Computing Internet Books

As most O'Reilly books, this *was* an outstanding, readable, and indispensable guide for Tomcat development and administration. Unfortunately, it's sadly outdated: this book only covers version 4, while versions 5, 5.5, and 6 introduce many, many innovations and changes, and you don't want to waste time reading material that doesn't apply to the current versions. It is unfortunate that this book is still being for sale. This book has well deserved stars, but those starts are now obsolete. We all Tomcat lovers are looking forward for an updated edition.

'Tomcat: The Definitive Guide' is a great resource for all Tomcat programmers and administrators. Jam packed with 450 pages of material over 11 chapters, you will learn everything you need to know. Security, configuration, performance tuning, integration with Apache and building Tomcat from the source, this is a wonderful guide that should be on every Tomcat admin's desk.

**** RECOMMENDED

Jason Brittain and Ian F. Darwin's TOMCAT: THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE, 2ND EDITION has been updated for the latest version of Tomcat and offers a complete guide to installing the servlet container, from basics of installation to using web applications, securing Tomcat from online intruders, troubleshooting and customizing the program. Any advanced computer collection strong in Java programming needs this.

This book is hopelessly incomplete. I'm always having to augment it's contents with on-line information. I just attempted to determine the difference between "path" and "docBase" in the "Context" tag in the server.xml file but again it struck out. All page 175 says is that "context" configures the web application directory within a host. End of story. I strongly suggest that you look to another source for Tomcat.

All of these other reviews, including some of the popular spotlights, seem to be about the first edition with quite a few people saying they were disappointed. I never read the first edition, so I can't remark on its content. However, this second edition seems to have all the details you need to get up and running, and Tomcat is not an area of my expertise.

In many cases Tomcat is a good choice for a web server, and it is well suited as a high performance production web server. It is also a free and open source servlet and JSP engine. You can use it by itself or with other web servers such as Apache httpd. The book is a user's guide for Tomcat, not a tutorial on how to write web applications. That misunderstanding might have had some readers disappointed. Thus, you don't need to be a programmer to understand the book - it is targeted more at system administrators. The following is a run down of the table of contents:

Chapter 1. Getting Started with Tomcat - explains how to install Tomcat, get it running, and test it to make sure that it's functioning properly.
Section 1.1. Installing Tomcat
Section 1.2. Starting, Stopping, and Restarting Tomcat
Section 1.3. Automatic Startup
Section 1.4. Testing Your Tomcat Installation
Section 1.5. Where Did Tomcat Come From?

Chapter 2. Configuring Tomcat - shows the various places to look for information about your server, how to find out why things aren't working, and gives you some examples of common mistakes in setting up and configuring Tomcat.
Section 2.1. A Word About Using the Apache Web Server
Section 2.2. Relocating the Web Applications Directory
Section 2.3. Changing the Port Number from 8080
Section 2.4. Java VM Configuration
Section 2.5. Changing the JSP Compiler
Section 2.6. Managing Realms, Roles, and Users
Section 2.7. Controlling Sessions
Section 2.8. Accessing JNDI and JDBC Resources
Section 2.9. Servlet Auto-Reloading
Section 2.10. Customized User Directories
Section 2.11. Tomcat Example Applications
Section 2.12. Common Gateway Interface (CGI)
Section 2.13. The Tomcat Admin Webapp

Chapter 3. Deploying Servlet and JSP Web Applications in Tomcat - shows web applications composed of servlets, JSPs, and other files, and several approaches for deploying them. It ends with a discussion of the Manager web application, which can handle some deployment operations for you.
Section 3.1. Hosts
Section 3.2. Layout of a Web Application
Section 3.3. Deploying an Unpacked Webapp Directory
Section 3.4. Deploying a WAR File
Section 3.5. Hot Deployment
Section 3.6. Working with WAR Files
Section 3.7. The Manager Webapp
Section 3.8. Automation with Apache Ant
Section 3.9. Symbolic Links

Chapter 4. Tomcat Performance Tuning - some ideas on performance tuning the underlying Java runtime and the Tomcat server itself so that you service requests more efficiently.
Section 4.1. Measuring Web Server Performance
Section 4.2. External Tuning
Section 4.3. Internal Tuning
Section 4.4. Capacity Planning
Section 4.5. Additional Resources

