CompTIA
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The Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) is a non-profit trade association, founded in 1982, and is a provider of professional certifications for the information technology industry.
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[edit] Certificate programs
CompTIA's certification exams themselves are actually administered through Pearson VUE and Prometric testing centers. In addition to certification, CompTIA also provides corporate membership.
[edit] A+
- See also, A+ Certification on Wikibooks.
The A+ certification demonstrates competency as a computer technician. CompTIA A+ certification is a vendor neutral certification.
It requires two tests to be passed; the A+ Core Hardware Exam and the A+ Core Operating System Technologies Exam. (From 2006 Q3 the two exams will be A+ Essentials and one elective.) CompTia is vendor neutral but does lean towards Microsoft operating systems.
The A+ exam is intended for information technology professionals who have the equivalent of 500 hours of hands-on experience. The exams are computer-based and are composed of multiple choice questions, of which there may be more than one correct answer. To date over 800,000 people have earned the A+ credential worldwide.
Topics of the Core examination include IRQs, direct memory access, practical computer repair, including installing or repairing: hard drives, modems, network cards, CPUs, power supplies, printers, and so forth. The focus of the exam is not theory, but practice. Often graphics are used in exam questions. Topics included in the Operating Systems Exam include: memory management, configuration files, and historical operating environments rather than the cutting edge, newer technologies.
Most of the people taking the A+ exam regard the Core exam as the more important, as it certifies them as a professional technician. The operating system exam is covered in much greater detail in the MCP exams and so there is less prestige in passing it; thus the A+ is primarily considered as a hardware exam.
As of 2006, the CompTIA A+ test is being updated so that the test taker must take the CompTIA A+ Essentials test along with one of the four other tests (220-602, 220-603, 220-604, 220-605). Each of the elective exams offers the candidate the opportunity to specialize their A+ certification to match their desired career path. The change is scheduled to take place starting in September 2006.
With the introduction of the 2006 A+, candidates will be offered a grace period whereby both the 2003 and 2006 versions are available. In 2007 it is likely the 2003 A+ track will be discontinued. In the USA the 2003 version of exams will be available until the end of 2006, this has been extended to end of march 2007 in some countries. The 2003 version has also been extended where the A+ certification is part of a course of learning.
Exam Cost: US$158 each for A+ OS and A+ Core.
Time Allocated: 90 minutes per exam.
Number of questions: 100 (only 80 of which count)
Total marks: 900
Score Needed to Pass: 515 (hardware), 505 (OS)
[edit] Network+
- [1] Network+ Certification on Wikibooks
Network+ is a certification that attempts to measure skill as a network technician: understanding of network hardware, installation, and troubleshooting. Topics include network hardware, connections and software, and different protocols used in Local Area Networks and Wide Area Networks. Network+ prepares one for continuing to Microsoft certifications and Cisco certifications. A combination A+/Network+ or A+/Server+ certification can fulfill the elective exam requirement of the Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) certification. The Exam itself is 90 minutes long consisting of 85 questions with a passing score of 554 out of 900.
[edit] Server+
Server+ is a certification that focuses on server-specific hardware and operating systems. Michael Meyers calls Server+ "a natural lead-in to Cisco certifications." A combination A+/Network+ or A+/Server+ certification can fulfill the elective exam requirement of the Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) certification.
[edit] Security+
Security+ is a certification dealing with computer security topics such as cryptography and access control. Currently, according to CompTIA, there are more than 25,000 people around the world who have earned this certification.
[edit] HTI+
Home Technology Integrator (HTI+) covers installation, integration and troubleshooting of automated home sub-systems.
[edit] e-Biz+
The e-Biz+ certification covers basic knowledge about e-commerce. The e-Biz+ certification has been discontinued in English but can still be taken in Japanese and Korean.
[edit] CTT+
CTT+ is a certification for training professionals in the computer industry and other industries.
[edit] CDIA+
Certified Document Imaging Architech ("architech" is spelled that way intentionally), or CDIA+, is a certification for competency in document imaging, document management and enterprise content management.
[edit] Linux+
Linux+ is a certification of knowledge of Linux operating systems, from their installation and use to the basics of applicable free software and open source licenses.
The Linux+ exam is intended for information technology professionals who have between six to twelve months of practical experience using Linux. The exam is broken down into several areas of Linux expertise: installation, management, configuration, security, documentation, and hardware.
The test is Computer-based multiple-choice exam, with a question followed by four possible answers, at least of one (but possibly more) of which must be correct. Common subject matter for exam topics include installation methods, boot loader configuration, managing packages (Debian and RPM management systems are covered), navigating directories via the command line, using the bash shell, security considerations, network administration including TCP/IP configuration), mounting filesystems (such as NFS, SMB or ext3) and managing configuration files for the more common applications that Linux servers are expected to run. Although configuring and running the X Window system is included in the formal exam objectives, there are rarely any questions pertaining to this as the exam focuses on Linux as a server and network operating system rather than for use as a desktop platform.
The Linux+ exam has undergone some criticism since its inception, due to the excessive amount of hardware-related questions that were on the exam initially, many of which were covered on the A+ exam. The newest version of the exam, available as of February 2005, does away with this problem.
The Linux+ has not proven to be very popular among IT professionals, primarily because of the much greater level of difficulty of the RHCE exam and the higher skill level required to pass it, as well as the popularity of the Red Hat Linux Distribution, whereas the Linux+ exam is designed to remain vendor-neutral. Although aimed at technicians rather than system administrators, the LPI exams, which go into much greater depth, also provide a lot of competition for this exam.
[edit] i-Net+
The i-Net+ certification deals with basic knowledge of "Internet, Intranet, Extranet and e-commerce technologies". Topics on the exam include distinguishing between server-side and client-side scripting, basic networking via command line, E-commerce, and E-business, security via digital signatures, copyright licenses including the GPL and basic HTML coding.
[edit] Project+
Project+ is a certification showing that one has the knowledge needed to manage projects
[edit] Prices
Prices in the United States, as of August 2006:[1]
- CompTIA A+: $158.00*
- CompTIA CTT+: $218.00*
- CompTIA CDIA+: $237.00
- CompTIA HTI+: $218.00*
- CompTIA i-Net+: $218.00
- CompTIA Linux+: $218.00
- CompTIA Network+: $225.00
- CompTIA Project+: $218.00
- CompTIA Security+: $237.00
- CompTIA Server+: $218.00
- CompTIA RFID+: $237.00
* requires two exams for certification
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- CompTIA official website
- Pearson VUE
- Free practice tests and study guides.
- Thomson Prometric
- TechExams.net - Free CompTIA study guides, forums, etc.
- Free A+ and Network + courses and forum
- - Free A+ and Network+ practice tests
- NetWorkingBoards - a resource for computer networking and network training (Network+ included)
