Midway Review of the Network+ Test

I’ve made it through the half way mark (on chapter 11 out of 20, although chapter 1 is just orientation so it doesn’t count) for the CompTIA Network+ by Mike Meyers. I still have a long way to go. Things are finally picking up, since the latter chapters finally get into more software-oriented material. I finally get to touch the terminal!

I enjoyed chapter 2’s discussion fo the network models–specifically more on the general outline of OSI and TCP/IP model. I don’t find in depth discussion of installing the physical network very interesting (chapter 6). So far most of the chapters deal with the physical components of network itself, but the start of the software component of TCP/IP model is what caught my attention. I enjoy subnetting and routing discussion on chapter 8. Going onward, I am looking forward to more material on virtualization, network security, and network management.

The most challenging aspect of the Network+ is not the material, but finding ways to motivate myself. I set a goal to complete all the chapters by April 20th, but I have to push things back. I spent about 2–3 hours reading and taking notes on each chapter. Now I am switching gear and trying another strategy: I select the chapters I find interesting and read that first. Later, I go back and take notes on it. Several days later, I do a posting–which is great for study notes and for review.

This goes back to the three Rs of studying: read, review, repeat. It’s the forumaic way I learn things and it works best for me.