Posts Tagged ‘microsoft networking’
April 25th, 2009 | 
Author: There are four specialised areas of training in the overall A+ programme, of which you need to pass two for competency in A+. However only studying two of the specialised areas might well not equip you for a job. Choose a course with all 4 subjects – you’ll be glad you did when it comes to interview time.
Once on the CompTIA A+, you will learn how to build computers and fix them, and work in antistatic conditions. Fault finding and diagnostic techniques through hands on and remote access are also covered. Should you be thinking of being responsible for networks of computers, add the very comprehensive CompTIA Network+ to the CompTIA A+ training you’re doing. This will prepare you to apply for more interesting jobs. You may also want to consider the Microsoft networking qualifications (MCP, MCSA and MCSE).
Many folks don’t comprehend what information technology is about. It’s stimulating, innovative, and means you’re doing your bit in the gigantic wave of technology that will change our world over the next few decades. We are really only just beginning to get a handle on what this change will mean to us. How we interact with the world will be profoundly affected by technology and the web.
A usual IT worker across the UK can demonstrate that they earn significantly more money than employees on a par in much of the rest of the economy. Average incomes are around the top of national league tables. It’s evident that we have a substantial country-wide requirement for certified IT specialists. And as the industry constantly develops, it appears this will be the case for quite some time to come.
So if the computer industry grants such an array of dazzling job possibilities for us – what are the questions we should raise and what areas are most important?
Ask any professional consultant and they’ll entertain you with many horror stories of students who’ve been sold completely the wrong course for them. Stick to an experienced industry professional who asks some in-depth questions to uncover the best thing for you – not for their wallet! It’s very important to locate the right starting point of study for you. With a strong background, or sometimes a little work-based experience (some certifications gained previously perhaps?) then it’s more than likely the point from which you begin your studies will be different from a trainee who has no experience. For those students starting IT studies and exams for the first time, it can be useful to avoid jumping in at the deep-end, kicking off with some basic user skills first. This is often offered with any educational course.
Student support is absolutely essential – locate a good company providing 24×7 full access, as not obtaining this level of support will severely impede your ability to learn. Don’t buy training courses that only support you with a call-centre messaging system when it’s outside of usual working hours. Trainers will try to talk you round from this line of reasoning. Essentially – you want to be supported when you need the help – not at times when they find it cheaper to provide it.
The very best training providers incorporate three or four individual support centres across multiple time-zones. Online access provides the interactive interface to provide a seamless experience, irrespective of the time you login, there is always help at hand, without any problems or delays. Unless you insist on 24×7 support, you’ll end up kicking yourself. You may avoid using the support in the middle of the night, but you may need weekends, evenings and early mornings at some point.
People attracted to this sort of work are usually quite practically-minded, and aren’t really suited to the classroom environment, and poring through books and manuals. If this is putting you off studying, use multimedia, interactive learning, where you can learn everything on-screen. Many years of research has time and time again demonstrated that getting into our studies physically, is proven to produce longer-lasting and deeper memory retention.
Courses are now available via DVD-ROM discs, so everything is learned directly from your own PC. Through video streaming, you are able to see your instructors showing you how it’s all done, and then have a go at it yourself – via the interactive virtual lab’s. It’s wise to view examples of the courseware provided before you sign the purchase order. Always insist on video tutorials, instructor demo’s and interactive modules with audio-visual elements.
Often, companies will only use training that is purely available online; and while this is acceptable much of the time, think what will happen when you don’t have access to the internet or you get a slow connection speed. It’s much safer to rely on CD and DVD ROM materials which removes the issue entirely.
How the program is actually delivered to you isn’t always given the appropriate level of importance. How many stages do they break the program into? What is the order and what control do you have at what pace it arrives? Normally, you’ll join a programme staged over 2 or 3 years and receive a module at a time. This may seem sensible until you think about these factors: Sometimes the steps or stages pushed by the company’s salespeople doesn’t suit all of us. You may find it a stretch to finalise all the sections within the time limits imposed?
