Solaris 10 System Administration Exam Prep 2 (Exam Prep)

Sun Certified Security Administrator for Solaris 10 Study Guide (Exam CX-XXX)

Solaris 10 : The Complete Reference (Complete Reference Series)

Solaris Solutions for System Administrators: Time-Saving Tips, Techniques, and Workarounds, Second Edition

Solaris Operating Environment Boot Camp

Certification

Sun (R) Certified System Administrator for Solaris (TM) 10 Study Guide (Exams 310-200 & 310-202)

Format: Paperback
Author: Paul Sanghera
ReleaseDate: 31 December, 2005
Publisher: McGraw-Hill Osborne Media
Rating:

Great System Admin Book
First, I used this book to prepare for the two exams to get my SCSA certification for Solaris 10, and yes, I passed the exams. This is a great Solaris 10 system administration book. Now, I'm using this book as a textbook for the Solaris 10 course that I treach to help others to learn basic Solaris 10 system administration. The nice thing about this book from my perspective is that I can teach the course without compromising my teaching style. I, like most of the teachers/trainers, would like to define concepts before diving into the thick of things, and I like to cover topics in a logical sequence. Students learn the most by making connections, to what they already know. The pieces should fit together nicely to build the big picture. This is exactly what this book does. Not only the chapters are in a perfect logical sequence, but so are the sections inside each chapter. I like it how the author starts each chapter by raising three points, the whole chapter revolves around those three points, the three points are concluded at the end of the chapter, and in the process you learn a topic with adequate depth without getting bored. I love the author's overall style: very refreshing. There are enough number of visuals/graphics that help understand a concept and make it stick.

Another thing that I like about this book is the commitment to the scope. Having involved in running some projects, I know the importance of scope management. Each course has a syllabus which is its scope like the scope of a project. Both the teacher and the project manager would fail to accomplish the objectives they were set out to accomplish, if they do not stick to the scope. For a basic course in Solaris system administration who can set the syllabus (scope) better than Sun itself? This book covers the Solaris 10 system administration within the scope set by Sun, that is, the exam objectives for the SCSA exams. You cannot teach everything in one course or in one book; if you try you will not be able to do justice with any topic. Because this book covers the scope set by the SCSA exam objectives, and presents the material in a classroom training fashion, that is why I use this book as a text book. After completing the course, the students can go out and take the SCSA exam if they wish: that's a bonus.

While preparing for the exam, I especially liked the following features: The Two-Minute Drill and From Inside the Exam that summarize the main points in the chapter from the exam view point, the Scenarios and Solutions that re-enforce important concepts in the form of an example or a short exercise, and the complete practice exams that come with the book.

This is a self contained book. So, if you have this book, you don't really need a teacher, but a book can never replace a teacher; we teachers always find ways to add value :-).

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Outlines the objectives, but fails to teach them
Especially when I started the practice exam on the CD-ROM. The author outlines the objectives in this book, but fails to adequately describe and teach them to the reader- here's why: I found myself constantly going back to Sun docs to verify everything I read. Things did not match up with what I read in the book earlier. I had to keep going back to docs. sun. com to verify things I've read earlier. I could of used docs. sun. com to prepare for the exam, but I bought the book to avoid going through that mess of documentation. I was really anoyyed that I had to keep referring back to the errata- it was very distracting. Not what I would expect from a study guide and poor editing is not excused on a book like this.

In the above Amazon PLOG, the author states "he's had the honor of helping Sun to develop the Sun Certified System Administrator for Solaris 10 certification. " That's scary. Cmon'- did you help develop the certs or simply signup to take the beta exams like several hundred others. If you contributed to the exams, how do I know the questions/answers aren't as screwed up on the exam as they are in the book. I certainly hope Sun does not require me to use their errata as I take the exam.
2 stars for the effort (until I take the exam), but no stars for the book as an accurate study guide. .

Overall a Great Book: Passed Both Exams
I do not regret because I have passed both the exams after preparing from this book. I've read the positive and the negative reviews about this book, and took the chance by buying the book. Here is my experience:
* Because I read the reviews about errors in the book, I downloaded the Errata (there is a link to Errata in Amazon Connect section of this page). I agree with some of the reviewers that mostly these errors are typos and there are in fact a very few factual errors.
* For the exam, it's important to remember the command options and file names given in the book.
* I like the author's style very much. Sounds like, he has the art of making difficult concepts simple and connecting different concepts to each other to help you make sense of the topic.
* There is a reasonable number of visuals/graphics in the book which sometimes explain simple things such as an entry in an important file, but mostly the complex things such as the lifecycle of a zone. These visuals on one hand explain an otherwise complex topic, and on the other hand make the material stick in your mind. Most system admin books (especially in UNIX) do not do such things.
* The practice exams that come with the book were very helpful. The answers are very explanatory: why the correct answer is correct and the incorrect answers are incorrect; all explained. These answers and explanations re-enforce the important concepts.
* I quickly went through the Two-minute drill and Inside the Exam sections just before the exam. It helped refresh the important concepts.

The presentation style of the book makes it a good Solaris 10 System Admin book even if you are not planning to take the exam.
Just ignore chapter 1 if you are an advanced admin and want to prepare for the exams.


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