Chapter 5. Integration with the Apache Web Server - covers the use of Tomcat with Apache httpd and talks about the several ways of making Tomcat thrive in front of or behind an Apache httpd installation.
Section 5.1. The Pros and Cons of Integration
Section 5.2. Installing Apache httpd
Section 5.3. Apache Integration with Tomcat
Section 5.4. Tomcat Serving HTTP over the APR Connector

Chapter 6. Tomcat Security - details about what security is and how to improve it in your Tomcat installation.
Section 6.1. Securing the System
Section 6.2. Multiple Server Security Models
Section 6.3. Using the SecurityManager
Section 6.4. Granting File Permissions
Section 6.5. Setting Up a Tomcat chroot Jail
Section 6.6. Filtering Bad User Input
Section 6.7. Securing Tomcat with SSL

Chapter 7. Configuration - Using realms this chapter shows how to set up an example JDBC domain to talk to a relational database. Realms are lists of users authorized to implement specific sections of your web site. Many of the other configuration changes you can make are discussed too.
Section 7.1. server.xml
Section 7.2. web.xml
Section 7.3. tomcat-users.xml
Section 7.4. catalina.policy
Section 7.5. catalina.properties
Section 7.6. context.xml

Chapter 8. Debugging and Troubleshooting - Ways to look for information that helps discover why things aren't working and gives examples of mistakes that are commonly made but may not be obvious. Also discusses why Tomcat may not shut down gracefully and what to do about this common problem, as well as ways of preventing abnormal shutdowns from recurring.
Section 8.1. Reading Logfiles
Section 8.2. Hunting for Errors
Section 8.3. URLs and the HTTP Conversation
Section 8.4. Debugging with RequestDumperValve
Section 8.5. When Tomcat Won't Shut Down

Chapter 9. Building Tomcat from Source - How to compile your own Tomcat in case you don't want to run a prebuilt binary release of it. Gives step-by-step instructions on how to install the Apache Ant build tool, download all necessary support libraries, and build your Tomcat.
Section 9.1. Installing Apache Ant
Section 9.2. Obtaining the Source
Section 9.3. Downloading Support Libraries
Section 9.4. Building Tomcat

Chapter 10. Tomcat Clustering - Some options for running multiple Tomcat servlet containers in parallel for both fault tolerance and higher scalability, while discussing the pros and cons of various clustering approaches.
Section 10.1. Clustering Terms
Section 10.2. The Communication Sequence of an HTTP Request
Section 10.3. Distributed Java Servlet Containers
Section 10.4. Tomcat 6 Clustering Implementation
Section 10.5. JDBC Request Distribution and Failover
Section 10.6. Additional Resources

Chapter 11. Final Words - Overview of the Tomcat open source project's community resources, including docs, mailing lists, and other web sites.
Section 11.1. Supplemental Resources
Section 11.2. Community

Appendix A. Installing Java
Section A.1. Choosing a Java JDK
Section A.2. Working Around Older GCJ and Kaffe JVMs
Section A.3. Sun Microsystems Java SE JDK
Section A.4. IBM J9 JDK
Section A.5. BEA JRockit JDK
Section A.6. Apple Java SE JDK
Section A.7. Excelsior JET
Section A.8. Apache Harmony JDK

Appendix B. jbchroot.c
Appendix C. BadInputValve.java
Appendix D. BadInputFilter.java
Appendix E. RPM Package Files

I am an ancient programmer switching from C to .NET. I have read a lotta books in my time and this is the best presentation and layout of a book I have ever seen. Its easy to read. Content is great. I wish I had found it first in my conversion to .NET. I am so impressed that I am checking out the other Murach titles for something to buy.

I needed to learn ADO.NET for my job and this book was the best on the topic I read the entire book in about 3 weeks. Everything is explained wonderfully. I love how the examples are laid out on the right with explanations on the left. I also really found the program files extremely helpful. I opened each chapters program and followed right along with the book. All the examples are already created so that you can see how they work and even modify them.

