In this post I’m going to review the XK0-002: Linux + PrepKit from uCertify. Since I haven’t taken the real exam yet – but I intend to in the following months – I’ve evaluated the kit from the candidate’s perspective. Hopefully, in May or June, I will post a follow up and evaluate the kit’s performance from the point of view of a CompTIA Linux + certified engineer

Also note that the kit is not meant to teach you how to use Linux or to prepare you for a sysadmin job. Its stated goal is to prepare you for the CompTIA Exam, nothing more, nothing less. If you want to learn the inner workings of *nix operating systems, this kit isn’t for you, but if you already know how to use linux and want to get the ComTIA certification to prove your skills then using this kit to get acquainted with the exam’s requirements and methodology is a fairly good idea. Keep reading»

As I’ve said before, we’re living in exponential times. The motto of our lives will be “learn, learn, learn” as new jobs appear all the time. For instance, SEO specialist – a job that pays quite well today – didn’t exist 6 years ago. And all these new jobs require new skills. Either adapt or fall behind. And in the current economical climate, it’s a very good idea to have those skills certified. Just in case…Usually employers get tons of resumes when they post a job and if you want to step in front of the crowd, your resume should say more than the usual “hard working, very motivated person” yatta-yatta. And some well known industry certification might just do the trick.

Even if I work in a very prosperous company and it’s unlikely that the recession will get to me (by the way, we’re hiring – so have a look at our openings on www.zitec.com), I’ve decided to spend some time and bucks on my education this year. I’ve taken the Zend Certified Engineer exam for PHP 5 in January and I want to continue with the Comptia Linux+ exam. Today, courtesy of uCertify, I’ve received this Comptia Linux+ preparation kit for review. I haven’t got the time to review it yet, but I know now what I’m doing this weekend

Stay tuned!

While browsing the web, I’ve found this book on PHP, called Survive the deep end. I’ve thoroughly read some chapters and I can honestly say that I’m impressed. This is a very good book, one of the best books I’ve read lately. It’s not just another “copy & paste this script and it should do the trick” book. It features advanced concepts that are actually useful, it promotes best practices and you can easily see that the author is a seasoned PHP developer, willing to share his knowledge with world. The book is authored by Pádraic Brady, a developer Ireland and active contributor to the Zend Framework code base. He also maintains a blog at blog.astrumfutura.com – another good read, as he has some interesting stuff posted there.

Final recommendation: even if you’re not a Zend Framework user, you can still read it and learn more about things how to design a MVC application and apply that knowledge to your framework of choice. Survive the deep end.