W2KnewsFlash[tm] Electronic Newsletter
Vol. 5, #35- August 9, 2000 - Issue #210
Published by sunbelt-software.com since 1996 - ISSN: 1527-3407
'Immediate Notification Of Important Windows NT/2000 Events'
*******************over 600,000 subscribers*********************
Hi Everyone, two short points:
1) This the special "certification guest newsletter" that I promised
last weekend. This is a sample so you can subscribe if you want.
2) I have the W2K Admin Black Book in my hot little hands, but the
online shop is being worked on so I'l make the announcement in just
a day or so. It looks great !
Warm regards,
Stu
___________________________________________________________
Must Know News - Special Edition
http://www.Cramsession.BrainBuzz.com
201,000 Subscribers
____________________________________________________________
This Week's Contents:
1) Introduction: Hi there, Sunbelt Readers!
2) Feature Article: Inside the W2K Accelerated Exam
3) Recent Cramsession Updates
* Windows 2000 Security Cramsession
* Oracle 8i Upgrade Cramsession
* Cisco CCNP 2.0 BCRAN Cramsession
* Cisco CSPFF Cramsession
* Novell 4.11 To 5.1 Upgrade Cramsession
* Novell ZENworks 2.0 Cramsession
* IBM VisualAge Java Cramsession
* Win2K News Coming Soon
* Programming Questions Of The Day
4) News Headlines and Resources
Windows 2000 Service Pack 1
Microsoft Technology Week (Sept. 18-22)
CompTIA's A+ Cert Exam Goes Adaptive
CompTIA Announces Linux+ Certification
Backing Up & Restoring Active Directory
UNIX Basics (don't fear the command prompt!)
Oracle Sample Assessment Exams
Oracle 7.3 Exam Retirement
RHCE Course & Exam Details
Whistler Review
Solaris Central
Association of IT Professionals
Transcender Win2K Exams
5) Site of the Week
6) Tough Tech Trivia 1.0
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============================================================
1) Introduction: Hi There, Sunbelt Readers!
============================================================
Hello, and welcome to Cramsession's Must Know News, a
weekly newsletter from the training and certification
wing of BrainBuzz.com. If you would like to receive this
free newsletter on a regular basis, please send a blank
e-mail to:
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What you are currently reading is a special edition of
Cramsession's Must Know News, a weekly e-newsletter that
brings you the best news and resources for certification
and training.
If you want a concise e-newsletter that details changes
to the IT certification scene, Must Know News is for you.
Whether you're a new certification student, a certified
professional, an IT trainer, or you're just interested
in IT certification and training news, Cramsession MKN
has the information you want.
Enjoy this special copy of Must Know News, and if you
would like to receive it on a weekly basis, just follow
the directions below. Thanks again, and good reading!
-The Cramsession Team
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2) Feature: Inside the W2K Accelerated Exam
============================================================
The Microsoft Windows 2000 Accelerated Exam for MCPs Certified
on Microsoft Windows NT 4.0, Exam 70-240, became available on
June 30, 2000. Because of the delays many MCPs (yours truly
included) experienced in obtaining their free exam voucher
from Microsoft, the first wave of people writing Exam 70-240
just started to hit testing centers in the last week.
-----------------------
Who can take this exam?
-----------------------
This exam is intended to help current MCPs move quickly to
the Windows 2000 track. If you have not passed all three
prerequisite exams--70-067 (NT4 Server), 70-068 (Server in
the Enterprise), and 70-073 (NT4 Workstation)--you are not
eligible to take the Accelerated Exam. If you are in the
process of completing the Windows NT 4.0 track - don’t panic.
Once you have completed the pre-requisite exams you become
eligible to write Exam 70-240. Due to its difficulty,
however, you may wish to hold off for a while.
------------------------------
How do I get the FREE voucher?
------------------------------
The free voucher is available to all MCPs who have met
Microsoft’s prerequisites through the secured MCP site at:
http://www.microsoft.com/trainingandservices/default.asp?PageID=mcp&PageCall=redirect
While most can expect to receive their vouchers via e-mail
within 10 days, some MCPs have reported a delay of up to
several weeks. Those who do not have their own e-mail
address can opt to receive a voucher by snail-mail instead.