I liked this book so much that I also bought the ASP.NET, SQL, and Visual Basic 2005...all topics I need to brush up on. As far as I can tell these other books follow the same great format.

From someone who thousands of dollars worth of technical and programming books...these are great even for beginners. However if you are not familiar with vb2005 get murach's visual basic 2005 to read first.

As with the other Murach Press books I have reviewed, this book is extremely readable. It shows step-by-step how to develop database applications with VB. NET 2005 and ADO.NET. This book is best suited to someone new to database development with Visual Studio 2005 but that has a passing familiarity with VB syntax. If you are unfamiliar with flow control statements and VB syntax, you might want to look at Murach's "Visual Basic 2005" book first. I highly recommend this book for entry to mid level developers.

ADO.NET is a huge and sometimes daunting topic to attempt to cover, but in traditional Murach fashion, this book has the capacity to make its reader an expert if read cover to cover. All of the important topics are coverered, including use of the base objects, data binding, typed vs. untyped data sets, and most importantly (in my opinion): use of object data sources.

The best part of Murach books (including this one), aside from the paired page layout, is that they make no assumption about the reader's skill level, and cover enough background on each topic to ensure that you will come away with a thorough understanding of not just what and how, but also why.

Both beginner and expert programmers alike will find this book extremely useful, and it's a great addition to the Murach family of programming reference and tutorial books.

I am a C# developer but when I started browsing this book I couldn't help it but to continue reading it. It is not only about the VB language itself, but instead, how to use it so solve software problems. It teaches how to better write software, best practices and approaches.
This book doesn't cover all the theory in the world about a topic. Also, not all topics. But it tells you how to use them and what to watch for.
I am glad to have read it.

This book is a great guide hacking your WRT54G. It covers a wide variety of topics and gives some good detail into each one without focusing on one topic more than it should.

I enjoyed the book quite a bit and wish it had been released a few months earlier for a project I was working on. I was happy to see clear examples and pictures on building JTAG cables, GPIO points, and other pieces of hardware. These were some things that took me a bit longer to research on my own and what I found required me to make several leaps of faith. The fun part of hacking hardware is that you have something to hold when you are done. The frustrating part is when you make a mistake and have to go buy more parts. (Anyone want a fried WRTSL54GS for cheap?) I appreciated the work Larry and Paul put into making this less of an issue.

I'd love to see information on writing software for these devices in the future. The book is good at showing you how to take what is out there and apply it to what you have. However, I'm starting to dig into developing applications for this platform and piecing things together off of the web can be a bit tedious.

This is a great book for anyone interested in knowing all about the WRT54G series routers and how to hack them. The authors Paul and Larry from the popular "PaulDotCom Security Weekly" podcast did a great job explaining the inner workings of the router and also have some great tips on how to hack the firmware and hardware.

I would have given this book a 5 star rating but it unfortunately covers too much info about using the OpenWRT "White Russian" firmware instead of the new NVRAM replacement firmware called OpenWRT "Kamikaze". In their defense though I acknowledge that at the time of print the OpenWRT "Kamikaze" stable version was finally released. But anyone needing to know all about the previous OpenWRT "White Russian" or the other optional firmware upgrades will definitely not be disappointed!

I highly recommend buying this book anyway and also recommend their related website "[...]" for more valuable info about these awesome little routers!

I think the most important contribution this book will make is to help people understand it is possible to change those innocuous Linksys boxes. After all, they are everywhere. I don't personally plan to try to hardware hack my Linksys router tonight after finishing reading the book, but it is on the list. Heavens knows, I have three or four sitting in the equipment closet from before we upgraded my home office to professional equipment. In the book we learn the parts of a Linksys router; to be truthful, I had never thought about that. There is a discussion about overcloking the router to make the processor run faster. Talk about a blast from the past, brings back the old 8086/8088 days. It was dangerous then and it still is today. There is a discussion about the OpenWrt team, without them, this would never be possible.

