CCNA - Opinions on a book and a sim

Author

Opinions on a book and a sim

Boulware5

2003-12-20, 8:25 pm

I'm about to take a CCNA class for credit and we are using the following:

CCNA Guide to Cisco Networking, 2nd edition (Course technology) and lab manual

EP Boson Router Simulator

Thoughts on these?

asteheske

2003-12-21, 4:40 pm

I've always like Boson's software and its Sim I think is good too (though)I've yet to try them.

As for books,I've don't have the opportunity to try the book u mention but I would recommend Wendell Odom's(Cisco Press) book if you would like to have extra material to read.

Having said that,if you have extra $$ to spare,then get yourself a real router 2500 series with IOS 12.x and above.... b-cause for me personally,nuthing beats the real experience of fiddling with those routers though a sim would be suffice.

Cheers~~~

Axel_D

2003-12-22, 12:32 pm

Hy,

I am using Boson netsim latest version and
it is possible to build a complete spanning tree environment and see some debug messages. The show commands are nearly close to reality. You can although build some exercises, which some books offer, and get some practice feeling. It's
the cheapest way to simulate a complex environment (Router on a stick, VLAN Routing, practicing subnetting). I think it's enough practice
to pass the new 640-801 (I hope so, I'm going to the testing center in January).
Of course the 2504er are a cheapest alternative to get the "real" feeling. You can buy two of them with a MAU for Token Ring and a back-to-back (DCE-DTE) and a 1603 and a WIC-1 T Serial (another back-to-back). There is a complex environment with ISDN, Frame Relay, Encapsulation .... But you have to spend some money too. (For reality -- like
asteheske mentioned -- there is no real alternative.)
But you don't have some switches yet. There is the boson simulator again, which you can use the old 1900er or the new 2950. Or you spend again some $$$$ ...
Greetings

Sponsored Links