For maximum flexibility and safety, most students now choose to request that all their modules (now paid for) are couriered out in one package, all at the beginning. It’s then your own choice how fast or slow and in what order you’d like to work.
Consider the following facts in detail if you think that over-used sales technique about a guarantee for your exam looks like a reason to buy:
You’re paying for it somehow. One thing’s for sure – it isn’t free – it’s just been rolled into the price of the whole package. Evidence shows that when trainees fund each examination, at the time of taking them, the chances are they’re going to pass every time – as they’ll think of their investment in themselves and therefore will put more effort into their preparation.
Does it really add up to pay the college in advance for examinations? Find the best exam deal or offer when you’re ready, instead of paying any mark-up – and do it locally – rather than in some remote place. Including money in your training package for examination fees (and if you’re financing your study there’ll be interest on that) is madness. It’s not your job to boost the training company’s account with your hard-earned cash simply to help their cash-flow! Some will be pinning their hopes on the fact that you won’t get to do them all – so they don’t need to pay for them. It’s worth noting that exam re-takes through training course providers with an ‘Exam Guarantee’ are always heavily controlled. They’ll insist that you take mock exams first till you’ve proven conclusively that you can pass.
Exam fees averaged around the 112 pounds mark last year through local VUE or Pro-metric centres throughout the country. So what’s the point of paying maybe a thousand pounds extra to have ‘an Exam Guarantee’, when any student knows that the best guarantee is consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software.
Getting your first commercial position can feel more straightforward if you’re supported with a Job Placement Assistance facility. In reality it isn’t a complex operation to secure your first job – as long as you’ve got the necessary skills and qualifications; the growing UK skills shortage sees to that.
CV and Interview advice and support is sometimes offered (if not, see one of our sites for help). Ensure you update that dusty old CV straight away – don’t leave it till you pass the exams! Being considered a ‘maybe’ is far better than not even being known about. A surprising amount of junior support jobs are given to students (sometimes when they’ve only just got going.) The best services to help you land that job are usually independent and specialised local recruitment services. Because they make their money when they’ve found you a job, they’ll work that much harder to get a result.
To bottom line it, if you put the same amount of effort into securing your first job as into training, you won’t find it too challenging. A number of people curiously invest a great deal of time on their course materials and just give up once certified and seem to suppose that interviewers know they’re there.
Jason Kendall advises and writes on the most up-to-date interactive PC education. If you’re interested in A+ Certification, visit LearningLolly Comptia Certification.
Article Source: CompTIA A Plus Networking Training in 2009
Training for your CompTIA A+ covers 4 different sectors – you’ll have to qualify in just two sectors to be considered competent in A+. You’ll find that many training establishments only offer two of the four areas. Our opinion is this will under prepare you – certainly you’ll have the qualification, but training on all 4 will set you apart in the workplace, where knowledge of all four will be necessary. So that’s why you need education in all 4 specialities.
As well as learning about building and fixing computers, students on A+ courses will have instruction on how to work in antistatic conditions, as well as diagnostics, fault-finding and remote access. Should you want to work towards maintaining networks, you should add CompTIA Network+ to your A+ course. Taking this course as well will prepare you to command a more senior job role. Also look at the Microsoft networking qualifications (MCP, MCSA and MCSE).
Which questions do we need to be asking if we want to arrive at the understanding necessary? Since it seems there are some rather superb opportunities for us all to think about.
Don’t put too much store, as many people do, on the certification itself. You’re not training for the sake of training; this is about gaining commercial employment. Begin and continue with the end in mind. It’s an awful thing, but a large percentage of students start out on programs that sound spectacular from the syllabus guide, but which delivers a career that is of no interest. Speak to a selection of university leavers for a real eye-opener.
You’ll want to understand what expectations industry may have of you. What precise exams they will want you to have and how to gain experience. It’s definitely worth spending time setting guidelines as to how far you’d like to progress your career as often it can control your selection of exams. Prior to embarking on a particular study program, it’s good advice to talk through the specific market requirements with an experienced industry advisor, to make sure the training programme covers all that is required.
