Books for/about - microsoft exams

MCSE Self-Paced Training Kit (Exams 70-290, 70-291, 70-293, 70-294): Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Core Requirements, Second Edition

Publisher: Microsoft Press
Authors: Dan Holme Orin Thomas

ISBN: 0735622906
List Price: $199.99
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 5
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Summary: great certification tool!!!
great certification tool!!!
but u will need also transcenders for exam preparation. contact me on my gmail account (certstuff). i will send u a list of transcenders i can sell u, 10$ each one. thnks

Summary: Working on your MCSE? Then get this set of books
This was my sole study guide for the MCSE Server 2003 based certification path, and I was not disappointed. The format is clear and easy to read. The books do a fantastic job of outlining WHY you are learning something, not just WHAT you need to know to pass the exam. I think this is what sets MS Press books apart from the competition: the book itself is structured to the best LEARNING format, and NOT to just passing the exam. I came away from these books with a much greater appreciation for Microsoft's Server and AD technologies (I come from a Linux background since 1995 and I'm the first to knock MS), and these books will be on your reference shelf for years to come -- or at least until the next version of Server ships.

It took me since August, 2005 until August, 2006 to obtain my MCSE. These books are BIG. You'll find yourself re-reading chapters multiple times. First to get the content, then to do the practice questions and end of lesson/end of chapter questions, then finally to review the end of lesson/end of chapter summaries right before writing the exam. But don't be discouraged. The knowledge that these books impart will allow you to THINK through the exam questions, rather than just basing it on memorization techiques.

If you're going to do your MCSE and really want to LEARN, then get these texts. If you just want to pass the exams and never work on Servers, then look elsewhere.

Summary: Well Done.
I've belonged to the Unix world since 1993, working with low level stuff as kernel, device drivers, virus, assembly, C, etc.. and now I'm trying to learn Windows a bit and have enough conditions to take all tests (290, 291, 293, 294). No problems. This a very good kit about MS Windows 2003, well written, well organized and deserve 5 stars.

Dan Holme worried with all details for us and provided a clear text about MS Windows 2003. Stay calm. It's very easy to take the
exam.

Alex (Sao Paulo - Brazil)

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MCTS Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-536): Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 Application Development Foundation (Pro-Developer (Hardcover))

Publisher: Microsoft Press
Authors: Tony Northrup Shawn Wildermuth Bill Ryan

ISBN: 0735622779
List Price: $69.99
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 2
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Summary: Ok coverage but lots of mistakes
No book can really cover the entire material but the no. of typos, mistakes and incorrect code samples is really exasperating ... however if you are willing to supplement study by yourself, the practise questions and exams are sufficently indicative of the real exam.

Summary: great certification tool!!!
great certification tool!!!
but u will need also transcenders for exam preparation. contact me on my gmail account (certstuff). i will send u a list of transcenders i can sell u, 10$ each one. thnks

Summary: Terrible book!!..do NOT buy till a second edition!
I am already MCP and had read many training kits, but this would be with no doubt the worst, i will list my impression about this book in terms of the many negatives and rare positives i found.

NEGATIVES:
*chapters are mixed up with lessons, and both are VERY poorly organized,with ambiguos titles for chapters(like instrumentation , interoperation)you will be very lucky if you could guess the contents based on the titles!
*Very poor editing , you find many copy and paste errors in code, duplicated figures and questions to chapters in wrong place.
*finally and MOST IMPORTANT, providing MISLEADING and WRONG information(confirmed after contacting authors).
*does NOT cover even 50% of exam, i had to go to MSDN and other resources.

POSITIVES
*you get 15% discount voucher for the exam.
*authors are aware of their mistakes and are striving to make a better edition.

I would suggest that you dont buy this book unless you are in a hurry for the exam and /or this book is your only choice(another TK is on its way out).