It was a real eyeopener to learn how much people have done with the WRT54G, there are a number of choices in firmware, even semi-commercial choices such as Talisman which allows you to establish VPNs, hotspots, mesh and even SIP VoIP. This book in extensively researched, we learn how to set up DHCP, SAMBA even X Windows! There are even several methods for increasing the radio output and or antenna modifications. U.S. readers are cautioned this can get you into trouble, I know I ended up sending my FM pirate radio system to a missionary group in Africa because it was just too tempting and in an urban area the FCC will eventually get you. The biggest surprise for me was the use of a WRT54G ( with an adapter ) as a bluetooth scanner.

My understanding is that the authors are going to offer a class, that sounds like a lot of fun. If you are going to be installing wireless it is a good idea to read this book, a lot of the information applies regardless of what brand of equipment you select. And as for me, I don't think I will ever look at a Linksys router in the same way ever again, from now on I will be wondering just exactly what is going on beneath the hood.

This book is full of fantastic information about modifying the WRT54G. I found it extremely useful and the projects have so far provided me with hours of hacking fun! However, the one beef I have with this book is it's written like Paul and Larry talk. Often times, they would tell you to do something one way, then contradict themselves later on in the chapter or go off on tangents, making the instruction somewhat hard to follow. Still, it's a great book for anyone interested in enhancing the capabilities of the WRT54G!

This is a great book for anyone who wants a detailed guide on KPI's for web analytics and multi-channel marketing measurements.

Multichannel marketing is an excellent resource to learn about how you can combine on and off line marketing integrating it and providing metrics to evaluate campaigns. This is great for seasoned professionals or for those starting out in their career. Highly recommended read to expand your knowledge.

This book is written with excellent real-life examples and specific information. And it's written in a tone that's easy to digest, with a voice that's marketer-to-marketer. It's good to take a step back and understand how online and offline campaigns affect each other, especially if you don't actively do both for your job. I'm not finished with the book yet, but I've already subscribed to Akin's Blog (www.multichannelmetrics.com) and sent the link to my team!

As the online and the offline worlds collide from a marketing perspective, practitioners need to be fully prepared to leverage the wealth of opportunities this creates. The Multichannel Maketing book is targeted to this exact cause.
As an online marketer myself, I found this book extremely engaging and useful as we delve into combining our online and offline marketing efforts.
Since the only way to prove that our marketing efforts are paying off is measure, measure, measure, the measurement and metrics section of this book gave me a good grounding on what I need to do in terms of metrics.
Overall, it's a great book, especially if you are looking at multiple channels to achieve your marketing goals.

As a consultant, I interact with marketers everyday. Everytime I begin a new engagement, I spend volumes of time creating a common language and understanding around what "multi-channel marketing" means in today's world...certainly not an efficient investment of my time or my client's dollars.

FINALLY, there is a book that meets MY standards on both the theory and practice of multichannel marketing. Akin's book "Multichannel Marketing: Metrics and Methods for On and Offline Success" provides unique insight and understanding to help marketers either begin the process of executing more complete multi-channel marketing efforts, or refine existing programs.

What I found especially compelling about Akin's book was the very natural and organic progression within each chapter. Chapters open with a quick summary of a business challenge/opportunity. His descriptions (often complimented by case studies) are direct and to-the-point...easily consumed by the multi-channel newbie. As he digs deeper into each topic he offers perspective that even the most seasoned CMOs will find actionable nuggets of wisdom in (I LOVED the Chapter 6 on Measuring Lift Between On-line and Offline).

In closing - is there value in Akin's first book? No matter what your currently level of expertise is...this book will make you a better marketer.

Nutshell review - If you want to know the ins and outs of using Google and all the advanced switches, tips, and tricks then this is your book. Good resource to own.

We got a used copy of Google Hacks, and my wife studied the searcher's tips for a couple weeks before I got to study the webmaster's guide. Like the Jack Sprats of the nursery rhyme, we licked that platter clean. It's dated now, but that only means there is more on Google than got into the book, I have not found a script or search parameter that was discontinued.

This is not for light reading, it is intended for people who want to get the most out of the web, and are not content with Wizards and auto-pilot.

While Google is used by a large percentage of the population of internet users today, Google offers a host of additional services and features that may be accessed using the tips and tools found in "Google Hacks".

This is primarily a book for intermediate- to advanced-users, but it offers some easy-to-use and useful tips and tools for all users. For those interested in extended the utility of the powerful Google service, this is a good resource.

