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I passed the test. Not a great score, not a terrible one. The result was higher than I expected compared to the practice tests - maybe 5 points more.

I found that the questions on the exam were very similar to the ones on the practice tests.

It's still hard to tell exactly what PoE stuff to study - 802.3af vs. 802.3-2005. Neither the text nor the objectives are of any help here, and the number of PoE questions was perhaps more than you might expect given the one line in the objectives. Given that the practice tests emphasize it - take the hint, look at the explanations on the practice questions, and make your own study guide. Forget trying to read clause 33 in 802.3-2005.

There were several oddly worded questions, in my opinion, just like on the practice tests. Flip a mental coin and pray that you are on the same wavelength as the person who wrote the question.

The scoring was maybe different from the practice tests. On the practice tests, if you get any one choiice of a multiple choice wrong, the whole question is wrong. I wonder if the live exam is more forgiving - might it be giving partial credit?

In future texts, I would like to see a lot more on actual authentication troubleshooting. I think that is bread and butter for the typical admin. For example, how do you tell if it's authentication and not some RF issue that's keeping you from connecting?This would be a good topic for another thread, in my opinion.

As much as I like the vendor neutral aspect of CWNP, I think more coverage of what actually comes with WinXP would be good, with maybe Mac OSX as a secondary platform. It would be nice to see something more on working with laptops that go from home to work to motel rooms, with emphasis on keeping software firewalls enabled, profiles, and creating user documentation.

Finally, I have to say that studying for the exam did indeed teach me useful things to use at work. In particular, troubleshooting near-far, and fresnel zones. For example, my 1970s era military and recent HAM Radio study really didn't mention Fresnel zones as an issue. A recent link across the Mississippi River from our hospital to an office building downtown had some trouble till we angled the antenna up higher than line of sight.

=seymour=

Thanks Seymour. My exam is scheduled for Wednesday. I've been studying for the last 6 hours and my eyes are crossing. :)

Dude! Have a beer! Watch some TV for a little while. Take frequent breaks.

Do one of the 1st 2 practice exams, and maybe one of the 2nd 2 exams. Look at the areas you are weak on on them. Don't JUST study them till you get the answers right - use them as diagnostics tp find out what it is your don't know. I'd say that a person who can answer all the practice tests exactly right only has a 60% chance of passing - might be good enough if some real info sunk in.

Print out the explanations for the ones you got wrong.

Ask yourself "Are there words or acronyms on here I don't know?" - If so, reschedule your test. Seriously. There's so many buzz words, and 802.1 vs 802.11 confusion questions are possible. Make flash cards to learn vocabulary.

Know your dB math! This is a skill you need even beyond the exam!

Know stuff about FHSS, even if you never expect to see it in real life.

Know the upper and lower limits of frequency bands, how many channels in each, and how many you can operate in a given room simultaneoulsy.

Don't stare longer than about 90 seconds at a question on the real exam unless there's several you get real quick - it's a 90 minute test with 60 questions.

When taking any test like this, try to eliminate as many wrong choices as possible. If you still aren't certain after that, flip a mental coin.

Finally, just remember, if you fail, it's not a total waste. Now at least you know what the real test is like.

The average gamble at a casino probably wasts more than the cost of this test ... ;^)

=sey=

Congrats Seymour! Glad to hear the PoE PT questions helped. :)

Congrats Seymour! Thanks for the thorough feedback. We listen to all feedback and implement changes accordingly. Your feedback and participation in the program is greatly appreciated! Again, congratulations on a job well done!

Devinator

Forgot to Congratulate you!

Thanks for your advice. I have been throughly going through the explanations and re-hitting the chapters that I score poorly on. I've been making a study guide from the objectives and using explanations from the tests and quotes from the book to answer them.