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Books : Computing & Internet : Web Development : Web Administration : Certification : Exams : I-Net+
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Extremely thorough for an exam which is intended to be an overview, Syngress's I-Net+ Certification Study Guide will give you an in-depth look at the topics you'll need to pass. It'll be best if you have some basic experience in surfing and posting on discussion boards, however, since some minor misconceptions presented as straight fact in the book may lead you astray in the real world.The book itself goes into a wonderful excess of detail--if you're the sort of person who likes knowing the underpinnings to every concept you need to study for, this is the book for you. The sections on routing basics not only explain what routing is, but dip into arcane topics like Border Gateway Protocols and Network Access Points. The chapter on security not only describes basic concepts such as logging, but goes into detail on the weaknesses of Intrusion Detection Utilities and discusses the candidate technologies currently in contention for the as-yet-undecided Advanced Encryption Standard.
The writing style is clean and precise, treading that fine line between "too technical" and the "Dummies" writing. It could have used a few more illustrations to flesh out some of the finer points, though, and the content organisation is sometimes erratic--the OSI chapter comes after the chapter on routing (and believe me, you want OSI, a networking basic, before you start getting into routing).
However, there are some notable (and curious) facts that are left out. There is no discussion on TCP/IP subnetting to be found anywhere in the book, and DMZ zones are almost skipped over as a topic. Practically nothing is to be found on server bandwidth as a site consideration. And the chapter on HTML is a fine introduction to the topic, with clear writings and solid examples, but when you get to the section on scripting languages JavaScript is barely mentioned and not mentioned at all under the "When To Use Which Language" section. As one of the most popular Web technologies, it seems a disservice to mention it in passing.
But real-world concepts are often presented wrongly and with great authority here. The Study Guide blithely makes statements such as, "...mailing lists are the source of SPAM, which is unsolicited e-mail" without making any reference to, say, discussion lists or subscription e-mail newsletters. It also states that the slow-loading and long-suffering Shockwave is the improvement to the up-and-coming Flash multimedia technology, and doesn't make it clear that the only real difference between .com and .net is that .net is generally what you take when someone else bought the .com address.
The chapter on business issues, a frequently-overlooked I-Net+ topic, is fairly thorough and should be enough to squeak you through that section if studied thoroughly--unfortunately, the writing switches into severe business-speak jargon during these parts. Watching the writers throw around hackneyed terms such as "opportunities", "challenges" and "implementation" at every, opportunity, gets a bit dull.
The 20-question quizzes at the end of every chapter are very meticulous and tough, which helps the book considerably. You'll need to re-read each chapter more than once to pass the chapter-end tests. Self-testing software also provides value, but be warned that you'll have to use Internet Explorer to use the exams. A large glossary explaining terms helps build your comprehension.
In short, this is a good book that makes some strange choices. Thorough study will get you past the exam, as the admirably painstaking nature of the good chapters will balance out the chapters that gloss over (or misrepresent) other vital topics. However, just be warned that in many ways this is a "test-only" book, and keep an open mind if someone tells you that these concepts work a bit differently in the real world. --William Steinmetz
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The i-Net+ exam was developed for the millions of jobseekers who wanted to stand up tall and shout, "Hey! You! Companies! I know something about the Internet, so hire me for oodles of money!" And after you read the new Sybex i-Net+ Study Guide and pass the exam--because you will pass if you read this book thoroughly--then you too will be able to join in the joy and revelry that comes with being one of those mysterious wizards that Understands The Net.Okay...maybe it's not that great. (For one thing, the secret handshake we Internet wizards have gives you all sorts of nasty cramps.) But it is a laudable and well-written overview of the basic issues involved in working with the Web, which is exactly what the i-Net+ is testing for--and whether you're a long-term 'Net junkie checking your knowledge before the exam, or just a novice looking to position yourself for better and bigger things, this book will serve you very well.