1. Word order matters
2. repetition of words ignores the repeating words with no search results

3. inanchor, inurl, intitle, site
inanchor:oreilly -inurl: oreilly -site: edu
oreilly in anchor text
oreilly not in the url
site is not edu (limits to a certain domain)

intitle:OSTEOPOROSIS inurl:links
OSTEOPORSIS in the title
links in the url
OSTEOPOROSIS in the anchor text

intitle:biology inurl:help
Takes you to a manageable size of 602 for help in biology.

4. Google does not support stemming (moon, moonlight, moonshot)
Google does support wild card pattern *
Google does have a ten word limit

three * mice
returns
three Blind mice
three white mice

5. daterange:startdate-enddate
[...]

6. Phonebook searchs:
phonebook: searches the entire google phonebook
rphonebook: searches residental listings only
bphonebook: search business listings only

phonebook:nelson id

7: Finding articles
[...] "ADO" or "ODBC"

Searches the site www.listensoftware for all articles about ADO
"ODBC"

8. Searchable directorys

"what's new" "what's cool" directory SAUERKRAUT
"what's new" categories sauerkraut (recipe)
"what's new" listings sauerkraut (links to recipes)

9. GAPIS
[...]

Standalone application that takes advantage of the Google API search component.

Almost anyone who uses a computer knows that Google is a superior search engine - but do you know it also offers ways to organize and manipulate that information? The updated third edition of GOOGLE HACKS: TIPS & TOOLS FOR FINDING AND USING THE WORLD'S INFORMATION tells how, with chapters covering not just search techniques or advanced search strategies, but what to do with the information once it's found. From building a customized Google map for your web site to handling RSS feeds, news listings, blogs, and even using Gmail as an external hard drive, GOOGLE HACKS comes packed with usage tips not to be found elsewhere.

Diane C. Donovan
California Bookwatch

If you take thet time to throughly go through this book and take the practice exams you should be able to pass CompTIA's Project+. Although I also used PMI's PMBok, to cross reference some of the terminology and concepts, the bulk of my preparation came from this book. I passed with flying colors.

This is a good introduction about IT Project Management, but it does not prepare for the Project+ test.

Regardless, I think this book should be readed because It is very interesting and well-written.

I would recommend this book to anyone who is planning on taking the Project+ certification from Comptia. Initially I bought this book to supplement another book on project management required for a college class. After reading this book I decided to take the test and I passes with flying colors. The book is well written and breaks project management down into distinct, easy to understand sections. I am fairly new to project management and this helped clarify many of the terms and concepts. I would not use this book as a sole study guide for the test, but the included practice tests and flash cards that come on the included CD are well worth the money alone. Good luck on the test everyone!

I have found in this book all what I'm looking for to study for the Project+ certification in a short period as it contains comprensive descriptions in additions to the sample questions and answers. In fact, I like very much, the sample exam in the beginning of the book which helps you to know what you need to concentrate on more...

I took the Project+ test and passed it achieving my 12th certification, the most of them in the IT industry. Now that I have all the preparation experience fresh in my mind, let me share the road towards this certification with you.

PROJECT+ THE CERTIFICATION: So, why Project+? People moving towards the management area require of something more than standard skills for successfully performing as managers or directors, so Project+ may not be that popular certification among young IT professionals, but senior professionals definitely require formal education in management. Project+ and PMP are definitely the right way to go.

PROJECT+ OR PMP?: You may have heard about PMP as well. In fact I prepared myself for PMP first and then I took Project+. PMP is definitely a more generic certification that will provide you great skills in large projects, give you tools for managing people, business and others (see my PMP reviews for details) while Project+ will give you a more precise approach to IT management. I felt like fish in water once I started reading the Project+ book, just the weekend after obtaining my PMP certification. They are very alike! Whichever you get ready for first, you will be just 5% away from being ready for the second one, so my advice is go for both, (if you are an IT of course).

