[Any tips] Studying for A+ Cert

[MaD_ReBeL]

what does a college degree have to do with telecommuting?

 

[T-Refried-455]

because pre-degree i delivered pizzas and cooked shitty italian food

it's hard to be a saute chef via VPN

 

[MaD_ReBeL]

i see.

i setup a ton of morons for telecommuting in the past. i would be shocked if 1/10th of them had degrees.

just sayin, its not some sort of college only thing. lots of companies make use of it for a large variety of their staff.

p.s. i don't have a degree, guess i should stop reconfiguring these switches in san diego.

 

[Vlasic]

soon switches will configure themselves and YOU'LL BE OUT OF A JOB!!!!

 

[MaD_ReBeL]

i no rite!

 

[GammA]

I think it's obvious you wont be hired because you have certs... but to not get something when you have the chance because it "doesn't mean anything" is just about the dumbest approach you could take on your career.

One day you'll be up against a guy that doesn't have A+...everything else even.

You'll get the job because you took the initiative. Jobs like geek squad and simple repair places require "dumb certs" like A+. Those are good starting jobs.

 

[MaD_ReBeL]

the only certification you need is are you google certified? can you google an error code/problem? here is my problem solving routine.

find the error/problem, google it, read, try some shit, doesnt work?, do we have support?, yes? call the fucking vendor make them support their shit, don't have support? read more and try shit till it works, document the shit out of what you did.

solid trouble shooting skills and knowing where to find errors and then where to find answers for those errors is more important than any certification.

a strong understanding of how things work is also essential though. if you don't know how things should work you'll never be able to trouble shoot.

 

[saKe]

Goto a site like CertsKing | Guaranteed & Reliable Certification Training and find the specific test you are taking. It is worth it and the test will be a breeze.

 

[HaPpY]

worth for me to poop on!

 

[Zanthious]

i know this will sound lame but i think being an intern would be better on your resume.

 

[fartiusstinkius]

sample A+ questions....


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Question 3
Which of the following will happen when a user plugs a third-party adapter which outputs alternating current (AC) directly into a laptop?
A. The laptop will start in Safe Mode.
B. The laptop will start, however it will not charge the battery.
C. The laptop processor will be overclocked.
D. The laptop components will be damaged.
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Haha holy shit

 

[samuelk]

Haha holy shit

That's actually the correct answer. It's like how you can turbo-boost a car with a standard gasoline engine by using diesel.

 

[vawlk]

I'm of the opinion that it should be there. Its the level one tard check. Its the guys that bring it up when asked about certs in the interview that you steer clear of.

Give me 30 seconds with a prospect and I could tell you with about 95% accuracy if they could pass the A+ or not. The only time A+ matters is when THEE IT guy quits and the HR department has to hire his replacement.

In fact, I would rather take a pure green kid than one that has been tainted by certs.

 

[Xeri0us]

who has the pic of NGFM in his nice spacious cube and then the other pic a few years later in a little microcube

 

[Diablo Escobar]

the problem is applying for a job where the A+ cert is even relevant. Deskside techs and help desk jobs are the bottom of the IT food chain

 

[vawlk]

From what I've gathered, he failed college, and is working in a dead-end job with low pay and management that actually expects him to do things every once in awhile. So yeah, there's a root to his hate for his job and the world in general.

he is a professional BASIC programmer. What do you expect?

 

[HaPpY]

oh right forgot the link to those questions

Sample Test Questions For A+ Certification | StudyNotes.net (includes answers)