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	MCSA/MCSE Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-270): Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft Windows XP Professional, Second Edition Publisher: Microsoft Press Authors: Walter Glenn Anthony Northrup
ISBN: 0735621527 List Price: $59.99 Amazon Price: $37.79 Usually ships in 24 hours Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: 5 Reviews: Summary: great certification tool!!! great certification tool!!! but u will need also transcenders for exam preparation. contact me on my gmail account (certstuff). i will send u a list of transcenders i can sell u, 10$ each one. thnks Summary: Great book to prep for exam and use after I went through the Microsoft class 2272 and read this book before taking the XP exam . The book does a great job covering topics which are not adequately discussed in the class (RIS, RIPrep, Sysprep, Overview of Active Directory and server side issues which MUST be considered when troubleshooting XP issues among others). I passed with a nice margin and the book continues to be a great reference tool. The CD included with the book is great as well, it contained two additional MS Press books (Ency. of Networking, and Ency. of Security, plus a Measure Up test). The Measure Up test is worth the price alone since it presents questions in a format which is VERY close to the actual MS test. Some typos throughout but overall very good. Summary: Passed exam first time with 905, using this book..... This book was my primary reference to pass this exam. I have used XP Pro since 2002 and am fairly familiar with it. I picked up this book based on a number of reviews I read here. I agree with one reviewer who mentioned IIS was barely mentioned, he is correct on that score. WebDAV was never mentioned either. The MeasureUP test prep software was pretty good. I found a good percentage of the questions from the software on the exam. Good luck on the exam! Moose Summary:

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MCTS Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-431): Microsoft SQL Server(TM) 2005 Implementation and Maintenance (Pro-Certification (Hardcover))

Publisher: Microsoft Press
Authors: Solid Quality Learning Laura Sackerman

ISBN: 073562271X
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Avg Cusomer Rating: 4
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Summary: Good book
Taking the test which this study guide is focus to is a very important step before give any content's feedback (i'm still preparing myself for the test) But i will give my 1st impression about the book anyway.

Pros:
Very well organized book. Chapters and content are divided in small chunks of information (lessons). For busy people (like me) or those which like to do self study at own pace this is a big aid.

I like the writing style also. Not boring, not too technical altought you should have a previous SQL 2000 background if you want to take full advantage of this book.

I did like chapter 11, the backup and restore processes. This is a must for every SQL admin. and it is well covered. The same for the Maintenance Plan and Job topics (Ch 14)

The 15% off in the test price is a good bonus. You should consider this if you're in a low budget.

Cons or critics:
The test engine is an added value but... i don't know ... after taking a few custom tests ... i am not pretty sure about their content's difficulty. I mean, IMO, questions seems too easy for me. I've took a lot of Microsoft tests before (i'm MCSA) and i've never seen easy questions like these in most of them. You must read a lot and think well before mark an answer and i don't feel that when i'm taking this book's test engine. Do not misunderstand what i'm saying, a free Test Engine is a nice bonus, i just want to give a non parcial review. I'm a customer too and we must rely in good study sources to avoid test failures.

Chapter 5: just a brief T-SQL review; use a Sybex SQL 2000 Design book for better preparation or buy the Ben Forta book instead (ISBN: 0672325675), you won't regret and it will help you a lot.

Chapter 12: hey! what happened with the pics here? ... too much words and just a few pics for this topic. Fragmentation concepts are easier to understand when you see how they works; here's when drawings and pics enter into action.

Final comment.
Currently, this is the only book for this test in the market. Sybex and the others are still in press, so there are not much choices either but overall, is a good election anyway; easy to read and very well organized. Find a good PC or laptop, VMWARE or Virtual PC and that's all you need for your study track (SQL 2005 evaluation version is included)

Need extra info? Try SQL 2005 Stanek pocket book ...

UPDATED 7/26/2006:
I already have the new Sybex book for this test. And 'till now, what i've read so far ... i've not found it better than Solid's book. Some Sybex chapters are just a re impression of their old 70-228 book. I keep you informed ...

Summary: 2-in-1 training kit
These 2 extras alone is worth more than the price of this book: First, there is the 15% discount on MCP exams. This translates to about $15. Then, there is the practice test software with 295 questions which is very similar to other commercial practice tests (cost at least $59). NOTE: I bought this book from other site because this book was already available there a week earlier than here at Amazon. The price of this book in Amazon is about $8 lower.

This is a hard bound book (I'm very impressed of the cover design). The papers are white and of high quality.

The contents are organized by exam objectives (there is also a card you can tear from the book that outlines the exam objectives and tells you what chapter and lesson you will find the objective discussed in the book). Every lesson has its summary and review questions. Reading some lessons and browsing through the pages of the book, I believe this is a comprehensive study guide for this exam and is, by itself, sufficient to prepare you to pass the exam.

