A+ certification, who has it?

[thecavemankevin]

I recently got a job as a hardware tech at for a law firm. At this point, i have no formal education for computers, just what i have learned from breaking them. My boss wants me to get my A+ certification which is great. I am more than happy to get new certs/education on their dime. I've flipped through a somewhat out dated A+ manual someone here had on their shelf and i am pretty familiar with the content already.

My questions are:
Who here has their A+, and do you have any advise/suggestions/general ramblings about it.
Any recomendations to education sites/practice tests?
Also, i want to get a more current A+ book, but there are a crap ton of them out there. Any recomendations as to a good one?

[BigEvil]

I recently got a job as a hardware tech at for a law firm. At this point, i have no formal education for computers, just what i have learned from breaking them. My boss wants me to get my A+ certification which is great. I am more than happy to get new certs/education on their dime. I've flipped through a somewhat out dated A+ manual someone here had on their shelf and i am pretty familiar with the content already.

My questions are:
Who here has their A+, and do you have any advise/suggestions/general ramblings about it.
Any recomendations to education sites/practice tests?
Also, i want to get a more current A+ book, but there are a crap ton of them out there. Any recomendations as to a good one?

I dont have it yet but should go get it. That and my N+, an MCP, ect ect.

Check out the computer sections at Barnes and Nobles. THey have a few good test prep books, but they are basically textbooks that you would find in a classroom. many of them have offers for test-prep software at reasonable prices that I have had people tell me good things about. The key is that you want to get practice tests that are current and not more than 2 years old.

For the A+ there are 2 parts. One for hardware, and one for software. They are pretty much 2 seperate tests. You dont take them at the same time. I think you have 30 days to take one once you passed the first.

From what I have seen of the practice tests, the A+ is not that difficult, but you must be prepared. And by that I dont mean cramming for a week or two ahead of time. I was like you, I learned by breaking things. The problem with that is you miss out on all of those great abbreviations and things that you never need to know but learn in a classroom anyhow. Alot of that stuff is on the tests.

IE:

How thick is a Type 1 PCMCIA card?
A. 3.3 mm
B. 5 mm
C. 10.5 mm
D. 12.5 mm

What CPU was the first to have the ability to switch between the Real mode and Protected mode without restarting?
A. 80286
B. 80386
C. 80486DX
D. 80486SX

he memory addresses from 0 to 640KB are known as
A. conventional memory
B. expanded memory
C. high memory
D. common memo

God, now that im looking at these, I cant believe how much I forgot!!!!

[rkjunior303]

A+ is useless, from what I hear from all my IT buddies. They laugh any time someone interviews and flaunts how they have their A+ and MSCE.

[Muzikman]

Certs never hurt, but they usually never help either. I am an MCSE in the NT4 track and it nothing for me besides make my wallet $600 lighter.

But, if someone is going to pay for you to get a certification, go for it. If you are getting the A+, I would suggest getting the Net+ also. They are cheap and easy tests.

And if they are really willing to pay for certs and training, get them to send you to some Cisco classes.

[Tobe2be]

A+ and CCNA certified. Thanks to my HS. but i really dont remember any of it. Always good to have. Just makes you one step higher of a person that doesnt have one.

[Echo419]

My brother has it.

-Yah

[Miscue]

I have A+ and Network+. The only reason why it is useful is: There's a lot of tools out there that think it's worth something. A good tech is a good problem solver. The A+ does absolutely nothing to test your problem solving skills... but rather your ability to answer some computer trivia. Pure memorization of a non-difficult subject matter is all it takes. What's also bad is the very low score requirements needed to pass... I think it was like 60% when I took it.

A completely worthless tech can pass. Someone who has never seen a computer before can pass... by memorizing a bit of material.

The only thing I've gained from it is: I don't have to waste a week going to Network+ training next month like the rest of my co-workers. Sometimes if a job description says that A+/Net+ is a desired qualification... you could get points for this depending on how their HR stuff works. So yeah, it could make the difference if you score close to someone else.

Otherwise... I think they're good for a high school student trying to get a job at CompUSA... but as far as professional IT goes... entirely worthless except for the before mentioned reasons. They're easy to get though, so you might as well do it.

