through maybe 10 of the s/w questions. Really needs substantial improvement in the s/w treatment. If you are weak in the s/w side you really need an intense s/w book. Clearly half of the Dos/Windows Exam questions did NOT receive any coverage. Networking was weak on the s/w side too. NONE of the 3 books agreed on the s/w. I was constantly double checking I/O addressing and boot sequences among other numerous s/w areas. I would recommend this book as your foundation book as I had NO real PC h/w background other than installing a card here and there.
Rating:
Summary: This book provides a good overview of basic PC technology.
Review: No book that i've found on this subject is entirely complete or accurate. However for a general overview of the PC world this book serves the purpose. If you looking to prepare for and pass the A + exam then a careful read through of this text combined with the information at cramsession.com should get you where you need to be. If your currently working in the industry...don't sweat it too much, the test is a lot easier than you might think.
Rating: 
Summary: Two books in one
Review: ...a test prep and reference book with money saving voucher for the test which more than pays for the book. Michael Myers has dug deeply into the hardware and OS fact vault. When one gets through this book they are not only prepared to take the test, but have a massive knowledge base for performing work on PC's. My idea was not only to pass the test, but to learn all the tips and tricks that would make me a better technician. Thank you Mr. Myers. Also, thanks to Amazon for having the best price. I even sent one to one of my Australian cousins for Christmas. The book was worth the expense.
Rating:
Summary: Required reading, deserves 5 stars
Review: This book should be required reading for anyone that wants to call themselves a PC tech. Only one real drawback to using this book as a study guide for the A+. There are no end of chapter review questions. Excellent test prep software on the enclosed CD. (If you pay the $79 to unlock all the questions, Total Seminars will give discount test vouchers for a total of $50 off the tests) Overall the best resource for a PC tech.
Rating:
Summary: Good hardware overview, weak exam prep
Review: Meyer's book is a great Computer Hardware 101 course for folks who have never had such a class. He clearly explains a computer's hardware, how the systems communicate, and provides clear illustrations all along the way. He does not cover some of the more recent hardware(DVD and digital cameras, for instance) but is thorough in what you can expect to see on most systems. If this book simply claimed to be an introduction to how computers work, I would give it five stars. As a test prep book, however, it has significant weaknesses. First, it does not provide enough information on the core files for Windows and DOS, files which are strongly tested on the exam. Secondly, it does not include enough review throughout the book. At the end of his long chapters I needed some questions or something just to help me remember what I read, but there was nothing. Furthermore, the practice exam on the CD-ROM was very weak as well, containing only 100 questions total. The exam software did a nice job of identifying weak areas and pointing out which chapters to review, but was simply not enough of a review. Overall, the book is worthwhile for learning about the hardware, but is weak in the DOS / Windows areas and exceptionally weak in actually reviewing for the exam. I would recommend getting a good practice exam book to supplement this text, and also doing more study on the Windows / DOS files. By the way, with the help of this book, along with A+ Test Prep and a my own experience, I passed with 93 in hardware and 79 in Windows / DOS.
Rating:
Summary: The Real Thing!
Review: Used this book as my primary source for A+ Exam and passed with 90s on both. Referred to some others as well but kept coming back to this one - it's by far the best in the bunch for the core exam. However, may want to use a different book for the Dos\Win part, at least for deep background. Good luck!
Rating:
Summary: An excellent reference - but you need more......
Review: This is an excellent reference book with quite a bit ofinformation. It is written as not to intimidate the novice, but neither to bore the intermediate or advanced. As the other reviewers have stated the practice exams on CD-ROM are limited and the price to buy the remaining questions is much too high. After reading this book and using some practice exams I got on-line I passed the Core and DOS/Windows exams today with a 93% and 94%, respectively. This book is WELL WORTH the money!!!!!
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Study Tool
Review: This was one of the first texts that I studied from and found it useful. Like all the 800+ page texts I study from, I never read them from cover to cover only jumping from topic to topic which I feel I need a refresher. I enjoyed the photos (although only in black & white) and found the charts & diagrams the most beneficial. It even comes with a CD-ROM. If you already have extensive work experience, then you will find this book a refresher course. This book is not for the faint-of-heart or first-time aspiring technician because there is a lot of information to know and would be very difficult to comprehend without prior knowlege from work or formal education.
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