> What are CCDA, CCDP and CCNA ?
It's kinda the data networking "Good Housekeeping Seal of Approval".
CCNA certification essentially means that you know your way around
computer networks, routers, switches, etc., and have an understanding
of how computers talk to each other. In the grand scheme of Cisco
certifications, it qualifies you to understand 16.7% of what your 15
year old son is saying. To be able to understand how to use the remote
control for your entertainment system, one of the CCxP certifications
is required. The CCIE is the behometh and those people are the ones
who made the Internet so difficult in the first place. There is one
above that, but those guys don't have a life. The CCNA can be done in
two parts. If you test on just the first half you get the CCENT which
is Cisco-speak for "knuckle-draggers".
I gave careful consideration to what type of certification to intially
go after--the CCNA or the CCDA. As I design networks, not manage them,
the CCDA makes for sense, but they just changed the certification and
there isn't any stuff available yet--especially free on-line lectures.
I have the official Cisco CCNA stuff and am able to follow along all
peachy like.
As a point of entertainment, the "CCNA for Dummies" book was as long
and convoluted as the Cisco materials. I'll stick with the official
stuff, thank you. It's miserable reading, but at least it is
consistent.
I ran into a situation where my resume was getting dumped because of
no certifications. It matters not how many years of experience you
have or what college degrees you may or may not have. If you don't
have current certifications, you don't exist. If I was unemployed
right now, I'd be slamming down certifications like nobody's business.
There are plenty of jobs out there (and nice ones too), but the new
normal (since this recession, actually) is that recruiters are using
certifications as filters, just as they used to use college degrees as
filters in the past.
I'm dedicating about 10 hours a week to this. I'm fortunate that the
lecture stuff I can listen to during the commute. Two weeks in and I'm
already putting into practice what I'm learning. Bummer I waited so
long to start.
There are several specialties that can be persued in the certification
process too. I'm loathe to consider any one of them at this time
because I don't know what I want to be when I grow up.
AG
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