Given the breadth of the topics that need to be covered, the guide is succinct but thorough. The writing is a cut above the usual mass of study guides, frequently taking oft-obtuse concepts like routing, copyright protection, and DHCP--and putting them in simple terms that the layman can understand. That said, the book is extremely text-heavy and uses illustrations sparsely, generally relying on long paragraphs to get the point across--if you're more visual than verbal, this probably isn't the book for you. The illustrations, primarily used to demonstrate routing and security concepts, are mostly top-notch and clarify the objectives nicely. Only one or two clunkers mar the excellent visuals.
But what about the content? The topics map the i-Net+ objectives closely and range from the basics of internetworking and simple protocol explanations all the way up to mid-range explanations of basic Internet design concepts, i-Net troubleshooting, and security. The chapters on networking basics and site functionality are outstanding for striking that tenuous balance between too complex for the beginner and too simple to pass the test.
However, a couple of notable topics are skipped over too quickly: the programming language section passed by far too fast, with major up-and-coming topics like Active Server Pages getting a one-paragraph brushoff, and the potentially exam-critical fact that VBScript only works in Internet Explorer browsers gets only a parenthetical warning buried deeply in the text. Likewise, the explanation of HTML basics is far too brief and could have used better organisation (say, a chart of the critical tags) to get beginners up to speed on simple HTML coding. In an inverse problem, the chapter on client configuration seemed a trifle overly worded.
There are 20 questions at the end of every chapter, with answers given immediately after. (A change I applaud Sybex for making, since flipping all the way to the end of the book was tres annoying.) The questions are multiple-choice and tend to err on the shallow side, but by and large they're decent preparation. There is an introductory assessment test and a final exam test, but for some reason Sybex chose not to let you know what a passing grade on these exams would be. (Try 75%, the passing grade on the actual i-Net+.) Tests on disk and a set of electronic flashcards provide more testing ability, although after taking all of them it's still unclear whether the i-Net+ expects you to install all patches immediately or wait until the last minute.
Despite a few minor drawbacks, this is still an excellent one-stop guide for the certification junkie. --William Steinmetz, amazon.com
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The i-Net+ exam was developed for the millions of jobseekers who wanted to stand up tall and shout, "Hey! You! Companies! I know something about the Internet, so hire me for oodles of money!" And after you read the new Sybex i-Net+ Study Guide and pass the exam--because you will pass if you read this book thoroughly--then you too will be able to join in the joy and revelry that comes with being one of those mysterious wizards that Understands The Net.Okay...maybe it's not that great. (For one thing, the secret handshake we Internet wizards have gives you all sorts of nasty cramps.) But it is a laudable and well-written overview of the basic issues involved in working with the Web, which is exactly what the i-Net+ is testing for--and whether you're a long-term 'Net junkie checking your knowledge before the exam, or just a novice looking to position yourself for better and bigger things, this book will serve you very well.
Given the breadth of the topics that need to be covered, the guide is succinct but thorough. The writing is a cut above the usual mass of study guides, frequently taking oft-obtuse concepts like routing, copyright protection, and DHCP--and putting them in simple terms that the layman can understand. That said, the book is extremely text-heavy and uses illustrations sparsely, generally relying on long paragraphs to get the point across--if you're more visual than verbal, this probably isn't the book for you. The illustrations, primarily used to demonstrate routing and security concepts, are mostly top-notch and clarify the objectives nicely. Only one or two clunkers mar the excellent visuals.
But what about the content? The topics map the i-Net+ objectives closely and range from the basics of internetworking and simple protocol explanations all the way up to mid-range explanations of basic Internet design concepts, i-Net troubleshooting, and security. The chapters on networking basics and site functionality are outstanding for striking that tenuous balance between too complex for the beginner and too simple to pass the test.
However, a couple of notable topics are skipped over too quickly: the programming language section passed by far too fast, with major up-and-coming topics like Active Server Pages getting a one-paragraph brushoff, and the potentially exam-critical fact that VBScript only works in Internet Explorer browsers gets only a parenthetical warning buried deeply in the text. Likewise, the explanation of HTML basics is far too brief and could have used better organisation (say, a chart of the critical tags) to get beginners up to speed on simple HTML coding. In an inverse problem, the chapter on client configuration seemed a trifle overly worded.