PROJECT+ THE BOOK: I found the book very well written, clearly organized and I found it covers all the questions I found in the Project+ test. It is a very easy to read book, and the author provides examples and tips for the certification. I really enjoyed the fact that it has many examples of the IT life and you will see yourself in them. The only thing I would add to the book is probably few more graphics which will help with concept retention. Still, I support this book as good enough for preparing for the real life and Project+ test.

As a relative novice to outlook programming, this book took me through all the steps in a clear an concise way. I've bought several books on the subject before, but somehow one or more important issues were always left out. Not in this book.
If you want to automate the way you work with Outlook without having to find out everything yourself buy this book. Sue Mosher's website is great too, by the way, and offers a treasure chest of tip, code and a very good forum.

This book is excellent! I am a Web developer who has seen SQL code from other developers in my sites for years. I didn't understand any of it. I bought this book in the hopes of being able to work with database information myself.

In just a few minutes of reading the book, the light suddenly came on and everything became much clearer! I am happily writing my own SQL scripts now and I went through half the book in one night and the other half the next day! I've never learned so quickly from a book.

I especially appreciated that the author provides links to the SQL scripts you'll need throughout the course. And the appendix that described how to execute the scripts depending on which database you are using is fantastic!

If you need to learn SQL quickly this is THE book for you.

The book builds on the concepts of using SQL linearly, and quite well. There is almost no point where the author must reference a future concept in order to cover the current topic. The book was logically arragned, easy to read, and successfully taught me how to query an SQL database.

The final few chapters moved a little too fast, and didn't really teach how to accomplish the more in depth topics of transactions and procedures, but they were well explained at a high level.

The book is clear, specific, and everything I needed to introduce myself to the ins and outs of structured query language. It has 22 chapters, each introducing, and providing specific examples of progressively advanced sql commands and techniques.

It also provides short cut tips, and points out common errors for you to avoid. I'm sure I'll be using this as a great quick reference until I master sql commands when doing data analysis.

Highly recommended.

Ben Forta has a commendable honesty about him. He explains the intent of his books clearly in their Introductions and then proceeds to deliver just that. In this instance, Forta is clear that the book is for those new to SQL and who quickly want to learn how to get the most out of SQL. He is equally clear that the book does not cover every last aspect of SQL.

The book is becoming a bit long in tooth since it has not been updted since 2004. DBMSs covered are IBM DB2, Microsoft Access, Microsoft SQL Server, MySQL (Version 4), Oracle, PostgreSQL, Sybase Adaptive Server. Some of the information is now outdated and MySQL v5 has added new capabilities. On the whole, though, everything Forta presents here is still usable.

In 22 chapters, Forta teaches the reader the basics of SQL, more than enough to deal with perhaps 80% or more of common SQL requirements. Beyond that and you're in the realm of system architects and administrators who are simply not the audience for this book.

Be sure to download the sample databases and errata from the author's website.

On the whole, one of the best introductions to SQL available.

Jerry

When I went for a job interview a few months ago all I knew about SQL was that it had something to do with databases. When I informed the interviewer I didn't know SQL, the look on his face let me know I was doomed. So as soon as I left that interview I got online and purchased this book determined to learn as much as I can, in an inexpensive way, and quickly. Wow! This book turned out to be all of those things. It is very easy to understand and made SQL seem like a breeze. I loved the examples and plan to purchase an intermediate-advanced SQL book very soon. Hope SAMS Teach Yourself can help me out with one of those too. With their help I think I can add 'knowlege of SQL' on my resume.

It's a practical guide on defining service characteristics and design principles in multiple levels, from component implementation to application design to enterprise architecture. Very digestive material.

This book is really useful specially for a person who want to learn the basic of web service and then go deep for XML and Web Service usage in Service Oriented domain.

Thomas Erl covers SOA perfectly. The ebb and flow of the book is excellent. He does not cover proprietary technologies, and rightfully so. However, he explains the W3 standards of XML, SOAP, Web services and many key service models. He also is aware of corporate culture and thinking realistically as you take on a SOA implementation. This book has made me a better software developer. Keep things autonomous and keep things abstract.

The entire book can be summed up on 3 to 4 pages. Mostly the book regurgitates the same concepts over and over to fill up the pages, using a plethora of technical terminology to abstract it's own meaningless. For the most part the book is intended to give you an overview of verity of technologies encapsulated in SOA architecture, but from a very distant perspective.

