CCNA Notes – 3 Crucial Things To Know When Choosing CCNA Summary Notes
by Francis Teo on September 11, 2009
in ccna notes
CCNA notes, also known as CCNA summary notes or exam cram notes are an essential part of preparing for the CCNA. One of the best known is the Exam Cram CCNA notes book. Employers these days value troubleshooting skills and hands-on configuration skills to be extremely important when they are deciding which network engineer to hire. I believe that one of the reasons that Cisco introduced simulation questions into the CCNA is because of this market requirement.
Even with this new focus on practical skills, the fact remains that if you want to pass the CCNA and become an effective networks engineer, you need to remember all the important networking terms. Factual knowledge such as the OSI model, and the default administrative distances of each of the routing protocols are something that you need to be certain of before taking the exam or trying to apply for an networking job. In this regard, CCNA notes are very useful as a memory aid which can help you prepare for the CCNA exam. Here are 3 points to look out for when choosing CCNA notes:
- CCNA Notes Exam version – This is the most important thing to take note of. Cisco changes the CCNA syllabus regularly perhaps every 1-2 years. It is important that all your certification books and notes are up-to-date with the current version of the exam. This is particularly important as CCNA notes are usually the slowest to get updated when it comes to CCNA study material. Do check carefully to see if the exam revision stated on the CCNA notes is that of the current exam. You can check the current exam version at the Cisco.Com.
- Portability – Portability is something you need to take note of when choosing good CCNA notes. For the usual CCNA candidate, you would have already attended the CCNA class or read throughly the important CCNA books and just need some study material to jog your memory and improve your recall of the key facts. At this point in your CCNA revision, you certainly do not want to be carrying thick and heavy books. Small-sized CCNA notes can be brought anywhere to study and you’ll be able to constantly revise the difficult to remember networking facts wherever you are
- Qualification of Authors – Although there really isn’t a need to get CCNA notes written by certified CCIEs, it is important that the notes are written by qualified professionals. Technical material needs to be written in a technically coherent manner in order to be useful for the CCNA exam. In my opinion, only certified individuals or Cisco trainers will know the best way to present this material. Do check who is writing the book before you buy.
I recommend the CCNA Exam Cram (Exam 640-802) (3rd Edition) CCNA notes for CCNA exam summary revision. It comes from the well known Exam Cram series of books and the current 3rd edition is up-to-date for the 640-802 CCNA exam. It comes in a very portable size and is written by CCNA experts. I used a previous edition of the book to obtain my CCNA previously and I highly recommend the exam cram series of books for clear and concise CCNA notes.
Cheers,
Francis (SavvyNetCert.Com)