When registering for this exam, you will be asked to provide
your voucher number - you cannot register without it.
---------------------------
One strike and you’re out?!
---------------------------
Much of the sound and fury around Exam 70-240 has been
because it is a one-shot deal. In an attempt to protect the
exam’s integrity, Microsoft is limiting all MCPs to one
chance at passing the exam. Should you fail, you will have
to write all four W2K core exams separately. As a result of
this restriction, the Accelerated Exam has garnered more
than its fair share of hype and fear mongering throughout
newsgroups and discussion forums across the Net.
--------------------------------
How do I get ready for the exam?
--------------------------------
Exam 70-240 is not really one exam, but a collection of
material from the four Windows 2000 core exams, 70-210
(Professional), 70-215 (Server), 70-216 (Networking), and
70-217 (Directory Service Admin). You must be familiar with
the material listed in the objectives of each of these
exams in order to pass Exam 70-240. Exam Objectives can be
found on Microsoft’s site at:
http://www.microsoft.com/trainingandservices/default.asp?PageID=mcp&PageCall=requirements&SubSite=cert/mcse&AnnMenu=mcse#win2ktrack
As well, we suggest reviewing the corresponding Windows 2000
Cramsessions and their relevant links found on our site at:
http://cramsession.brainbuzz.com/cramsession/microsoft/default.asp
Microsoft recommends at least one year of networking industry
experience before attempting to write any of the four core
exams. This is particularly relevant as the new Windows 2000
exams are much more focused on skills learned through practical
experience with a product, and the Accelerated Exam is no
exception. In fact, those MCPs who have survived through rote
memorization and the use of braindumps are advised to take a
supply of stomach antacids with them to the testing center.
----------------------------
What’s the exam really like?
----------------------------
Exam 70-240 is divided into four smaller exams, W2K Pro, W2K
Server, W2K Networking, and W2K Directory Services. Each is
approximately 22 - 29 questions in length, with time limits
varying from 50 minutes to 70 minutes. You must complete
each mini-exam before you can move on to the next one, and
you cannot review the previous mini-exam. Overall, you have
about 100 questions to complete in the 4 hours allotted. You
receive no indication of your score until the very end of the
exam, when you receive only a simple pass or fail. Because of
the large number of objectives covered by the Accelerated Exam,
MS does not return a single exam score.
The mini-exams for Windows 2000 Professional and Windows 2000
Server map very well to the exam objectives. They will not be
particularly challenging for those who have been working with
the OS since it was in beta. Both mini-exams were extremely
fair and covered issues that network administrators can
reasonably expect to encounter in the course of their work
(installations, upgrades, file sharing, printing, applying
service packs, disk configuration, and security issues in
particular).
Many older Microsoft exams are famous for poking around in
obscure corners of the OS that no one uses or cares about.
With the Directory Services mini-exam, MS does an excellent
job of sticking to the most commonly used features as well
as the objectives posted for exam 70-217: no surprises here.
Most of the questions in this section require you to apply
your knowledge to various scenarios, for example planning an
implementation or troubleshooting a problem. Be forewarned -
Group Policy is thoroughly covered in this area. If you don’t
know how GP is inherited or filtered, you will be in trouble.
The Networking mini-exam was a pleasantly tough nut to crack.
If Microsoft could make all of their exams this challenging
and relevant to the real world, there would be a lot fewer
'Paper MCSEs' in circulation and the certification itself
would be held in much higher regard. Once again, the objectives
for Exam 70-216 are followed very closely. The majority of the
questions in this section will require putting on your thinking
cap. The TCP/IP protocol, Internet Information Server,
Certificate Services, Routing and Remote Access Services, DNS,
DHCP, NAT, Automatic Private IP Addressing, and Internet
Authentication Services are all touched upon. Out of the
entire exam, this section is most likely to weed out those
MCPs with little or no practical experience.
