Well, it looks like I'm already seeing some improvement. I took another 100-question practice exam this morning and got a 67%. I think it's good that I'm seeing results this quick, and I'm finding out what specific areas I have to study up on in order to get success. In reality, I only need to raise my score a bit more to pass the real certification. I just hope that this information is still relevant, but I think it will be for the most part. Anything "newer" would most likely have been addressed in other IT classes I've taken since.
There are 4 different "exams" on this software, and this time I chose the second one. There were some similar questions, and some different ones, and some really weird ones I don't think I've ever heard of before. Like UARTS... what is that?? But at least now I'm aware of the expectations a bit more. I will continue using the textbook from Net+ to study (I have a method of reviewing the chapter summaries, and using a lot of the diagrams to drill with) and online forums. Maybe I can find some eBooks as well, that would be nice.
I think so far I'm making good on my desire to practice every day. Maybe when I get my software test scores above 90% I will go and take the actual exam, just to ensure I have a margin of error built in. Like I've said before, it's essential that I pass. And after I do, I'm going to study and take A+. Then, MCSA exams, and finally, Cisco.
Thursday, March 25, 2010
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
A New Beginning
Well, last night I finally completed my 2-credit project. Now, all I have to accomplish is successfully certifying, and documenting that process. Once again, I turn to this blog--for revival, redemption, and my quest for Net+ certification before the end of the semester!
I'm not trying to be negative, but I was hoping to already be certified by now. However, I haven't really studied or practiced since November. Today, I took another 100-question practice exam in CertBlaster. The results indicate that I'm at the same level I was in November. I received a 60% and finished in about half hour. At least it gives me study objectives.
I know this is going to be a real challenge, but at the same time I've now freed up enough time in my schedule in order to make this happen. It HAS to happen. I need to certify to graduate, and to get a career I'm actually interested in. And getting Net+ will just be a small beginning for me.
When I get home from class, I will study for at least an hour later this afternoon. I will drill myself and work on memorization of key facts, especially ones that reappear over and over again in the exam. Gotta work strategy on this one.
I'm not trying to be negative, but I was hoping to already be certified by now. However, I haven't really studied or practiced since November. Today, I took another 100-question practice exam in CertBlaster. The results indicate that I'm at the same level I was in November. I received a 60% and finished in about half hour. At least it gives me study objectives.
I know this is going to be a real challenge, but at the same time I've now freed up enough time in my schedule in order to make this happen. It HAS to happen. I need to certify to graduate, and to get a career I'm actually interested in. And getting Net+ will just be a small beginning for me.
When I get home from class, I will study for at least an hour later this afternoon. I will drill myself and work on memorization of key facts, especially ones that reappear over and over again in the exam. Gotta work strategy on this one.
Saturday, November 28, 2009
Update
I know it's getting late in the semester, but things are very hectic. I got another job, and the holidays are upon us. At least I'm keeping up in my server class, and that's helping me to refresh on a lot of related topics. DNS has been mastered fairly well, maybe not as much as DHCP, but I find it a more challenging topic. I think it's going to be one of those practice-makes-perfect scenarios.
Anyways, a quick update on the Net+ cert progress. I'm looking to buy my voucher within the next week or so. A week or two ago I took another "practice exam" just to gauge my progress, and did much better. I got about a 66%, which clearly wouldn't pass the real exam, but it's still a jump from the first time. I also printed out an itemized sheet of topics I need to work on. This will aid me in further studying, and also narrowing the gap of material. Obviously time is a crucial factor at this point, so I need to maximize results. I'm still very confident that I will be Net+ certified by January. I know my test date is being moved back, but there's no shame in that. I'll try and update again soon, when more work has been made on this front. Until then...
Anyways, a quick update on the Net+ cert progress. I'm looking to buy my voucher within the next week or so. A week or two ago I took another "practice exam" just to gauge my progress, and did much better. I got about a 66%, which clearly wouldn't pass the real exam, but it's still a jump from the first time. I also printed out an itemized sheet of topics I need to work on. This will aid me in further studying, and also narrowing the gap of material. Obviously time is a crucial factor at this point, so I need to maximize results. I'm still very confident that I will be Net+ certified by January. I know my test date is being moved back, but there's no shame in that. I'll try and update again soon, when more work has been made on this front. Until then...
Wednesday, October 14, 2009
This is my first post in a while, and for that I apologize. I've been a bit behind academically as of late. Today was my first day off after 9 straight days of working, and I missed class last week due to lack of transportation.
I have class tomorrow night, and hopefully I can get all caught up before then. I have managed to get the .iso for XP Pro and set up a virtual machine using that, but I'm still having issues with client/server communication using Virtual PC. Hopefully I can clear those up tomorrow as well, because I need that functionality both for class labs and my project. I think I have made more progress toward gaining an internship, but it's really getting late in the game, that I realize. However, there is a potentially golden opportunity staring me in the face, and I feel it's worth the wait if I can take advantage of it. No spoilers yet, but I do have my fingers crossed.
I have off from work on Friday as well, so before the weekend I WILL take a practice test for my Net+ cert on CertBlaster. I want to get ahead in the Labsims as well, I'm pretty sure the next module deals with DNS. This is another important topic to grasp, clearly. Wish me luck, I'm trying to stay organized with my hectic schedule....
I have class tomorrow night, and hopefully I can get all caught up before then. I have managed to get the .iso for XP Pro and set up a virtual machine using that, but I'm still having issues with client/server communication using Virtual PC. Hopefully I can clear those up tomorrow as well, because I need that functionality both for class labs and my project. I think I have made more progress toward gaining an internship, but it's really getting late in the game, that I realize. However, there is a potentially golden opportunity staring me in the face, and I feel it's worth the wait if I can take advantage of it. No spoilers yet, but I do have my fingers crossed.