I recommend the Dilbert A+ training books... it comes with a neat little Dilbert A+ games CD.

Don't stress over the test... you may find that the actual test is way easier than your example tests and your study materials. Big freakin joke when I took it.

[Miscue]

A+ is useless, from what I hear from all my IT buddies. They laugh any time someone interviews and flaunts how they have their A+ and MSCE.

It's one of those things that you just don't bring up unless it's relevant to do so. Pretty much anyone who makes a big deal of these certs is kind of full of themselves. Unless the dude has like multiple CCIE's or something... there's some monsterous certs out there that are quite the accomplishment.

[Resurection]

I have worked in PC repair, build, and service. I also have spent the majority of my professional life working in the cable industry.

We required all of our installers to be A+ for the warm & fuzzy it gave our customers. That's it. I would equate A+/Net+ to the big ASE Certified poster at your local car mechanics shop.

It's only worth the paper it's printed on. True value comes from experience - with computers and cars.

If your employer wants you to get the cert, make them pay for it. Study some of the free stuff online and you will be fine. Passing the A+/Net+ is nothing. When I got my A+ there was still questions about Windows 3.1 on it, but I know it hasn't gotten any harder, just more current.

[OfficerGoat]

A+ and CCNA certified. Thanks to my HS. but i really dont remember any of it. Always good to have. Just makes you one step higher of a person that doesnt have one.

That is why no one ever cares about these things much.

The other thing I have noticed is that EVERY shop seems to run things differently. Working for a large Casino Chain I noticed this very blatently when we took another casino chain over. Working on one of our systems and then going to one of their systems is a night and day difference. Nothing right or wrong.. just differnt.

I'd say grab any new book on it out there.. study up and get them to pay for the test and be done with it to make them happy. Being willing to cert up isnt a bad thing ... and if it makes your employer happy .. well that never hurts your promotability now does it??

[Miscue]

For a while there was a certification fad, I'm glad that it's come and gone. People made a big deal over it. I think over time a lot of IT people realized that they didn't mean much. People who have them often will tell you that they are worthless, and those who don't say they won't bother with them unless their employer pays for it. Or worse... some of them who have it will make a huge deal over it - these are the ones who don't have a clue... and are going for gold in the pretentious Olympics.

These certs still get my goat from time to time... someone who doesn't know much but thinks they do will put others or themselves on a pedestal because they have cert XYZ. "Yeah, he's really good. He is XYZ certified." And then they act like you don't know anything.

If someone has a CompSci/EEG/CEG/etc. engineering degree... versus someone who doesn't... that's different... because it's very likely (not necessarily) that this person does indeed have an elevated understanding of particular topics (not all) that the other would basically have to go to school for several years or have the equivalent. Then again, I know people with these degrees and I have to wonder how they got through knowing nothing about anything. Another exceptional case is a CCIE cert - you have to really know your stuff to get that.

I still think they are a good idea to get, especially if your employer is paying for them. But just be realistic about what that paper really represents... and what its actual use is.

[LudavicoSoldier]

Experience counts more than any piece of paper. I've been in IT for 8 years now, and the only certs that I have found need for are ones that allow me to teach certification classes. Cisco classes to be exact.

Any knowledgeable IT department who does its own hiring knows the truth about highly certified people with little real world experience. Man have I met some freaking morons who have a pile of certs, but not a single clue about how to actually apply any of that knowledge to a real job. Certs just get you past HR paper monkies.

Idijits I tell ya!

[pbzmag]

It took it for the hell of it as I noticed that some companies required A+ when I was looking for a job. I have a some notes that I can copy for you if you need them but is also outdated by a month before they changed the test. It pretty much sums up on how the test will be. The test is pretty much like any other cert test. Expect multiple choice, fill in the blank, point/select correct item, etc. Personally, it was a breeze for me since I've been working with computers since the early 90's. I actually know someone who failed it the first time. Don't know how, but he was one of those who switched to computers.

If your looking for a book, I'd recommend "All in One A+ Certification" by Meyers. Just look for a large gold book with isbn# 0072126795. It comes with a cd full of practice questions that are much harder than the cert test itself. If you can answer those, you'll do fine.