Windows 7 Desktop Support and Administration: Real World Skills for MCITP Certification and Beyond 1st Edition

I'm not completely done reading the book yet but have already learned a lot from it. I find DG's style and presentation to be excellent in that he keeps the reader interested and, as the subtitle suggests, presents the tasks and exercises as real world skills.I've read the other reviews (good and bad) and tend to agree with some points in all of them. Most of the bad points to this book that were noted were that this book doesn't prepare the reader for the test "by itself" and this is true of any book. I'm not planning to use only this book but also the MS Press book and the Professor Messor videos and several other videos I've heard good things about that are free on youtube. Microsoft Technet articles are also a very good source of information and I plan on using them.I especially like that the exercises presented are well thought out and thorough. It is highly recommended that anyone planning to take either or both of these tests do these exercises (at least those that they have equipment capable of performing) and understand all the proper commands and switches.I'd also like to add that anyone planning to take these tests should make themselves familiar with Server 2008 and Server 2008 R2 and using these server systems in conjunction with Windows 7. Even if it's only in a virtual environment which a lot of us are limited to.In closing I've found this book to be an excellent study resource.

I enjoyed this book, and I used it as a secondary study guide for my MCITP certification. It approached the test in a new way, with a more real-world approach, which allowed me to further my studies in a unique way. My suggestion to anyone who is interested in becoming an MCITP is to get several books. I started with some Microsoft Self-Paced books, and then a set with labs and a lab manual, and finally, I read this one. Like I said, it was a nice addition to my studies and offered a fresh perspective.Since no book can completely cover everything that's on an exam, consider several. This is one worth considering.

I bought this book based upon my great experience with Darril's Security+ book.This book was written in the same easy to read fashion that allows you to fully understand the material.Only things I found missing were end of chapter exams.I liked that the cd contains a complete copy of the book on PDF.Flash cards were adequate.Now the big negative!This book did not prepare me for my 70-686 exam. I only passed the 686 exam because I read the Don Poulton 70-680 book and did lots of exams from Don and Preplogic, plus lots of labs at home and on Microsoft's technet (they have virtual labs you can use for free.This book would be great for the 70-680 as it covers just enough material for the 70-680, but does not cover the material needed for the 70-686 exam (i have take and passed both).read this for 680 not 686.

First of all, I want to say a big THANK YOU to Mr. Darril Gibson for his great innovation in producing easy-to-understand, plain language and factual Information Technology Books in this age of ours. This book helped me pass both 70-685 & 70-686 exams. For 70-685, this book is all you need. For 70-686, use this book and MS Press book on 70-686. The MS Press covers Virtual technologies in depth. Also, I suggest you do follow the exam objectives at the back of the book to get a clear guide to both exams. Good Luck to you all in your exams!

I guess it will help on the test, but it didn't do much for real life application

I worked in desktop support for over ten years and in the early days you could not find a book like this. It provides useful knowledge for things you encounter in everyday support of computer systems. I just love it. It's easy to read and you don't have to start from the beginning just lookup an area you want to concentrate on and get more information on the topic.

It is well written, and will help give you a solid basis for taking the test. Oh, and make sure you do the exercises on a computer with windows 7, the test requires a fair amount of real-world knowledge, not just book reading (I passed, and the book was a good adjunct to using Windows 7 in my job and at home).

While I feel the organization of the book is somewhat odd, the information is indispensable and it's much easier to digest than official Microsoft material on the same subjects. It's improved my desktop support and administration knowledge and abilities significantly and showed several methods Microsoft wouldn't cover in official books and training. As any IT Professional will tell you the "official" answer isn't always the right one. This book helps come up with more right real world solutions, not test specific answers. This is need to know beyond the exams.