the questions again

Spoiler

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Question 1
Which of the following is the local user with the MOST authority on a computer running Windows XP ?
A. BCM user
B. Power user
C. Network Configuration Operator
D. Administrator
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Question 2
Which of the following modes will provide retrieval of a previous computing session with the least amount of boot-up time ?
A. Shutdown
B. Hibernate
C. Standby
D. Restart
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 3
Which of the following will happen when a user plugs a third-party adapter which outputs alternating current (AC) directly into a laptop?
A. The laptop will start in Safe Mode.
B. The laptop will start, however it will not charge the battery.
C. The laptop processor will be overclocked.
D. The laptop components will be damaged.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 4
Which of the following is a way to identify which Windows operating system is currently installed ?
A. Click on Start > Run and type version/info
B. Click on Start > Run and type version info/detail
C. Right click My Computer > Manage
D. Right click My Computer > Properties
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 5
In Windows XP, which of the following utilities is used to partition the disk ?
A. Disk Management
B. System Configuration Utility
C. Registry Editor
D. Device Manager
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Question 6
An older printer is connected to a computer using a parallel port. Which of the following connectors is MOST likely used on the computer's parallel port ?
A. DB-50 connector
B. DB-25 pin connector
C. DB-9 pin connector
D. DB-37 connector
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Question 7
Which of the following IP classes is the IP address 200.168.212.226 an example of ?
A. Class C
B. Class A
C. Class B
D. Class D
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Question 8
The standard connector used for an UTP Ethernet connection is:
A. DB-9.
B. RJ-45.
C. BNC.
D. RJ-11.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 9
A user reports that the computer keeps freezing. Which of the following information should the technician obtain FIRST ?
A. The model number of the user's computer
B. Windows Error Reporting Log
C. The type of machine, whether it is a laptop or a desktop
D. What the user was doing when the problem occurred
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 10
A user reports an issue that does not occur while the technician is onsite. Which of the following actions should the technician perform while troubleshooting this issue with the user ?
A. Ask the user which web sites they have been viewing.
B. Tell the user that the problem is usually related to user training.
C. Ask the user a series of questions designed to narrow the scope of the problem.
D. Tell the user that the technician will solve the problem quickly.




A+ IT Tech 220-602
Question 1
A computer will not perform power-on self test (POST), also no lights or sounds are emitted. Which of the following components should be checked FIRST ?
A. Display adaptor
B. Power supply
C. RAM
D. Motherboard
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Question 2
A technician observes that a computer's performance has decreased, and accessing large files takes more time than before. No additional programs are running, and system resource utilization is unchanged. Which of the following should the technician do to improve the computer's performance ?
A. Format the hard drive
B. Perform a system restore
C. Add more RAM to the system
D. Defragment the hard drive
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Question 3
Which of the following expansion interfaces can be used to plug into a wireless network adapter and provide wireless network access for a laptop computer ?
A. PCMCIA
B. Serial
C. LAN
D. PCI
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 4
Which of the following are major components of an LCD ? (Select TWO).
A. Video card
B. Screen
C. Inverter
D. Brightness
E. Contrast
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 5
Which of the following Windows commands can be entered to display the working directory ?
A. TREE
B. CD
C. CHKDSK
D. RMDIR
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Question 6
A computer running Windows XP has three primary partitions and an extended partition. Which of the following partitions can be added with Disk Management Tools when creating another partition ?
A. A primary partition
B. An enhanced partition
C. An extended partition
D. A logical partition
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 7
Which of the following commands is used when trying to write a new boot sector to the system partition when using the Windows XP Recovery Console ?
A. FIXMRB
B. FIXBOOT
C. BOOTCFG
D. FORMAT
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 8
Which of the following should be replaced in a laser printer when documents have lines through the text ?
A. Toner cartridge
B. Heads
C. Drum
D. Cylinder
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 9
Fiber optic cable uses which of the following connectors to transmit signals ?
A. BNC
B. MT-RJ
C. RJ-11
D. RJ-45
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 10
A technician is diagnosing a customer's computer and observes that the computer is sluggish and unresponsive. Which of the following actions should the technician take ?
A. Explain to the customer that the computer is outdated and the technician needs to take it back to the shop to fix it.
B. Explain the problem to the customer and show the customer how to defragment the system.
C. Perform a system restore on the computer.
D. Explain the problem to the customer in basic terms and recommend a solution.





A+ Remote Support Technician 220-603
Question 1
When performing disk defragmentation in Windows XP, which of the following is the minimum percentage of free space that should be available on the drive ?
A. 5%
B. 15%
C. 30%
D. 40%
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Question 2
To boot Windows into Safe Mode, which of the following keys should be pressed while booting ?
A. F9
B. F8
C. F3
D. F1
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 3
A user is reporting that their Window's XP computer is slow. When a technician arrives, they find many unwanted programs running at startup. Which application will allow the technician to keep the unwanted programs from running at startup ?
A. MSCONFIG
B. SYSTRAY
C. WINLOGON
D. REGSVR32
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Question 4
A technician wishes to make changes to a system file, but the file is set as hidden and read-only. Which tool could they use to make the file writeable and viewable from Windows Explorer ?
A. MSCONFIG.EXE
B. REGEDIT.EXE
C. ATTRIB.EXE
D. SFC.EXE
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Question 5
A user is scanning a document and changes the settings to scan the same document in color. This will cause the uncompressed file size to increase by:
A. two times
B. three times
C. four times
D. eight times
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 6
Which of the following file types would be the BEST to transmit a scanner image file that would be a suitable size to transmit through e-mail ?
A. PPT
B. DOC
C. TIFF
D. JPEG
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 7
Which of the following is the fastest wireless standard ?
A. 802.3
B. 802.11g
C. 802.11b
D. 802.5
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 8
Which of the following provides the ability to mask internal IP addresses while mapping those addresses to a common external IP address ?
A. IMAP
B. NAT
C. DNS
D. WINS
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 9
A user reports that they are not able to save changes to a text document they have opened from the company file server. Which of the following is MOST likely to be causing the issue ?
A. The user is trying to overwrite a file with a newer timestamp than the locally cached file.
B. The file server has gone down for planned maintenance.
C. The user's permissions do not allow them to write to the file.
D. The file server is out of disk space.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 10
An angry customer has called and is upset about a delay in the repair of their computer. After answering the phone, which of the following actions should a technician take FIRST ?
A. Place the customer on hold.
B. Listen to the customer's concerns.
C. Tell the customer that it is the part supplier's fault and provide the supplier's number.
D. Ask the customer to call back later to speak with a supervisor.






