before I shut down for the evening, a few random thoughts on the CCIE Lab and NDA. Inspired by several posts here of late from persons asking about topology, IOS versions, or speaking of rumors about equipment changes.
1) It is unclear what really constitutes NDA. Caslow? The ECP1 class? NLI's practice labs? Caslow's new prep class? Cisco's own ASET lab? All of these could be considered violations of NDA in many ways, from topic content to lab topology. Cisco's own ASET program used real but "retired" CCIE labs. 2) what is it Cisco really considers CCIE level skill? In the past, things like DecNet, Apollo, and Vines were core topics. Cisco has recently dropped those, plus ATM LANE, presumably in response to market conditions. Which leads one to ask - why token ring? The only real world token ring project I have been involved with the past couple of years is ripping them out and replacing them with ethernet. The apologia that there are still some major token ring networks around is a bit lame. There are still some major DecNet networks around, I'm sure. Until very recently ( and maybe they still are ), a major utility company out this way was still running Vines. As was the U.S Navy. 3) Is the CCIE a forward looking certification or not? Based on what I am seeing in the marketplace, the advanced skill levels that one needs to meet demand center around VPN, VoIP, wireless, security, and the underlying infrastructure required to support these technologies. that means lots of QoS, switching, L2-L3 interaction, ATM, giga-whatever, etc. I would purely love to see discussed good focused discussion on core competencies, core issues. But there is that awful specter of NDA that hangs over all of our heads. In a very strange way, NDA is kinda like Santa Claus and the Easter Bunny. We all know what's in the Lab. We all know what study materials are designed to model the Lab. But we don't dare speak the truth in front of the children ( those who haven't been yet ) for fear that some higher authority will trou nce on us if we do. I'm not sure if there is a real point to this message. Maybe what I want to say to all of those who keep asking about Lab equipment, Lab topology, Lab IOS versions, and the like, is that understanding of the core topics is the most important thing. If you have them down cold, the equipment and the topology will not matter. I'd like to comment on the rumor about changes in the equipment, but that damn NDA..... Message Posted at: http://www.groupstudy.com/form/read.php?f=7&i=34244&t=34244 -------------------------------------------------- FAQ, list archives, and subscription info: http://www.groupstudy.com/list/cisco.html Report misconduct and Nondisclosure violations to [EMAIL PROTECTED]
