A+ Certification

[Kelemvor]

Anyoen taken the Hardware A+ Certification stuff? Just looking for general information on it such as what it covers, how it costs, is it raelly difficult or really not too bad?

I've been doing tech support for 6 years including replacing any hardware component that might be bad etc, but never got any certifications at all. But now have a job opportunity that would pay more if I had the certs. But I know nothing about them so any general info would be great.

Thanks.

 

[EyeMWing]

You may want to brush up on your ultra-legacy stuff (IBM PC all the way up to the beginning of ATX). Especially IRQs.

They have that on the test to make sure you have a history with computers and don't just hang out on IRC.

DO NOT take classes. Rely on your experience and the braindumps (There are some obscure questions about the physical plant's maintinence - the outside of the case, keyboard, and monitors)

And yes, you should spend $20 on access to at least one full braindump database, just to make sure nothing comes out of left field.

In terms of general difficulty - if you've ever been on a hardware channel on IRC or a hardware forum, and read some mildly technical articles from time to time, you can pass easily. If you've worked in the industry and cover your butt with braindumps, you shouldn't get anything wrong at all.

 

[Kelemvor]

What is a Brain Dump and where are the good ones online? Never heard of those before.

 

[EyeMWing]

Originally posted by: FrankyJunior
What is a Brain Dump and where are the good ones online? Never heard of those before.

A braindump is where people who go take the test submit the questions that they remember and the answer choices (And then people who know better come by and vote on the correct answer). Most of them allow you to see somthing like 10 questions and their answers for free, then require you to pay to see the rest.

Google on 'braindump comptia'

 

[Kelemvor]

I'll take a look at the Brain Dumps that are out there. I foudn out that a place near me offers the test for $125 each (softawre and hardware A+).

I never really use IRC at all but where would be some good techy channels to go to? I do need to brush up because I've been out of work for over 6 months and things are a bit rusty.

Thanks for the info.

 

[Soybomb]

I'd say don't waste your money on brain dumps if you've been doing pc repair. Take a look at irqs for com ports, know the laser printing cycler, and go take it. Its super super easy.

Don't worry about being out of work for 6 months, the info on the test is far more dated than that

btw: A+ isn't just hardware, to get the A+ you must complete both the hardware and os tests

 

[FoBoT]

i took it in '98 and it helped me get my first IT job

 

[Kelemvor]

Anyone know any sites that offer Free Sample/Practice tests so I could at least see if I know as much as I think I do? heh.

Stupid company will pay me more if I have the certification even though I've already shown I know everything that they could possibly ask for.

 

[Ulfwald]

I just took it back in July, it was a joke. they give you over an hour to take 1 exam, so 2 exams = about 2.5 hours. I passed them both in 20 minutes.

 

[AbsolutDealage]

An MCP will probably make you more marketable than an A+. If you've worked with windows 2k, brush up and take the 2k server exam (even if you have never touched server). It's easier then the 2k pro exam, and will earn you a much more respected cert.

 

[dquan97]

How many questions does each exam have?

 

[rh71]

Braindumps can lead you in the wrong direction... they can have 2 conflicting answers depending where you look - I wouldn't trust them. Some consider braindumps to be cheating as well. Leave it up to your moral standards as to whether you actually want to learn something out of this (even 6 years of tech support can't help you with knowing laser printers, IRQs, etc. all that well)... vs. getting a piece of paper that says you passed the test.

My advice would be to brush up on your knowledge via the Exam Cram book (they have one for teaching and another for exam questions)... then you can hit cert21.com for paid practice tests that are almost identical to the real thing. Most important here is what you want to get out of this certification.

 

[rky60]

Originally posted by: dquan97
How many questions does each exam have?

It depends, up to 30 tho, or if your above the passing percentage at question 20, 21, 22 etc.. up to, well 30

 

[Colebert]

A+ Certification is *EASY* Here's what i did.

1) goto www.getcertified4less.com and buy your voucher for both tests (199.00)

2) goto www.passitnow.com and take all the tests. the questions are almost identical to the test

3) once you can pass those with about 80% you'll be ready. go register.

4) i took the adaptive test and each took me 5 minutes.

 

[Muck]

I took the linear hardware part last month. 80 questions. $145. Lots of stuff on SCSI, IRQs. Lots of legacy stuff.

 

[Muck]

Damn Colebert, wish I would have known about that stuff when I was about to take the test.

 

[PCMarine]

Good thing you're not taking an english exam.

 

[Tab]

God, I really need to start craming

 

[AnyMal]

Well, one of the classes I teach is A+ so i may be of little help to you. Both exams are 20-30 questions long, it's in adaptive format so the actual number of questions will depend on how well you're doing. I use A+ complete from Sybex for my students, but if you just want to brush up I recomend Mike Myer's Passport series books.

Whoever suggested going MCP instead is dead wrong. You're better off with a vendor-neutural certification. Passing one MS exam will get you knowehere, besides not everyone is using MS products.

 

[Colebert]

Honestly. Take every one of the passitnow.com exams. Keep taking them until you are really really passing well. Then remember that IRQs 2 & 9 cascade along with the rest of the IRQ assignments. You'll be golden.

Oh, and also remember that when using a multimeter, set it to the lowest voltage setting. ...And no matter how many devices are on your USB bus, it only uses one IRQ. ...And be able to point to the jumper block on a motherboard. ...And know the FSB of a 300MHz celeron. ...And know that the maximum length of a 10Base2 segment is 185ft w/o a repeater.