There are 20 questions at the end of every chapter, with answers given immediately after. (A change I applaud Sybex for making, since flipping all the way to the end of the book was tres annoying.) The questions are multiple-choice and tend to err on the shallow side, but by and large they're decent preparation. There is an introductory assessment test and a final exam test, but for some reason Sybex chose not to let you know what a passing grade on these exams would be. (Try 75%, the passing grade on the actual i-Net+.) Tests on disk and a set of electronic flashcards provide more testing ability, although after taking all of them it's still unclear whether the i-Net+ expects you to install all patches immediately or wait until the last minute.
Despite a few minor drawbacks, this is still an excellent one-stop guide for the certification junkie. --William Steinmetz, amazon.com
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For a lot of professionals, the I-net+ will be a "scoop" exam--after all , the Internet's been around for long enough that anyone who works with it on a daily basis probably has a good idea of how it works. These people will want tiny (and cheap) books with terse writing and a bare minimum of explanation, just to make sure that they've got everything before they go in and lock themselves in that tiny, unforgiving room. If that's you, then the I-net+ Exam Notes is it. If that's not you, then look elsewhere. There are better books for the beginner, or the semi-pro who wants full explanations.I-net+ Exam Notes weighs in at a scant 287 pages, and the writing is as bare-boned as a bleached cow skull in a distant desert. If you didn't know most of it before you read the book, you're not likely to have an in-depth understanding of any of it when you finish. This is not necessarily a slam against the Exam Notes, however, since the book itself claims that it's merely intended to familiarise you with the subjects presented on the I-net+ exam--and to give you brief overviews of the things you're not quite up to speed on. In this, it serves its purpose.
There are six chapters, each mapping to each of the major exam objectives--Basics, Client Configuration, Development, Networking/Infrastructure, Security, and Business Concepts. These are broken down into two-to-three page sections explaining each of the exam sub-objectives point by point. Each section is followed by a two-paragraph "Exam Essentials" summary, a "Key Terms And Concepts" section, and a three-question quiz.
The writing is very clear and to-the-point, explaining what it has to without a scrap of fuss or extraneous detail. You are given the bare minimum to get across the concepts that you'll need to pass the tests, without any sidelines, real-life examples, or ruminations on why certain technologies work that way. It isn't so much a book as it is a laundry list of brief explanations.
As such, the quality of the explanations is critical. Writing a book like this is like walking a tightrope, balancing between the yawning chasm of "too much data" and the pit of "not enough to pass the exam"...but fortunately, Notes usually pulls off a pretty good circus act. Most of the time the explanations work. There are a few clunkers that could prove to be stumbling blocks for the uninitiated, though--there's no explanation of which graphics files are best for bandwidth purposes (.JPG for pictures, .GIF for animations and graphics, etc.), and the explanation of VBScript doesn't bother to explain that it only works in Internet Explorer. The Business section is slightly under-explored, as is the section on Client Configuration. And furthermore, there are a few weird comments that seem to come out of left field, like saying that Web designers should use 4800 baud modems to check their download time. Huh?
The information is here though, laid out quickly--and redundantly. If you didn't get the fundamental ideas in the actual section, the "Key Terms And Concepts" or the "Essentials" sum-ups are sure to hammer them home. As such, you can expect to read your way through this book briskly but efficiently.
The only real drawback of this book are the Exam Questions, which are not only horrifically simple, but entirely wrong in a few areas. (You do not always need to manually enter a default gateway and subnet for a DHCP-served IP.) If you're concerned about what the actual I-net+ questions look like, you'd be better off buying a full book.
But then again, the I-net+ exam notes aren't supposed to be a full study guide. Considering what this is intended to be--a set of core concepts to be read by the professional who should pretty much know it by now--it's a good and relatively cheap buy to be read the day before the exam. --William Steinmetz