general

I love this book. It covers everything you would need to know to pass the A+ exams, and covers even more in great detail. Even if you are a complete newbie, you can learn everything by reading this book. A lot of people complain that there is too much information in this book, but I think it is a good thing, as it helps you gain more understanding of what really is going on under the hood of your PC.

This is not just another exam cram book. In fact, I recommend this book to everyone, from total newbies to experienced technicians. even if you are not planning on becoming A+ certified, you will learn a great deal from this book.

If you are planning on becoming A+ certified, this book outlines the subjects that will be covered on the tests, and includes many practice tests that will let you know what areas you need to study.

For those totally new to computers, you cannot just read this book (or any single book) and expect to pass the exam. I recommend reading this book thoroughly, and then doing at least 6 months of hands-on work with PC hardware / software. Then, read the book again.

For those that are experienced technicians and power-users, who have installed memory and hard drives before, or even build PC's, I recommend you just read this book completely to brush up on some details you might know completely, then take the practice tests. When you consistently pass the practice tests, then go take the real exam. You will pass I guarantee.

If you are a total beginner, this is the book for you. The author explains the concepts in excellent detail. If you're not too familiar with what is covered on the A+ you will be after reading this. That said, if you already have some experience in the field this book tends to seem long winded and boring. My recommendation would be to take a look at the A+ outlines on cramsession.com (there's an online version you can check out for free) and then if you feel like you need to go over anything, pick up this book.

The other thing I found very useful was the CD that comes with it. It has a lot of practice tests with questions that closely mirror what is actually on the A+ test. It's great practice (especially the "adaptive" version that acts like the real test). If you can consistently pass these you're sure to pass the A+.

Overall a good buy.

Even though I have been doing PC Support for the last 4 or 5 years, this year my employers decided I needed to be certified. I bought this book even though it was not the current edition it helped alot. It was a lot of reading but the author inserted some comic relief to help. I studied this book for two weeks and passed my certification tests. It doesn't go into Windows XP enough but it gives you a lot on DOS which believe it or not, I still have to deal with on a day-to-day basis. I would recommend this book to anyone getting started in the pc repair industry.