CCNA: Cisco Certified Network Associate Study Guide, Deluxe Edition

Rating:
Summary: excellent! you can tell it's written by a CCIE...
Review: Awesome book. I have moderate experience and a lot of this was childs play, but he goes further than what you need to know, which is good because it will help you with the trick questions which are probing you to see if you just memorized answers. I'm going for the gusto CCNP and CCIE for the next 6 months so i bought the simulator. it's cool, and is a cheap way to get a lot of hands on experience without your boss screaming at you for bringing the network down (I had that problem, jobless now though). If you just want the CCNA and are on a budget then you don't need the simulator if you can visualize doing the commands. but get it if you're going further than CCNA. my only beef with the book is that a CCIE obviously didn't proof read it, the author shouldn't proofread his own work because things slip and about 4-5 times i found myself stumped and going through the book to find some correlation only to found that it was a typo, not a misspelling but a false double negative statement (he must have changed his mind on how he was going to say it and didn't complete it), i found a couple of them, and a couple review questions with the answer being contrictory to his explanation. so if you're find a contradiction, look it up and write/scratch the sentence.
Good luck!

Rating:
Summary: Difficult for a beginner
Review: I am a beginner in Cisco router and a non-English speaker. The first few chapters are good. However in the rest, especially the WAN part, I face a lot of problems in reading this book. The editors can use simple English and more diagrams to explain the difficult topics like Cisco Flash Card. Moreove the exercise sequence is not too match with the simulation program. If the editors can improve the above, this book is the great.

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Summary: The ULTIMATE CCNA Prep book! Just passed with a 913!
Review: I am a Cisco Networking Academy student and I just passed the CCNA 640-607 Exam yesterday. This wasn't the only book that I used to prep for the exam, but this book was instrumental in providing me with the answers for the exam that the other books didn't. Along with this book, I used the Cisco Networking Academy online curriculum, ICND, Ciscopress Router and Switch eSim, Transcender, and Preplogic. Hands-on experience with routers and switches was the key to my success, but I could have easily passed this test by using only the this book. The test was a lot harder than the Transcender CCNA practice test. It's usually the other way around. Anyway, if you get only ONE book for exam prep, get this one. You will not regret it.

Rating:
Summary: Awesome book! Get this for CCNA - period.
Review: I found this book somewhat lacking. My personal preference when "learning" the material is to have more information than is needed to allow for a thorough "understanding" of the material. Lammle's book does have the information to pass the exam, but nothing more. If you want to memorize information for the CCNA exam (or are recertifying and just need to be refreshed), this is the book for you. If you want to learn the material, I recomend one of the Cisco Press books.

Additionally make sure to use the Sybex errata page as there are MANY mistakes in this book. A lot of them seemed obvious to me, but I have been doing this for a few years now. Someone just starting out may not notice many of them.

Rating:
Summary: Recommended book to pass your CCNA exam
Review: I prepared my CCNA exam with this book and I passed with 974 on 1000.

Very easy and pleasant to read.
Most of the book is clear and topics are explained indepth enough for you to pass the exam.

I really recommend this book as referene to prepare a CCNA because it cover exactly what you need to do it (and not more).

However I would recommend to keep concentrate during your reading because there are some mistakes (I would say something around 10 mistakes on the overall). Mistakes appear more and more as long as you reach the final chapters (8-10). (Beware the "Extended IP Access List Example" on page 461. Very confusing mistake regarding the swap of permit and deny commands).

Todd Lammle certainly should have had a deadline to write the book because the last chapter is written in a rush. And some topics would have require more details (such as Frame-Relay, ISDN, and DDR map command).

A last remark : Spanning Tree Protocol (STP) is poorly explained and difficult to understand from this book if you never read something about it.
I would recommend to learn about STP from a different source.

Personnaly I used the "CISCO certification, Bridges Routers and switches for CCIEs" book from Andrew Bruce Caslow & Valeriy Pavlichenko (Editor : PH PTR). I borrowed it from a colleague of mine, and it appeared to be a very detailed guide about anything regarding switching, though it was not as cool to read as Todd Lammle books.

Oh, btw. Don't miss at any cost to read the appendix B about Catalsyt 1900, or you could miss your exam !