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MCAD/MCSD Self-Paced Training Kit: Microsoft .NET Core Requirements, Exams 70-305, 70-315, 70-306, 70-316, 70-310, 70-320, and 70-300

Publisher: Microsoft Press
Authors: Microsoft Corporation Microsoft Corporation

ISBN: 0735619255
List Price: $169.99
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Summary: Excelentes
El conjunto de libros y el CD para los laboratorios han sido excelentes para la preparaci�n de la certificaci�n en .NET en la que me preparo.

Summary: Excellent Reference. Wait if you are planning to start for MCSD
Of course, there is no question that this book is one of the best references out there for VS2003. However, if you are just starting studying for MCSD 2003, then I say wait! Microsoft has totally redesigned its certification program; The new certifications are coming out in Spring 2006. Now, studying for MCSD is not a 24 hours or 36 hours matter, unless you are vastly experienced in .Net technology and even if you are, there is no guarantee that you 'll pass the exam without following a study guide. My advice to you is to save your money and go for the new certifications. Those certifications are long-term investments, and you'll thank yourself in a year or two!

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	MCDST Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-272): Supporting Users andTroubleshooting Desktop Applications on Microsoft(r) Windows(r) XP, Second Edition Publisher: Microsoft Press Authors: Walter Glenn Tony Northrup
ISBN: 0735622213 List Price: $59.99 Amazon Price: $37.79 Usually ships in 24 hours Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: 5 Reviews: Summary: Bloody awesome I took my test today and came close to maxing out, 972....study hard the reviews at the end of the book. When taking the test, read the questions AND answers carefully, kind of like the old school days, an answer may "look" right but it could be one word off. Keep the books, don't resell them, I've already gone back into 70-271 and reviewed a few things. handy to have on hand when you deal with it every day. Very thorough in my opinion. Just a humble IT geek working on his certs..... Summary: WOW Great deal and Super Helpful I just took this certification and found out that some of test questions were the same as the back of this book. If you go through the test bank in the back of the book and go through the lessons your sure to pass. The book also comes with 180 day trials of xp pro sp2 and office 2003 professional. Not to meantion you get a voucher for 15% off the exam. I will warn you that some of the exam questions are very easy and others are super tricky. Summary: Act Quickly This book came with a free trial of Office 2003. (The book for the 70-271 exam has the XP Pro trial as stated in the editorial review) When I tried to install the free trial it had already expired. Apparently, the free trial begins when the book is purchased, and not when the software is installed. Therefore, if you wait to install it you will not get the full 180 days, and the 180 days includes the time it takes to ship the book to you. I really needed the free trial. I was saving it until I needed it, and I ended up buying Office Professional 2003 instead. Oh well, the book gets a 3 anyways because it needs supplemental material to prepare for the exam. (but don't they all?) Summary:

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	MCTS 70-536 Exam Prep: Microsoft .NET Framework 2.0 Foundation Exam Publisher: Que Authors: Amit Kalani
ISBN: 078973558X List Price: $59.99 Amazon Price: $37.79 Not yet published Buy this book from amazon.com or from amazon.co.uk	Avg Cusomer Rating: Reviews: Summary:

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MCSA/MCSE Self-Paced Training Kit (Exam 70-284): Implementing and Managing Microsoft Exchange Server 2003

Publisher: Microsoft Press
Authors: Will Willis Ian McLean Microsoft Corporation

ISBN: 0735618992
List Price: $59.99
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Summary: Nice
I've just bought the book from amazon, and first of all what I can say about it is that it's very cheap comparing if I bought it here in portugal. the price here is around 83 dollars, so I could almost buy 3 books with that money. really, buying from abroad is much more pleasant than buying in portugal... As for the book... well, better wait for it! :D

Summary: Not so bad
I got this book with a little over 1.5 years of exchange experience and I know quite a bit but thought i could learn alot more and certify in it. Well this book did help me the 2nd time through reading it. The biggest help really was the practice exams. I took the study exams and learned more that way then with reading. I would recommend this book only to those that actually understand Windows 2003, 2000 and NT both directory structure and network structure. There is alot of networking involved such as firewalls and opening ports. Overall it is a good book.

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