Product: 078214389X

I have been a casual Linux user for about three years, and a serious student of Linux networking and programming for about a year, so I figured that all I would need to pass the Linux+ exam is a little time with study guide. So I studied this book for two weeks, then went and took the test, and failed. That was my own fault, I didn’t apply myself. So I went back, worked through every step of every example in the book, memorized everything I could, and got to the point where I could correctly answer every end of chapter question and scored 89% the first time I took the sample exam included on the CD-ROM. I took the test again and failed again. There were many, many questions on the test that were nowhere to be found in this book, relating to both hardware and software.

I’m definitely not saying this is a bad book, because I learned a lot by studying it, and the style is clear and interesting. Mr. Smith’s coverage of printing via lpr and CUPS is excellent and made those areas clear to me for the first time, and his coverage of package management was first rate. I’m just saying that if you are looking for a sure-fire way to pass the Linux+ exam you need a lot more than just this book. CompTIA recommends that you take the A+ and Network+ exams before taking Linux+, and based on my experience that seems like a good idea.

Or maybe I’m just stupid. But I thought I’d let everyone know.
Rating: 3
078214389X
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