Most of the questions in the four sections were multiple-
choice. Candidates can expect to encounter a handful of 'drag
and drops' and a few of the dreaded 'choose all that apply'
type. A good number of the questions did feature exhibits--
which are always annoying on a 14-inch monitor at 640x480
resolution. (Wouldn’t it be nice if the testing centers
would put some of the money from those fiendishly expensive
exams into better monitors?)
-------------------------
The view from 40,000 feet
-------------------------
Much like Star Wars Episode I 'The Phantom Menace', Exam
70-240 fails to live up to the hype built up around it prior
to release. It is a challenging exam that will enhance the
value of the MCSE certification, but is by no means an
impossible goal to achieve. While I would have liked to see
the entire exam written to the same exacting standards as
the networking portion, Microsoft deserves credit for closely
following their posted exam objectives and keeping the exam
relevant to the work MCPs will perform in their day-to-day
jobs.
If you are a Windows NT 4.0 Certified Professional with one
or more years of industry experience behind you, some study
combined with solid, hands-on Windows 2000 practice will put
you in good stead for challenging the exam. Recently certified
MCPs or those just completing the NT 4.0 track are advised to
bide their time and perhaps consider some additional courses
before tackling Exam 70-240. This is one case where experience
DOES count.
Sean McCormick,
MCSE, MCP+I, MCT, A+, Net+, CTT
============================================================
3) Recent Cramsession Updates
============================================================
* Windows 2000 Security Cramsession *
Here's the first of a whole whack of Cramsessions we
released this week. This much-requested study guide
will help you to prepare for the 70-220 Exam, Designing
Security for a Microsoft Windows 2000 Network.
http://cramsession.brainbuzz.com/cramsession/microsoft/win2ksecurity
* Oracle 8i Upgrade Cramsession *
This monster Cramsession weighs in at over 70 pages long!
It's packed with information on the recently released
Oracle 8i Upgrade Exam, 1V0-020. Be sure to check out the
Links section for more Oracle resources.
http://cramsession.brainbuzz.com/cramsession/oracle/Oracle8iupgrade
* Cisco CCNP 2.0 BCRAN Cramsession *
BCRAN, the Building Cisco Remote Access Networks Exam, is
part of both the CCNP & CCDP Cisco certification tracks.
This study guide includes several useful diagrams that
help to outline the objectives for the Cisco Exam 640-505.
http://cramsession.brainbuzz.com/cramsession/cisco/bcran
* Cisco CSPFF Cramsession
Here's a study guide for the Cisco Secure PIX Firewall
Fundamentals Exam, 9E0-559. This exam is for partners and
Resellers who want to become Specialized for Partner
benefits, and anyone who wishes to test their knowledge
on this equipment.
http://cramsession.brainbuzz.com/cramsession/cisco/cspff
* Novell 4.11 To 5.1 Upgrade Cramsession *
If you're ready to upgrade your support skills from NetWare
4.11 to NetWare 5.1, check out this study guide for the
CNE 50-652 Upgrade Exam. Note: there is also a CNI version
of this exam, 50-852.
http://cramsession.brainbuzz.com/cramsession/novell/411_51update
* Novell ZENworks 2.0 Cramsession *
This Cramsession is for CNE Exam 50-656 and CNI Exam
50-856, Desktop Management with ZENworks 2.0. The information
in this study guide will definitely be of value to
anyone preparing to take one of these exams.
http://cramsession.brainbuzz.com/cramsession/novell/zenworks2
* IBM VisualAge Java Cramsession
This Cramsession will help you to prepare for IBM Exam
1Z0-513, Object-Oriented Analysis and Design with UML.
There are two certifications related to this exam: IBM
Certified Solution Developer, and IBM VisualAge for Java.
http://cramsession.brainbuzz.com/cramsession/ibm/visualage_java
* Win2K News Coming Soon *
Cramsession is pleased to announce that we will soon be
debuting a brand spanking new e-mail service, the Win2K
News. This newsletter is meant for anyone who uses or
administrates Windows 2000. Whether you are a network
admin, a power user, or a certification student looking
for the latest Win2K tips, information, and resources,
Win2K News will have it for you.