Don't misunderstand me.
The perfect book dosen't exist. You will always find mistakes in book or unclear topics.
But this CCNA study guide from Todd Lammle was really enjoyable to read, clear on an overall point of view, and efficient (I did it with 974/1000 successfull.)

And the exam test provided and chapter review questions though different from the exam question were undoubtly very usefull to prepare the exam.

Good luck ! ;)

Rating:
Summary: Routing Protocols
Review: I think is a complete reference to pass the Cisco's Exam and reviewing your concepts.
You have virtual labs to configure different scenarios, and try many things. Nothing happen if you add a wrong line. And you can change easily everything.
You will have the entire book in electronic format and many other sources to learn in your computer.
But the exam version is not the last one. You can check in Cisco's site. However, the book is almoust complete.

Rating:
Summary: The Best Book - the CD's are worth the price alone!
Review: I used this book ONLY and passed the CCNA test on the first try...that is what counts for me.

I am a true 'newbie' and had NO experience with Cisco or routing.

The book was well layed out, easy to read, and obviously gave me the right knowledge to pass the test the first time.

The network simulator was invaluable, I don't think I would have passed without it. Not having access to a router, and no experience, the simulator really made the concepts in the book sink in for me.

Plus, knowing the comands is a must, and using the simulator made that 100 times easier than just sitting there looking at them in a book.

Rating:
Summary: Great Simulator, Not so great book.
Review: Last month I took the CCNA exam and I passed it with 978 out 1000. In fact I was studying the CNAP for one year but this book was the right complement to success in CCNA. Obviously the next step is to pass CCNP exam, getting help from Todd Lammle books. The material contains some errors but it's an excellent study guide.

Rating:
Summary: Updated to the 640-607 exam- a real winner.
Review: Todd Lammle has made a reputation for delivering CCNA Study Guide that will help you pass the exam the first time around, this book is certainly no exception. Cisco changed the exam from 640-507 to 640-607 and Lammle has kept pace with those changes in this must have reference manual.

Placing the exam objectives right in the front of the book, you then move to a assessment test that is both challenging and as a true measurement of the new exam as I have seen so far. Updated to the new exam this 825 page book should be the first place you go to study for the exam.

Layout of study guide is extremely important to the flow of material and that's why this book is so very good. Lammle starts off with internetworking overview and then to Layer 2 switching, from there you move to the IOS, routing, RIP, IGRP, VLANs, access lists, IPX, and WAN technologies, making this a very well rounded manual.

With 36 written and hands-on labs plus and added 7 labs in Appendix B for switching, coupled with over 200 review questions and tips and tricks, Lammle has once again given the reader everything and more they need to have an excellent shot at the exam.

Most books stop there but Lammle once again exceeds everyone by giving you 2 cdroms, the first is study tools like 200 practice questions, which include simulation type questions. 400 flash cards and 10 bonus exams along with the entire book in PDF format.

The second cd has a virtual lab to work with, including instructions for setup and use. While this book may cost a little more than others, the value and information clearly outweigh the cost difference as you have the number 1 book on the market.

Rating:
Summary: Lammle is once again at the top of his game.
Review: When I passed the CCNA exam a year ago I used the CCNA Study Guide by Todd Lammle and passed the exam with a 924. Had I had this book I am positive I would have done even better. Lammle is the first name in Cisco Certification exam material and judging from the content of the book there is no doubt why.

Lammle approach to the exam is by far the best I know of and studying the book in the order presented gives you the best chance of passing the exam on the first try. With Internetworking basics like the OSI model and topologies like Ethernet are the very beginning to the CCNA certification.

From there Lammle has you working with switching, which I like because switching should come before routing. Then you move to the internet protocols, IOS, IP routing VLANs and router management. Lammle again makes sure that far more information than the exam requires is included.

After that you then start working with IPX, Access lists and then WAN protocols like HDLC, PPP, Frame Relay and ISDN. Each section has review questions, the new thing I am very happy to see is both written and hands-on labs.

The cd included has over 400 practice questions, over 300 flash cards for both the PC and the palm devices and entire e-book. Lammle again takes the opening and adds not 2 but 4 additional bonus exams.

Finally as part of the study process is the use of an actual router and since this can be an expensive investment, Lammle has given you a Router Fundamental Simulator and practice labs. All this in one book and at a price that should make everyone happy. Whether certified or not, whether looking to refresh you skills this book is a must have for every router technician.