I have off from work on Friday as well, so before the weekend I WILL take a practice test for my Net+ cert on CertBlaster. I want to get ahead in the Labsims as well, I'm pretty sure the next module deals with DNS. This is another important topic to grasp, clearly. Wish me luck, I'm trying to stay organized with my hectic schedule....
Monday, October 5, 2009
Onward
Well, today I have reviewed chapter 5 in the text, dealing with network hardware. I got a healthy review of IRQ assignments among other things. That was something I've always had a little anxiety about, especially because of it's importance in CompTIA's A+. If I'm financially able, I want to obtain that cert this semester also.
I kind of skimmed some of the information that I've heard so many times before, about the differences between routers, bridges, switches, repeaters, hubs, etc. Needless to say this makes for good review, but it's material that I'm quite familiar with by now. I ended up taking the full 60 question practice exam in one of the appendixes, only to realize after that I don't have the answers to it. That will probably lead me to take a more thorough CertBlaster practice exam later on this week when I have more time.
I think I have DHCP down cold from all the practice I've gotten in and out of Server class. It feels good to be so confident in my abilities with a technology. I don't think I've mentioned this before, but the class I'm in maps to Microsoft's 70-291 exam, which I do hope to take. If you're following along, I'm hoping to get my MCSA to start with by the following route: 70-290, 70-291, Vista (I forget the exam #), A+, and Net+. If I can pull this all off before semester's end, then I will feel quite accomplished.
By the way, I just want to say hi to any potential visitors from Blackboard.
Until next time.
I kind of skimmed some of the information that I've heard so many times before, about the differences between routers, bridges, switches, repeaters, hubs, etc. Needless to say this makes for good review, but it's material that I'm quite familiar with by now. I ended up taking the full 60 question practice exam in one of the appendixes, only to realize after that I don't have the answers to it. That will probably lead me to take a more thorough CertBlaster practice exam later on this week when I have more time.
I think I have DHCP down cold from all the practice I've gotten in and out of Server class. It feels good to be so confident in my abilities with a technology. I don't think I've mentioned this before, but the class I'm in maps to Microsoft's 70-291 exam, which I do hope to take. If you're following along, I'm hoping to get my MCSA to start with by the following route: 70-290, 70-291, Vista (I forget the exam #), A+, and Net+. If I can pull this all off before semester's end, then I will feel quite accomplished.
By the way, I just want to say hi to any potential visitors from Blackboard.
Until next time.
Friday, October 2, 2009
More DHCP
Well, yesterday was a class day, and so I got my hands even dirtier in the DHCP bucket. It was the chapter for the week, so I got a lot of practice. I worked with authorizing servers and activating scopes. With scopes, I created and deleted multicast, basic, and superscopes. I also played around with some configuration options, but more will probably be done with that later. I have some Labsims to finish too, but overall I'm feeling pretty comfortable.
I'd like to speed up my progress, but I think I'm getting a more comprehensive review/study than I originally anticipated, just because of the amount of material I'm being exposed to for class. I've been going through the Net+ text, and read up the summaries on chapters 3 and 4 to make sure I'm good on that stuff. These cover transmission basics, media, and protocols. These are all important topics so I'll probably delve in a bit deeper to make sure I have everything down. Hmm.. what's the color ordering for wires when making a cat5 utp cable again?
In other news, I nabbed two books from the library to help me in my Linux adventures. I got The Idiot's Guide to Linux and Linux Programming for Dummies. I think these will be great resources for me to play with, because I have very little previous experience with the OS. I will most likely be utilizing Ubuntu on VirtualBox. Maybe one day I can even go for my Linux+ cert! You've got to dream big.
I'd like to speed up my progress, but I think I'm getting a more comprehensive review/study than I originally anticipated, just because of the amount of material I'm being exposed to for class. I've been going through the Net+ text, and read up the summaries on chapters 3 and 4 to make sure I'm good on that stuff. These cover transmission basics, media, and protocols. These are all important topics so I'll probably delve in a bit deeper to make sure I have everything down. Hmm.. what's the color ordering for wires when making a cat5 utp cable again?
In other news, I nabbed two books from the library to help me in my Linux adventures. I got The Idiot's Guide to Linux and Linux Programming for Dummies. I think these will be great resources for me to play with, because I have very little previous experience with the OS. I will most likely be utilizing Ubuntu on VirtualBox. Maybe one day I can even go for my Linux+ cert! You've got to dream big.
Wednesday, September 30, 2009
Apologies.
Sorry for the lack of updates, life has been pretty hectic over the last few days. I've been working a lot and studying for my one class this semester that centers around Microsoft Server 2003. I have to admit, this class has been great thus far in preparing me for certification. I know it's a bit off the mark of Net+, but a lot of the material is similar. I've had practice subnetting, and accomplished some DHCP labs so far. Both good things to be familiar with! I'll get a better update out tonight describing my progress, hopefully I can get through another chapter summary or two.
On a side note, I got VirtualBox installed and running with Ubuntu so far. I was downloading the .iso for Fedora, but my download cancelled halfway through the night. Anyway, I want to become more skilled with Linux, as it could really prove invaluable in my career.
On a side note, I got VirtualBox installed and running with Ubuntu so far. I was downloading the .iso for Fedora, but my download cancelled halfway through the night. Anyway, I want to become more skilled with Linux, as it could really prove invaluable in my career.
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