If you would like to have this free newsletter delivered
to your virtual door, send a blank e-mail to the format
address of your choice.
To get the Text version, send a blank e-mail to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
To get the shiny HTML version, send a blank e-mail to:
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
* Programming Questions Of The Day
Cramsession will soon be debuting four new Question of the
Day (QoD) categories that will be of special interest to
programmers. These four new categories are:
-Java
-C++
-COM
-VB6
If you would like to receive any or all of these QoDs,
just head to our sign-up page!
http://www.brainbuzz.com/lists/signup.asp
============================================================
4) News Headlines and Resources
============================================================
* Some provided links may be too long to fit in your window
without wrapping. Be sure to copy and paste these long
links into your browser's address bar.
-------------------------------------------------------------
Windows 2000 Service Pack 1
-------------------------------------------------------------
Service Pack 1 for Win2K is now available. Although it
includes fixes for setup, application compatibility,
operating system reliability and security, Microsoft
states that it is not a required upgrade.
http://www.microsoft.com/windows2000/downloads/recommended/sp1/default.asp
IMPORTANT: If you are running a personal firewall such as
ZoneAlarm or BlackIce, installing Win2K SP 1 can take away
your Internet and network access! Read about it here:
http://www.wininformant.com/display.asp?ID=2852
And read about the fix for this issue here:
http://support.microsoft.com/support/kb/articles/Q269/6/76.ASP
-------------------------------------------------------------
Microsoft Technology Week (Sept. 18-22)
-------------------------------------------------------------
This conference gives trainers the opportunity to get access
to the latest Microsoft products, technologies, and
courseware. The Fall MS Tech Week will feature SQL 2000 and
Exchange 2000, along with some new content on Win2K.
Trainers will be able to choose from over 150 sessions in
7 tracks. The sessions all map to specific MS courses, and
there's also a track of sessions geared towards improving
trainer skills.
http://www.microsoft.com/trainingandservices/techweek
-------------------------------------------------------------
CompTIA's A+ Cert Exam Goes Adaptive
-------------------------------------------------------------
That's right, the certification exams for CompTIA's popular
A+ Certification are now adaptive exams. The change took
place on Friday, July 28, 2000. Before you take on the new
exams, check out CompTIA's FAQ page.
http://www.comptia.org/certification/aplus/aplus_adaptive_live.htm
-------------------------------------------------------------
CompTIA Announces Linux+ Certification
-------------------------------------------------------------
The Linux world will soon have a new certification partner.
CompTIA has announced their intention to create a new
professional certification called Linux+. It will be a
vendor-neutral certification, and is currently being backed
by the Linux Professional Institute, Sair/GNU Linux, and
Caldera. Linux+ is expected to go live first half of 2001.
http://www.comptia-itpro.com/Linuxprn.htm
-------------------------------------------------------------
IT Salary Survey
-------------------------------------------------------------
We often get email regarding salary information. The problem
with many surveys found on the Internet is that they cover
only top certifications such as CNE or MCSE, or they cover
only very generic job titles, such as network engineer or
webmaster. This site will let you know what IT professionals
are earning based on their expertise in all sorts of
languages and platforms. Select the Real Rate Survey if you
are interested in hourly rates, or select Salary Survey for
yearly rates.
http://www.realrates.com
-------------------------------------------------------------
UNIX Basics (don't fear the command prompt!)
