I recently purchased this book, & I am a complete begginer with Novell, I have found this book quiet useful, infact I beleive this is the only book you will need to pass the exams..this book comes with two CD's which include Novell Server operating system & Client, which I think is quiet useful, because without these CD's the book is not worth 60 dollars. The title of the book is a little misleading...it says CNA study guide 5.1 whereas it only covers one (of the two exams) required to pass CNA test..so this book only covers the 5.1 admin exam 50-653 portion, for Networking technologies exam 50-632 you will have to buy a separate book. One mistake at the amazon site is that they say the book is 900 pages whereas it is 611 pages book, but I think its worth buying this book from amazon because if you will buy this book from Novell it will cost you 75 dollars (shipping extra). I gave this book 4 stars because the author has included technical crossword game after each chapter, which is unnecessary & time consuming.

All you need to pass the C.N.A. exam 50-653 is the patience to read this book and an understanding of the concepts presented therein. I easily passed the test with a greater than 700 score. I read the book twice and set up my own Novell test network so I could do all the labs, which is probably more than most people need to do.

BOOK LAYOUT
The chapters are clear, well organized, and the author really tried to emphasize the test material. There are no conventional questions at the end of the chapter. Instead there are word searches and cross word puzzles? However, the author goes to great pains to include workable examples (labs) in each chapter that help to reinforce the chapter material. These labs are great if you have a test Novell box to practice on or just setting up your first Novell network will be a great learning experience. The appendix includes many useful bits of information about becoming a C.N.A., C.N.E., Novell websites, and how to setup Netware for the first time.

MINOR GRIPES
The author does try to inject some life into what could be a boring topic by using comic book references. It really depends on your taste as to what you will think of his references but mostly they are ignorable. Where they really get annoying is in his design of the NDS tree. An example, "Click the Calculator.WHITE.CRIME.TOKYO.ACME." It gets a bit confusing if you don't want to master his fictional tree. What I did was create more business-oriented names for all my containers and users so I could easily identify them.

EXTRA MATERIALS WITH BOOK
The book does come with two CDs that contain a demo version of Netware 5.1 and the Novell client. These come in handy if you do not have a broadband connection to download ISOs of NW 6 and the Novell Client.

OVERALL
The book is a great resource that covers all the material found on the test. I will be keeping it as a reference book. If you read the book with the intent of learning how to become a C.N.A. then you will not find many if any "shocker questions" on the cert test.

I give David a 5 on this book. 1st off, it has what you need to pass the test, and then some. On top of that, the complaints you've seen about superheroes and long story lines and confusion arising when mixing these stories with Netware information really doesn't apply so much to the 5.1 version of this book. I read his 4.1 and 5.0 CNA versions previously, and that's where the reputation for filler was earned. I was very relieved that he kept it to a minimum in this book, earning him a 5-star from me. I got everything I expected from this book, including a 725 mark (584 to pass) for the test. Install the server from the companion cd and run through the excercises. Makes all the difference in the world. Thanks Dave.

Based on the previous reviews of this book, I relied on this book as my main source to get me through the exams, and I was very disappointed. The Advanced Admin section was adequate, but just barely. I passed the exam, however there were several questions on the exam on points that were not even mentioned in the book. The NDS Design & Implementation section, however was much worse. One of the keys to passing the test is knowing the concept of how Subordinate Reference Replicas are placed inside and out, and how to read a server chart to determine where these SR Replicas are placed. The book mentions how these types of replicas are placed in one or two very cryptic sentences and only mentions that you need to know how to read a server chart without actually explaining it. I failed this test miserably on my first try. After that I visited a friend of mine who is a CNE, and she drew me a server chart and explained how to determine how SR replicas are placed, and I 'got it' in about 5 minutes - it really isn't all that difficult of a concept. I retook the test one week after the initial attempt and aced it. In fairness, the section on Design & Implementation does cover EVERYTHING ELSE you need to know for the exam in sufficient detail and explains it very well. So, if you rely on this book for the Design and Implementation exam, make sure to know everything in that section of the book, and then seek out an actual CNE and have them explain to you how to place Subordinate Reference Replicas. I cannot overemphasize how important that is for the exam.

This book is the exact same thing as the larger CNE study guide but without all of the stupid ACME jokes and cross word puzzles. Many of the passages in the larger guide are just copied and pasted into this book. There are a few things however that just aren't covered in enough detail. You have to have a good knowledge before you read this book. If you are going to use this alone I would make sure you have a practice server to play with.

