Rating: 
Summary: How can I convince you not to buy this book?
Review:
Three weeks ago I read the reviews of this book on Amazon.com, which were mixed, and decided to give it a shot. Oh cruel fate, why me? Why didn't you warn me, faithful reviewers? And why did I open the enclosed software, making it impossible to get my money back?
This book is awful. Number one problem: It's simply too long and has too much useless information. I'm talking 50% - 75% useless. The history of what company invented which cable and what lawsuits they had and why they invented the cable and on and on and on and on and IT NEVER STOPS! Dozens of paragraphs start with the phrase "you won't need to know this for the exam..." Worse still, dozens of paragraphs END with phrases like "you won't be expected to memorize any of this for the exam." Well gee, why did I just read it then?
The second problem is the author's use of analogy to explain concepts. So the parallel port is the yellow brick road, and the data bits are Dorothy and her pals, and the bus is like the gateway to the emerald city, and the port is like the evil gatekeeper, and the CPU is the wizard of Oz ... Are we supposed to rent the movie so we can understand this or what?
The book is darned clever. Oh my it's clever. The author is a regular Dave Barry. I've read dozens of technical books, and sometimes it's nice when the author breaks up the monotony by surprising you with a "zinger." But every page? Quite annoying.
The book has trouble deciding who its audience is. Sometimes it points out the painfully obvious. ("Alcohol is a liquid that evaporates" - No kidding!) Other times the book drifts into obscure acronyms and jargon which even someone with a degree in Computer Science (like myself) would have trouble following.
To be fair, the information seems fairly up-to-date and complete, and the book seems well proofread. If I was just doing this for a hobby, and I had lots of time to read amusing anecdotes and side notes, this book would be great. It would also be good if I was maybe a high school kid who didn't know much about computers.
I'm betting 99% of you out there are like me, you probably know half of this stuff already and you just want to pass the test. And you're going to hate this book just like I did. You have been warned. :)
Rating:
Summary: Ough!
Review: Dont ever,ever,ever use the Exam Cram 2 Exam Questions book. If there's any book out there preparing you to FAIL the exam, its this one. I stopped reading halfway after realizing the amount of mistakes it had. You may be able to wing it and see right off the bat which ones are wrong. But just by the fact that this is publish material, makes it so insulting. I passed the exam the first time, but no credit to this book whats so ever.
For exam readiness before sitting in the exam room, purchase
"The A+ Exams Guide: (Exam 220-301), (Exam 220-302) ". This is an excellant book. You can see my review under the book details section.
Rating: 
Summary: I passed 2day...
Review: Hey..I passed the OS test 2day and i pased the Core one a while ago..anyway..this book is a good help if U R using it besides a full exam guide,and the practice exams R cool and good..
Kinan.
Rating: 
Summary: Good Starter Book
Review: I am MCSE, A+, and CCNA certified and used this book as part of my preparation for the CompTia A+ exams.This book features a cramsheet tear out that is better than most I have seen. It gives good reminders of the basics, such as: "serial cables usually have a DB9-9 pin connector." These tidbits won't get you through the exam, but do provide a quick review of the material. If you can't read and expand on a statement, such as the one above, then you need to study that particular area more thoroughly. The CD for this book includes practice questions that are also good for testing your knowledge of the material, but do not expect to see actual CompTia test questions here. Again, these questions are only good for measuring your progress. I found the chapter format for this book refreshing and easy to read. Each chapter includes: An overview of critical terms and concepts.
Plenty of sidebars and graphic illustrations.
10 question practice exam with good explanations of the answers. This book overall presents an excellent overview of both the hardware and operating system exams and should be used in conjunction with Mueller's "Upgrading and Repairing PCs" classic (ISBN: 0789727455).
Rating: 
Summary: This book is not for everyone.
Review: I do not recommend this book, but it have the practice exams CD, so it is not total waste of time. The reason I am not happy is because this book has too much random, off the point's information, and many discussions in this book which do not cover enough to satisfy my needs to past COMPtia A+ exam. After this, I am going to go buy me Sybex A+ book, which I've heard it is A+ complete book, so hopefully I'll get the money back. Do not buy this book if you are just starting out A+ courseware. 2 stars for the CD included.
Rating:
Summary: Best A+ Book I have read
Review: I have read numerous A+ books and even though they talk about everything you need to know, most don't piece everything together for you. If you are looking for a book that helps you memorize just the answers to the questions, don't buy this book, it's way more than that. If you want a book that burns a visual image of how everything works and the history of it all, this is the book for you.
And to all of you saying this book sucks because it has too much information, I really hope you never make it into the field because any computer tech that complains about learning more about stuff than they need to doesn't need to be working on people's computers. Sure you can pass the exams by just memorizing all the answers, but how do you expect to be successful when you refuse to learn past that?
Rating: 
Summary: I passed, with frustration
Review: I just barely passed my A+ harware certification, technically using only this book (I've dabbled in computers for years, also took 2 college classes). The low price attracted me, but I wish I got something more comprehensive (or clearer).
Cons: I found this book very frustrating. For a "cram" there sure is a ton of (useless) background information and laughablly verbose and complicated explanations. It simply took me forever to piece together what they were saying. It was only when I turned to the internet to supplement the concepts did I finally see how much clearer certain things could be explained. Also after taking the exam, I felt the book prepared me to understand the questions, but not necessarily be able to know the right answer.
Pros: I appreciated the occasional humor that helped wake me up after a dry discussion. After scoring an 85% on the book practice test (which assures "if you can get through our test, you'll have no trouble with the real exam") I scored a 55% on the real exam. Not reassuring, but I did pass, so I give it 3 stars.
Perhaps it was my inexperience, so this book may make more sense if you are already familiar with the concepts. For me, I've already bought Sybex's A+ book to help pass the OS test. I passed hardware, but I would definitely recommend a supplement (or replacement) for Exam Cram.
Rating:
Summary: Awesome book!
Review: I not only used this book to pass the exam but I have to hide it from my coworkers because they're always stealing it. These guys explain things better than anybody else. I'm not saying its the only book you'll need, but it's pretty close.
Rating:
Summary: Poor proofreading
Review: I only read about 50 pages of this book so this is not a complete review. The reason I didn't finish the book is that it is littered with small errors. I am sure the authors know the subject matter but the editing and proofreading of the book are so poor that it is impossible to know when a detail is correct. If you are studying for the A+ Certification exam, you will want to get the details right so stick with a more reliable book like Michael Meyers' A+ Certification Exam Guide.
Rating:
Summary: Informative, but too "funny"
Review: I read about 60 pages and returned this book. The author(s) punctuate the book with distracting humor ("The CPU is not a nuclear reactor and should not be confused with one.") and confusing analogies. I would rather read a book that stuck to the facts, rather than describing parallels between the weather during a horse race and "bandwidth" of motherboard bus. The actual computer information seemed detailed and relevant to A+ test taking. The question reviews made me think about what I read and forced me me to review. I would recommend this book if you have a phlegmatic personality.
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