Rating: 
Summary: A worthy addition to this computer tech's small library
Review: I used this book to help me pass both the A+ Core Hardware and A+ OS Technology Exams. The book is full of helpful advice on what areas to concentrate on for the exams. However, do not expect to pass the exams by using only this book. I am not sure if there is any one source that you can study that will do that. I used this text, in conjunction with some online study guides that I had bought. I also had access to my local technical college's library of A+ training videos. In my humble opinion, the training vides were the single best resource I had used. The textbook was more of a source for deeper knowledge.I am currently studying to complete my MCSE. My instructor adviced me to get my A+ certification to help increase my future value in the job market. Right now, I work as a sheet metal fabricator in an industrial setting in order to pay the bills. Hopefully, it will not be too long until I can finally enter the IT field. If you are in the same situation, working while pursuing certification, perhaps it would not be realistic to expect you to read this book from cover to cover. I certainly did not. However, to me, it's main value was as a source of additional clarification. In short, I would not depend on one source to help me pass any technical exam. I do agree with one reviewer who was turned off by the fact that additional exam prep questions were only for those willing to pay extra. In my humble opinion, those additional materials should have been included with the text. However, the exam questions on the CD that came with the text were very helpful.
Rating:
Summary: A worthy addition to this computer tech's small library
Review: I used this book to help me pass both the A+ Core Hardware and A+ OS Technology Exams. The book is full of helpful advice on what areas to concentrate on for the exams. However, do not expect to pass the exams by using only this book. I am not sure if there is any one source that you can study that will do that. I used this text, in conjunction with some online study guides that I had bought. I also had access to my local technical college's library of A+ training videos. In my humble opinion, the training vides were the single best resource I had used. The textbook was more of a source for deeper knowledge. I am currently studying to complete my MCSE. My instructor adviced me to get my A+ certification to help increase my future value in the job market. Right now, I work as a sheet metal fabricator in an industrial setting in order to pay the bills. Hopefully, it will not be too long until I can finally enter the IT field. If you are in the same situation, working while pursuing certification, perhaps it would not be realistic to expect you to read this book from cover to cover. I certainly did not. However, to me, it's main value was as a source of additional clarification. In short, I would not depend on one source to help me pass any technical exam. I do agree with one reviewer who was turned off by the fact that additional exam prep questions were only for those willing to pay extra. In my humble opinion, those additional materials should have been included with the text. However, the exam questions on the CD that came with the text were very helpful.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Guide
Review: I would recommend this guide to anyone seeking their A+ certification. Having used this text in a classroom enviroment, I found it to cover all aspects of the A+ core technologies. The book is well written and easy to understand. I would not hesitate to recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: All you need
Review: I've looked at a lot of A+ books and this one by far has the most bang for the buck. It has 1,000 practice questions, the best graphics of any book, and two hours of video from Scott Mueller's upgrading and reparing book. I also like the tearcard, which is really a great tool. This publisher really seems to know exactly what readers want.
Rating:
Summary: Covers Everything
Review: I've used this book in training classes and have found it to cover all the A+ domain objectives. The sample test banks are really helpfull if your studying for the exam. The illustration are accurate as is the technical content. If you are looking for an A+ study guide that also has plenty of technical information, this is the book for you.
Rating: 
Summary: Don't Rely on it
Review: Obviously, this book is poorly organized and lack of proof-reading. You can always find duplicate materials in this book, in differnet chapters or even 2 pages after. You'd also find several errors in both content and practice questions; this slowed down my studying speed as I had to verify the material from the web whenever I had question. Don't rely on this book if you want to walk into the exam centre with confidence.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book!
Review: Regaring the two-star review, "Amateurish .." I'm not sure what that reader is reading because there's an entire Glossary that explains all the terms, best Glossary of any A+ book I've seen. The book is bigger than Network+ because A+ is TWO exams, Network+ is ONE exam. It's huge because it has twice the features and content of any other book. Also, CompTIA keeps adding things to the exams without taking anything out. So books keep getting bigger and bigger. Regarding the "why" not being explained -- that's the nature of the CompTIA exams, so you can't blame the authors for that. I happen to like the white space. If you pay closer attention, you'd notice that the space is reserved for all the Notes, Tips, and Cautions that are great things to know before you take the test. If there aren't any for that particular section, then it looks like white space. And how big would the book be if they explained every Why in the book? The A+ exam is based on facts. Learn the facts, get yourself some experience, and you're on your way. If you're new to the A+ concepts, this is the best book available. If you're not, then get something else but don't bash books that aren't intended for you.
Rating:
Summary: "Fifth Edition" still plagued by hundreds of errors...
Review: The good...
The book is solid content-wise and quite comprehensive IMHO. Additionally, I found the content on the media included with the book to very useful. In some cases it even makes up for the short comings of the book. While the included version of PrepLogic testing software is an out-of-date trial, it is MUCH better (IMHO) than the "full / current" version of software offered at the vendor's website. Unfortunately, you can't that buy that version. You also get an electronic version of the book too. This package provides loads of great questions, realistic practice exams, hands-on labs to try and video footage.
The bad...
While this just my opinion, I object to the wording / vagueness of certain questions in the book. Since this is a learning tool, being more verbose would have been helpful IMHO.
I would have preferred to have been provided with the "Fifth Edition" instead of the "Fourth Edition" of the ebook since it's more convenient to tote along than the huge tome of a book that it is. Not to mention that the "fourth" edition totally ignores XP. However, this may not be an issue for you since the ebook is really just a bonus item even though you're still paying for it.
The ulgy...
Both the ebook and the printed version in this package are riddled with hundreds of typos of various sorts. This is no exaggeration and I am "not" referring to grammatical style or semantics here. I didn't go looking for them, they're glaring unavoidable misprints.
The most noticable ones were in the end of chapter review tests! This certainly raised certain quality control concerns in my mind. Since the book wasn't cheap, the least they could have done was try to ensure it was error-free. I have read many technical books and can't recall a book in which I encountered such careless editing. It really mars what could have otherwise been a "great" book.
Conclusion:
I would still suggest purchasing it, but you might wish to excercise the following cautions...
1) Be prepared for the huge lack of proof-reading.
2) Don't expect to read the provided e-book and have it match with or be as comprehensive as the real book.
3) Don't try to "upgrade" to the full version of the provided software. Instead you will need to replace it with the more current version of the software.
4) Definitely DON'T pay FULL price for it at your local bookstore! Buy it at a discount here or wherever!
Rating: 
Summary: Not as bad as some would believe.
Review: Used it to pass my hardware test (I mostly "winged" the OS one), only gripe about the book was some of the errors that were easily picked up on. You should always use other study materials besides using a book IMO and this book will suffice for the "book" portion of your studies. Btw, I didn't find the e-book on my CD....maybe it was removed in later versions.
Rating:
Summary: slightly disappointed
Review: Well, I went looking for a decent book for A+ cert. This one seemed to be the biggest and "most official" that I could find.
Right off, I noticed issues. First off, the editors were on a long nap. This shows more on the clarity of the material. Second, you WILL find at least one or two informational errors on every chapter, not counting typos. This was making me kind of worried, since, even though I am picking these errors out because this is mostly review, what am I missing?. My third complaint is on the review/tests. They are too redundant. The questions are asked so many times you just skip them out of annoyance. Some of the "answers" dont even answer the question properly. And some of the questions are not fully covered in the reading.
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