I read this book as part of a technical book club at work. The concensus of the group is that there is very little useful information in it. It contains many diagrams and charts that provide little benefit other than to increase the page count. It contains mis-information concerning competing technologies such as CORBA and constantly treats SOA and Web Services as if they are interchangeable terms. Much of the information is superficial. The bright spot in the book was that the large number of nearly identical charts made reading the chapters go very quickly. Finally, the author often seems to be using the book as advertisment for his company. There are much better resources for gaining an understanding of SOA and Web Services. Don't waste you money on this one.

I am overly impressed at the quality of the delivered product deemed used. The delivery was timely and I am most appreciative to the seller.

Fairly easy to follow, covers all the content that is tested. Has many practice tests, flash cards, and the entire book on pdf included. Read this book cover to cover, do the practices, and you will ace the Network + exam.

The good: I passed the exam with a 729 score.

The bad: The book is badly put together, and has some glaring omissions for anyone new to the subject. Just some examples, the discussion on CSMA/CD and CSMA/CA makes no mention in the text that one is for wired Ethernet and the other is for wireless. You do see where each technology is used, in a table 3 pages later, but that is not going to make an impression on anyone learning the subject. I didn't catch it until I missed the question on a Totalsem practice test. Chapter 8 on security also seems very badly arranged and a very quick gloss over of security protocols such as PPTP(not mentioned in Ch.8 but only in Ch.7), L2PT, or IPsec, with no mention of how they work or what they really do.

There was also at least one very confusing contradiction. In chapter 5 on network operating systems, the book stated that it is only possible for Windows servers to support Mac clients with special add-on software and only with limited support. Then a few pages later it states that Window NT and 2000 have built in support for Mac clients and that a Mac client won't be able to tell the difference between a Mac and a Windows server.

My other complaint is a faulty index. I can't count the number of times that I tried to look in the index to try to review something I had read only to be frustrated.

Not to be too hard on the book it is a fairly good book and was my primary textbook for the exam. But don't use it as your only source of information unless your willing to do a lot of your own research on the Internet.

I used this book and the "Network+ In Depth" book to study for my certification (I had a lot of time on my hands when I was preparing for it). The Sybex Network+ Study Guide has a good overall structure to it. It is easy to follow and laid out in such a way that you can easily map the sections to the objectives for the certification exam (however, they could have made it even easier to map out).

I read through this book, and then wrote my own study guide that mapped directly to the exam objectives, where I would have a section for each objective (1.1, 1.2, 1.3, etc.) with the necessary notes underneath the section header. I found most of the basic info in the Sybex book, but there were certain parts that I had to look up on-line or in the Network+ In Depth book.

The Sybex Network+ Study Guide book also comes with some practice exams and electronic flash cards. I used those resources quite extensively and they did a good job relating to the material in the book (although there were somethings that didn't really correspond, if I remember correctly).

After preparing for the exam using the Sybex book and CD, I decided to double check that I had covered the right materials. I went online and looked for some practice exams. I was quite shocked by how different the questions were on those practice exams than what was in the Sybex book. It was a good thing that I consulted those other resources, because they certainly helped fill in a lot of the cracks that became increasingly apparent in the Sybex book.

When I finally took the Network+ Exam (2007 edition mind you), there were many questions that I was not familiar with, and the wording was also very different (I passed, by the way). I know that this may have something to do with the newer version (2007 Edition) of the test - but the subject matter is supposed to be the same, only some different wording on the questions.

Ultimately, this book is good at giving you a general idea of what to expect on the exam, but if you want to pass with satisfactory marks, do not rely solely on this text.

I just took the Network+ exam today and barely passed. The book has lots of good information, however it does not tell you everything you need to know for the 2007 exam! This book was written for the 2005 exam. Maybe if I took the 2005 exam I would have done much better, but I studied this front to back thoroughly and barely passed. There were many questions I had no clue on, because the book never spoke about it.

If you get this book, consider it a foundation, and then get something else that focuses on the 2007 exam. The book has very good information, just keep in mind that you will need to continue further than it gives you.