The classroom style of learning we remember from school, using textbooks and whiteboards, can be pretty hard going sometimes. If all this is ringing some familiar bells, look for learning programmes which have a majority of interactive, multimedia parts. Learning psychology studies show that we remember much more when we use all our senses, and we get physically involved with the study process.
Interactive full motion video involving demonstration and virtual lab’s will forever turn you away from traditional book study. And they’re far more fun. It’s very important to see the type of training provided by each company you’re contemplating. It’s essential they incorporate instructor-led video demonstrations with virtual practice-lab’s.
Purely on-line training should be avoided. Physical CD or DVD ROM materials are preferable where possible, so that you have access at all times – ISP quality varies, so you don’t want to be totally reliant on your broadband being ‘up’ 100 percent of the time.
An important area that is sometimes not even considered by those considering a training program is that of ‘training segmentation’. Essentially, this is how the program is broken down into parts for delivery to you, which completely controls where you end up. By and large, you will purchase a course requiring 1-3 years study and get posted one section at a time – from one exam to the next. While this may sound logical on one level, consider this: What if there are reasons why you can’t finish all the sections or exams? Maybe the prescribed order won’t suit you? Because of nothing that’s your fault, you may go a little slower and not receive all the modules you’ve paid for.
In an ideal situation, you’d get ALL the training materials right at the beginning – meaning you’ll have all of them to return to any point – whenever it suits you. Variations can then be made to the order that you complete each objective where a more intuitive path can be found.
It’s so important to understand this key point: Always get full 24×7 support from professional instructors. You’ll severely regret it if you don’t. Never buy certification programs which can only support you with an out-sourced call-centre message system outside of normal office hours. Trainers will defend this with all kinds of excuses. The simple fact of the matter is – you want to be supported when you need the help – not at times when they find it cheaper to provide it.
The best training colleges utilise an online 24 hours-a-day package pulling in several support offices across the globe. You will be provided with a single, easy-to-use interface which switches seamlessly to the best choice of centres at any time of day or night: Support when you need it. Unless you insist on direct-access 24×7 support, you’ll very quickly realise that you’ve made a mistake. You may not need it late in the night, but you may need weekends, evenings and early mornings at some point
One crafty way that colleges make a big mark-up is through up-front charges for exams then giving it ‘Exam Guarantee’ status. This looks like a great idea for the student, till you look at the facts:
They’ve allowed costings for it one way or another. You can be assured it’s not a freebie – they’ve simply charged more for the whole training package. Trainees who take each progressive exam, funding them one at a time are far more likely to pass first time. They’re thoughtful of the cost and so are more inclined to be ready for the task.
Take your exams as locally as possible and don’t pay up-front, but seek out the best deal for you when you’re ready. Is there a good reason to pay interest on a bigger loan than is necessary because you’ve paid early for examinations when there was no need to? A great deal of money is netted by organisations charging all their exam fees up-front – and then cashing in when they’re not all taken. Also, exam guarantees often have very little value. Many training companies won’t be prepared to pay for you to re-take until you’re able to demonstrate an excellent mock pass rate.
The cost of exams was around the 112 pounds mark last year via UK VUE or Prometric centres. Therefore, why splash out often many hundreds of pounds extra to get ‘Exam Guarantees’, when it’s obvious that the best guarantee is consistent and systematic learning, coupled with quality exam simulation software.
Searching for your first position in IT can feel more straightforward with the help of a Job Placement Assistance facility. Sometimes, too much is made of this feature, for it is actually not that hard for a well trained and motivated person to get work in IT – because companies everywhere are seeking trained staff.