I know that this book is suppose to augment the main CNE book. But quite honestly I only read this book for both tests and passed both of them in one day with just reading this book. I found it to be very good and accurate for these tests and had no problems passing both tests. And if I can do it with only reading this book, anyone can.

Dack N+, CNA+4, MCP, CCNA

As much as I enjoy Chekhov, I'm not a big fan of THE CHERRY ORCHARD; it never made much sense to me. However, this adaptation by David Mamet makes the play easier to follow and understand. The play itself is often labeled as a tragedy, but really isn't. As Mamet points out in the introduction to this adaptation, the closest form of drama THE CHERRY ORCHARD's structure resembles is the farce. In fact, if all the characters weren't so depressing, the play would be hilarious. Perhaps that is what Chekhov originally intended, that as we would see the outrageous, pitiful existence of the characters in this play we would laugh at their mopping and folly and strive to make our lives more meaningful. This isn't the best work to introduce one to the genius of Chekhov, but it is a classic and if one can get past all the whining (or to use a more pc term "reminiscing") it's worth the read.

As I read this play, my family is in the process of moving a thousand miles away from the farm where I grew up. Though I am so far away from the Russian culture and time of this play, the themes of place, tradition, and inevitable change resonated inside of me, and I am grateful to Chekhov for the way he has handled them.

The Cherry Orchard is a play about change, and the symbolism is pretty easy to recognize. What makes it stand apart, I think, from a thousand other plays on the same theme is its wonderful sense of comedy, of smiling sadness. Chekhov all his life insisted it was a comedy. As the Cherry Orchard slips away from the Ranevskys, they seem to smile at its going. As they are unable to change their habits -- still lending money they don't have, still spending extravagantly -- they quietly laugh at their own foolishness. The change comes, and they leave, heartbroken -- but embracing the change at the same time, only feebling struggling against it. One feels saddest, in the end, for Lopakhin, the new owner of the Cherry Orchard. He seems to believe he has bought happiness and friends, but is quickly discovering the emptiness of money and possessions, as no one wants to borrow from him, and no one seems to pay him much heed at all.

Chekhov paints with a fine brush, and I appreciate that. There is no thunderstorming, no ranting and raving in this work. There is a fine and subtle, sad and comedic portrayal of a family and a place encountering change. It is a heartbreak with a smile.

The translation, though the only one I've read, seems good. It is easy to follow and rich in simple feeling.

if you'd like to discuss this play with me, or recommend something i might enjoy, or just chat, e-mail me at williekrischke@hotmail.com.

"How should one live?" is the fundamental question driving most of Chekhov's work, and it is very overtly laid bare in The Cherry Orchard. Should the aristocratic family in decline stick to owning their cherry orchard (representative of the grandiose trappings of Russian aristocracy), or give in to modern commercialization in order to survive? What is the value of tradition, and how many trees should one own? Chekhov will not answer these questions for you, but he poses them in most interesting ways. In addition to wise insights into such fundamental dilemmas, Chekhov also provides a lot of witty banter, and a great slice-of-life view at 19th century Russian high culture. But this is not just a Russian play or a 19th century play; its themes, questions, and prospective answers are relevant for individuals coping with society and history in any place, and at any time.

This book takes a very technical subject and approaches it with straight-forward easy to understand format. I think it will be a great addition to my classroom.

This book explains LAN principles in a form that is easy to understand by students starting to study this topic.

Starting with the basics of communication in its broadest sense, the chapters proceed towards LAN communication and extend beyond the LAN to a WAN.

No specific Network Operating System is used to explain the principles involved. The information given in each chapter is sufficient and general enough to be applied to any existing Network Operating System.

Lots of technical detail, but with very little explanation of what it means, so much of this book is incomprehensible. Detailed charts are inserted with no discussion of what they represent or how to interpret them.

The portions which explain networking theory and concepts (such as structured cabling and Manchester coding) are valuable, however, but it is so difficult to get through the rest that many readers might never get there.

After reading the summary of this book, I believe it is one that I would want in my arsenal of Computer books while working on the Job. Every student of Computers, and Networking should have a book that will explain the interworkings of Frame Relay and Lans.

This book is the first I had when I was in my training period at IBM TJ Watson RC. One of the best after reading the IBM TokenRing Reference Guide! Good Job for all who wants to know a little more about NetBios.

