CompTIA Network+ Certification All-in-One Exam Guide, 5th Edition (Exam N10-005) [Hardcover]

Would I recommend this book? Yes.

The book definitely covers all that you need to know for the test. I bought the book, read it once, took notes during a second read through, studied my notes frequently, reread a couple chapters, recopied notes for a couple chapters, took the practice exams that came with the book, and took the practice exam on the CompTIA site (it was for the N10-004 so it wasn't that helpful for this test) over the course of thirty days. I passed on my first try. As far as previous networking experience goes, I've set up home wireless routers, worked in a computer corporation warehouse (long time ago when 10BaseT was current), and have read A+ second and seventh editions (I still haven't taken the A+ certification). Obviously, I had a little catching up to do in the networking arena.

What I found challenging was sorting out all the acronyms. There are nearly 350 acronyms and a lot are very similar. But, once I started associating groups of acronyms to their related networking topic, knowing what they are and , just as important, knowing what they are not, became much easier. Knowing the acronyms, in my opinion, is crucial.

The exam tips in the book are relevant and accurate. Know the OSI and TCP/IP layers, port numbers, cable types, command prompt tools, subnetting, etc. All the information is there. It is just a matter of studying and organizing it all well enough to remember it. My personal tip is "know your acronyms!"

Passing the test really comes down to two things: 1. How experienced you are with networking? and 2. How good are your study skills? This is also covered in the first chapter of the book.

I think most people want to know if the test can be passed with this material. I am proof that it can. However, it was simply due to studying the material hard and long enough to have a relatively good understanding of not only what things are called but also how they work. It isn't terribly difficult material but there are a lot of topics to cover and some require in depth working knowledge. But, again, it just comes down to dedicating enough time and energy to studying in order to learn the material.

Good luck!

One of the first things you will notice in the book is that it gives a table to help calculate your time of study required. This is very helpful in planning a schedule and setting an exam date. After taking the exam there only seemed to be a handful of questions that were not covered by the material and these could have been unscored seed questions.

The number of acronyms that you must know for the exam is huge. This book includes them and the practice exams will test you on your ability to remember what they are. There are many tables in the book and you need to know this information. For example, know the different types of cabling and connectors, along with their properties. There are vast numbers of diagrams and pictures in the book to help you understand and visualize the information that is being presented.

I found the book to be a fairly easy read. The images and diagrams help to break up the pages a lot better than books that take the wall-of-text approach. Personally, I found that reading 20-45 minutes at a time worked very well and most chapters would take 2-3 such sessions.

I have 8 years of experience in the IT field, mostly Windows server and desktop support. I left the field about 4 years ago. I read this book twice, one month between reads. I also took both practice exams twice. My total time was 46 hours of preparation. I scored 860 on the exam.

If you are new to the field I would still suggest a second text as it often helps to have the material presented in multiple ways. I can not suggest any other books as I have not read any besides this one.

I went to a book store to buy the hardcover of this book and I absolutely LOVE it. He is concise and very easy to follow. I am already several chapters in and feel very confident in the author and his writing style. I would recommend this book to anyone who is looking to get into the networking field with little or no networking experience. Buy this book hardcover or CD-Rom.