CCNA Security

[tsabsuav]

Is anyone on the CCNA Security track?  Please share what materials you use for your studies and if you have already taken the vendor exam, share your thoughts and suggestions on how to prepare for the exam.  I'm looking for any suggestions, thanks in advance.

[tsabsuav]

That's ok I don't want to be troublesome. I will be patient and wait for him or other's contribution.

[Eyedumgai]

CCNA or Network+? Which do you think is more worthwhile? CCNA is specific to Cisco equpments and uses their lingo, while Network+ is more broad. Thoughts of why one over the other?

[tsabsuav]

I think the more certs you can get under your belt the better you will be. Just can't find the time to get them all.

[tsabsuav]

My first director (right out of college who hired me)  told me certs are a big waste of time because they become obsolete so fast and hard to maintain.  What I needed to learn was proces, best practices, principles, technology, theories, excellent communication and managing skills and etc... and most importantly work for the top companies... The latter seems to work better...just me though.  I'm not saying certs are a waste of time, it's just VERY hard to maintain, and there is a big glass ceiling on people with technical aptitude and no PM or soft skills.

Unfortunately, that is the disadvantage about certs. However, there are many advantages for those who knows their stuff and not just having the pieace of paper without really having the skills.  But you're right, after all it still boils down to the concept you stated.  That is one hella rule of thumb to live by.

[YAX]

PM Yax...he's a guru.

sorry, I've stopped doing the certification thing for a while now.  It's great when you're a consutant, because that's what clients look for since they have no other measurement tool to grade you by. I say go for it.  Get as many certs as you can and keep updating them until you've had enough years of field experience.  Nowadays, I doing management.  I still do some technical work every now and then, but most of the time I just let my staff do the technical stuff.  My job now consists of mostly of decision making, planning, scheduling and leading.  I like it though.  It pays more and it's less stress when you know what you're doing.

[YAX]

CCNA or Network+? Which do you think is more worthwhile? CCNA is specific to Cisco equpments and uses their lingo, while Network+ is more broad. Thoughts of why one over the other?

if I had to choose, I'd go for CCNA.  It's more applicable.  Network + is just a general cert and doesn't really weigh much when managers need technicians to work o n their Cisco devices.