Guns and Rain is a very good ethnography which demonstrates how creative human relationships can be despite the most adverse of conditions. The book is set during the civil war which ensues in former Rhodesia with a minority white government unwilling to extend voting rights to the majority unrepresented black population. In highlighting the human level of these problems, Lan very effectively shows us how destructive and instructive colonialism can be for a people. By reading of the relationships that existed before white rule and their destruction and also their emergence out of this experience, we are ultimately awed by how strong the human spirit can be. In spite of such horrific abuse and forced represssion, the local people are able to conquer their lives and move forward and create a new life. I would recommend this book to anyone who wants a different perspective on life and humanity in such traumatic circumstances as war and colonialism.

This book SUCKED! First of all, the entire first half of this book had nothing to do with the migration process. Second, the parts of this book that did deal with actual migration were very skimpy, and full of misinformation. It almost seemed as though the authors had no knowledge whatsoever of Windows 2000 or Windows NT. I akchully think that this buuk maked me stoopider! :) In all seriousness, don't waste your money on this terrible book. If you want a book that will fully fill you in on the migration process, get MCSE: Windows® 2000 Migration Study Guide by Sybex.

Hi there !

This book is probably one of the best for 70-222. Also because there are very few to pick from ;(

I stick to my point NOT to purchase any study guides/training kits/readiness reviews published by M$, because DO NOT consider it as right source for preparation (that's after 5 exams complete)

Just passed the exam (the score wasn't realy something). Additionally purchased Syngress 'Migrating to W2k study guide', but loved Exam Prep much more. No courses, just self-training with homegrown W2K LAN.

Things I liked : - Well written and easy to understand - Good subject coverage. The migration itself described properly. - Chapters structured properly. - Nice training projects after each chapter. - Not bad quez CD

Things I didn't like : - Too much info NOT related to the actual exam - Some subjects poorly covered after all (unfortunately, the ones from the exam) - Some review questions have pretty stupid answers. I don't think exam preparation is a right time for fishy jokes. - Practice test from CD is VERY differ from the real exam (subjects, test format, case study quez, etc)

That's all. I think this book is a good one to start with. Good luck for everybody ! The exam is not hard ;)

Chef Cheflab.com

Thought the book covered all the exam topics well, especially the migration tools. If anything, it has too much material. Has other useful information, such as explaining kerberos and group policies. Sounds like the other reviewer is doing some self promoting as opposed to writing about this book.

I bought this book as a required text for my csc class last semester. As a begginer in programming , Java is the first language I've learned. And to be honest, I don't think this is a very good text for new programmers who don't any prior background in programming. Most of the time I used other books to learn Java myself.

If you're a beginning programer looking for good Java books, I recommand Bruce Eckel's "Thicking in Java" and Deitel & Deitel's "Java: How to program".

Much like the "introductory" computer science course I took in Spring 1999, the meaning of the word "introductory" seems to be unclear. We begin the book with a very comforting foray into object-oriented programming with the authors telling the students to keep up with the readings and examples in order to be well on their way to solid programmers. And, these words are kept in the initial chapters as real-life examples meet their computer program counterparts. The examples are worked nicely and are somewhat easy to follow.

Once we hit Chapter 3, though, there is a whiplash transition in terms of the material covered. Before the student knows it, he or she is coding their own Java class with instance variables, interfaces, subclasses, reference variables, boolean expressions, arrays, vectors, enumerations, iteration, lists, searching, sorting, stacks, queues, exceptions, overloading, overriding and not to mention recursion. And, this is all before the half-way mark.

If the authors wish to promote a solid introductory book to the Java language, the first thing is to eliminate recursion. This is not introductory material. Even though the authors try to simplify the topic by constantly comparing example code to a dishwashing chore after a meal, recursion is as difficult as it sounds. Also, searching, sorting, stacks, and queues best fit a book on data structures. Overall, though, I must commend the authors on the use of English when writing this book. I have read too many books where the psuedo-code makes less sense than the actual code itself. Thankfully, this is not one of them. But, if the book were trimmed down to just the basics, then it would truly fit its title and serve as an excellent welcoming to the expansive library of the Java programming language.

Rating: B-

I really enjoyed this book. I am an unschooled "practical programmer," and OOP has been pretty much a mystery to me. I understand the concepts and examples when I see them, but haven't really thought in an object oriented way when I write my own code. This is the book that finally got me actually thinking and designing in objects. The explanations are splendidly clear and thorough. (The section on "recursion," to take one example, is inspired!) I recommend this book highly. It would be a good introduction to Java, or, as in my case, a great way to learn more about programming principles even if you have some experience with Java already.