One important thing though, don’t wait till you’ve passed your final exams before updating your CV. As soon as your training commences, mark down what you’re doing and tell people about it! A good number of junior support roles have been offered to people who are still learning and have yet to take their exams. This will at the very least get your CV into the ‘possible’ pile and not the ‘no’ pile. Generally, a specialist locally based employment service – who make their money when they’ve found you a job – is going to give you a better service than a sector of a centralised training facility. Also of course they should be familiar with the local industry and employment needs.
Not inconsiderable numbers of students, so it seems, put a great deal of effort into their studies (for years sometimes), and just give up when it comes to looking for a good job. Promote yourself… Work hard to get yourself known. A job isn’t just going to bump into you.
It’s clear nowadays: There really is no such thing as personal job security available anymore; there can only be market and sector security – as any company can fire a solitary member of staff if it suits the company’s commercial needs. We can however hit upon security at market-level, by looking for areas that have high demand, together with shortages of trained staff.
The IT skills-gap throughout the UK clocks in at just over twenty six percent, as noted by the latest e-Skills study. Quite simply, we only have the national capacity to fill just three out of each 4 job positions in the computing industry. Attaining in-depth commercial IT certification is as a result a ‘Fast Track’ to realise a continuing and satisfying livelihood. Undoubtedly, now really is a fabulous time to consider retraining into Information Technology (IT).
After 2 Decades in IT, Jason Kendall has focused himself on computer training consultancy in the UK. To find out more on Comptia Training, visit LearningLolly Computer Training.
Article Source: CompTIA A Plus Courses
Too many colleges just do courses. Always use a provider that specialises in IT training geared to the needs of industry. Each type of role asks for different levels of qualifications and skills, so we strongly recommend that you take advice from an industry expert before settling on a course or career path. That way you can be confident that the syllabus of your learning package fits the skill set of the job you want.
The CompTIA A+ training consists of four exams; A+ competency is given when you’ve passed the Essentials exam and one other from the remaining three areas. This is why most colleges offer only two of the training courses.
In reality you will need the training for all four areas as many jobs will require the skills and knowledge of all four areas. It’s not essential to take all four exams, but we would recommend you study all four courses. Then you can choose which one you take alongside the CompTIA Essentials exam.
CompTIA A+ Training. What Jobs Will It Lead To?
CompTIA A+ on its own will mean fixing, building and repairing stand-alone PC’s and MAC’s which are not part of a large network – usually personal computers in the home market.
If you add into the mix user-skills such as ECDL, MOS (Microsoft Office Specialist) or MCDST (Microsoft Certified Desktop Support Technician), it will open the door to help-desk work. This could involve solving problems and giving instructions verbally over the phone for a client to follow, or more increasingly using remote access tools to take over someone’s computer via the internet or network.
If you would like to be the person who wanders around a company fixing and supporting, you’ll need to add CompTIA Network+, or consider the Microsoft networking route (MCSA – MCSE) as you’ll need a deeper understanding of how networks work.
If this sort of work is your thing, learning to you probably means getting stuck in and having a go! If all else fails read the instructions, – a practical hands-on approach to life. Any manuals you own probably gather dust and it’s a long time since you read anything from cover to cover.
If this has struck a chord, you’ll find a traditional training route of books, manuals and classrooms very uncomfortable. You could force yourself to do it but why bother when there are fully interactive on-screen training courses.
With modern technology you can now watch full motion video tutorials followed by on screen practical examples of what to do, and then practice your new found skills by interacting with the software in virtual labs. You’ll want to get back to it again soon, and it’s all sitting on your computer anytime you’re ready, with no need to trudge along to classes every week.
To complete this quality form of training, all you need is some friendly help and you’re on your way. We would recommend direct access 24/7 support where a tutor is waiting to communicate with you anytime of day or night. This sophisticated level of course and support has been put together and it’s out there if you look. When you find it, you’ll be surprised how much cheaper it is than traditional CompTIA A+ training.
Scott Edwards has been involved with the IT industry for 30 yrs. He reckons he ought to know what he’s talking about by now. To further investigate CompTIA A+ Training, visit LearningLolly Computer Training.
Article Source: CompTIA A-Plus Training