A+ Depot Tech 220-604
Question 1
A technician needs to test a power supply but does not have a dedicated power supply tester. Which of the following tools could be used to test a power supply's output ?
A. Digital multi-meter
B. Loop-back plug
C. RJ-45 crimper
D. CAT5 tester
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 2
Which of the following types of disk arrays provide the MOST fault tolerance ?
A. Striping
B. Mirroring
C. Extending
D. Spanning
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 3
A customer reports that their laptop's screen has suddenly become dim and barely readable. The video output is correct when the laptop is hooked up to an external monitor. After verifying that all user settings are correct, which of the following components should be replaced FIRST to attempt to repair the problem ?
A. Graphics controller
B. Inverter board
C. Video memory
D. Motherboard
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 4
A technician is upgrading the memory on a laptop that has a front-side bus speed of 400MHz. Which of the following memory module types has the minimum data transfer rate necessary to support this upgrade ?
A. PC2700
B. PC2100
C. PC3200
D. PC1600
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 5
Which of the following is the maximum number of devices that may be connected to a single USB port ?
A. 4
B. 63
C. 127
D. 511
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 6
When a screw is dropped inside a printer during a repair, which of the following tools should be used to retrieve the screw ?
A. Chip extractor
B. Vacuum
C. Extension Magnet
D. Long needle-nose pliers
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 7
A work order states that a laser printer is not properly affixing toner to paper. After the paper comes out of the printer, the toner falls off of the page. The user has changed the toner cartridge twice with no improvement in print quality. Which of the following is MOST likely the cause ?
A. The imaging drum is not fully discharging.
B. The fuser is malfunctioning.
C. The primary corona wire is receiving no power.
D. The laser scanner is defective.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Question 8
A technician is working on a laser printer. After printing several pages to replicate the problem, the technician unplugs the printer and begins repairs. Which of the following should the technician avoid touching to keep themselves from being burned ?
A. Separation pad
B. Pickup roller
C. Drum
D. Fuser
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Question 9
A technician is about to service a computer. Which of the following steps should they take first ?
A. The technician should disconnect the hard drive to avoid file corruption.
B. The technician should open up the case with a properly sized screwdriver to avoid stripping the screws.
C. The technician should move the computer to a carpeted area to avoid impact damage.
D. The technician should put on an anti-static strap to avoid electrostatic discharge (ESD) damage.
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Question 10
When the fan in a power supply fails, which of the following actions should be taken ?
A. Replace the fan inside of the power supply.
B. Add an external cooling device.
C. Repair the fan inside of the power supply.
D. Replace the power supply.

 

[vawlk]

the only certification you need is are you google certified? can you google an error code/problem? here is my problem solving routine.

find the error/problem, google it, read, try some shit, doesnt work?, do we have support?, yes? call the fucking vendor make them support their shit, don't have support? read more and try shit till it works, document the shit out of what you did.

solid trouble shooting skills and knowing where to find errors and then where to find answers for those errors is more important than any certification.

a strong understanding of how things work is also essential though. if you don't know how things should work you'll never be able to trouble shoot.

I tell everyone that google solves 90% of my issues however I earn my salary on the other 10%. That is the problem with hiring tech people. It is what happens the other 10% of the time that is most important.

 

[HaPpY]

sometimes i wonder how often doctors just google instead of knowing the required medication or surgical procedure

 

[DVADER]

sometimes i wonder how often doctors just google instead of knowing the required medication or surgical procedure

I work for a medical practice.

You don't want to know what goes on.