-------------------------------------------------------------
Contrary to popular belief, UNIX is not as inaccessible as
some tech-heads would like you to believe. The following
tutorial features tips for basic command line usage that
will have even the most diehard DOS and Windows users
feeling comfortable at the keyboard.
http://www.networkingnews.org/headline_news/main_news/07week_4/hl_01.html
-------------------------------------------------------------
Oracle Sample Assessment Exams
-------------------------------------------------------------
These five free assessment tests for Oracle exams will help
those aspiring Oracle Certified Professionals (OCPs) prepare
for the Oracle certification exams.
http://www.dbdomain.com/news.htm#assessment
-------------------------------------------------------------
Oracle 7.3 Exam Retirement
-------------------------------------------------------------
Oracle is retiring three of the Oracle 7.3 track exams on
August 31, 2000. These three exams are:
1Z0-003: Oracle7.3 Database Administration,
1Z0-004: Oracle7.3 Performance Tuning Workshop,
1Z0-005: Oracle7.3 Backup and Recovery Workshop
http://www.dbdomain.com/news.htm#retire
-------------------------------------------------------------
RHCE Course & Exam Details
-------------------------------------------------------------
The Red Hat Certified Engineer (RHCE) course is a very
challenging four-day, instructor-led training class that
is meant to prepare students to take the RHCE Exam. This
article gives details and tips for both the course and the
exam.
http://oreilly.linux.com/pub/a/86
-------------------------------------------------------------
Whistler Review
-------------------------------------------------------------
Whistler is the name of the next generation of Microsoft's
Windows operating system. This OS, due out in late 2001,
promises to be a big part of Microsoft's .NET strategy.
This comprehensive article on the Whistler Preview version
reviews this work in progress.
http://www.winsupersite.com/reviews/whistler_preview_2250.asp
-------------------------------------------------------------
Solaris Central
-------------------------------------------------------------
This site is for anyone pursuing their Solaris certification.
It's full of great links to Solaris resource sites, and also
offers two sample exams.
http://solariscentral.org/adm/cert/
-------------------------------------------------------------
Association of IT Professionals
-------------------------------------------------------------
The Association of Information Technology Professionals has
some super member benefits for certification students. In
addition to providing up to 47% discounts on popular IT and
business publications, this organization has an AITP Lending
Library. This training service gives unlimited borrowing
privileges from a collection of more than 800 video, CD and
CBT courses. Topics include: A+, MCSE, CCNA, CNE and many
others.
https://www.aitp.org/index.html
-------------------------------------------------------------
Transcender Win2K Exams
-------------------------------------------------------------
Transcender Corporation, the industry standard for
certification exam preparation, has announced that it is
pre-selling two popular Paks for the MCSE 2000 track - the
Deluxe MCSE 2000 Select Pak and the Deluxe MCSE 2000 Core
Pak. These Paks contain the same high-quality exam simulations
that thousands of IT professionals have found to be essential
in their study preparation. For more information, visit:
http://ad.brainbuzz.com/?RC=1006&AI=1044
============================================================
5) Site Of the Week
============================================================
Our Site of the Week is FreeTechMail.org!
What they say:
"FreeTechMail.org knows how hard it can be for IT Professionals
to keep on top of developments as they happen within the
Industry. You need fast, free access to the best technology
information available. For that reason, FreeTechMail.org has
designed the ultimate meeting place for publishers of opt-in
IT newsletters and the professionals who want to read them.
This organized service will help you to take control of the
constantly expanding amount of data resources."
What Cramsession says:
We at Cramsession are suckers for free stuff, so we were
impressed with FreeTechMail right away. It's a fantastic
way to organize your e-newsletter subscriptions from one
central point, instead of having to jump from site to site.
It's a no-charge service that will help anyone manage the
ever-growing amount of information available through e-mail
services. Very cool site, FreeTechMail!
http://www.freetechmail.org
============================================================
6) Tough Tech Trivia 1.0
============================================================
If you count every word in this question (no matter how big
or small the word is) and total them up, APPROXIMATELY how
many times could you write this question onto a standard
CD-ROM disc? There are two ways to figure the answer out,
the cheap way and the hard way. By the way, CD-ROM is one
word, and you are not using compression while writing to
the disc, and yes, you should count this sentence too, but
not anything that follows the colon at the end of this
question:
a) 250,000 times
b) 1.44 million times
c) 5.25 million times
d) 42 million times
e) 650 million times
The answer is here!
http://ad.cramsession.com/?RC=1006&AI=512
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Quote of the Week
============================================================
I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound as they fly by.
- Douglas Adams
============================================================
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