LPI Level 2

[d3vNull]

Hi,
Out of boredom I took the LPI 101& 102 exams to see how I stand up and to see what I dont know

There is really little information on LPI 2 available, has anyone taken 201 & 202 and care to share their experiences? I am NOT looking for brain dumps, just if the test was fair and the LPI pages reflect what is really on the test

thanks! --d3vNull

 

[fluid11]

dv3null, did you pass the 2 exams? I want to take the LPIC-2 exams also, but I can't find a single study resource for them anywhere; no books, no practice questions, nothing. I would rather take the RHCE, but I'm not forking over $750.


ChrisP ------------------------------------------------------------------------------
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[d3vNull]

I passed the two Level I exams, they were hard, but fair...

I found a good resource at IBM's website (it is referenced from the LPI news site..)

The O'Reilly book was ok... but the LPIC bible was a bit better from what I have been told by coworkers...

I am going to take teh Level 2 exams shortly... cold... as there are not prep books that I have found for them...

After that, its on to the RHCE exams...


--d3vNull

 

[fluid11]

I finished the LPIC-1 exams a few weeks ago and I want to take the LPIC-2 exams next, but I'm a little scared of taking them with no study guides or anything. I'm not as brave as you with my $200

After you take them, let us know how hard they were and if you passed and all that.


ChrisP

 

[d3vNull]

Will do...
right now I am studying for employer mandated tests (bastards <G>) once they are done, I will take the LPI2 tests ... late Oct, early Nov

 

[GoldenEternity]

I got spontaneous and took the 201 exam... probably should have given myself a day or two to study, though. I failed by three questions.

Will take it again when I have some money. I don't like that fail on my record.

 

[fluid11]

How much harder was it than the LPI 102 exam?

Chris

 

[GoldenEternity]

I wouldn't have got as close to passing as I did if I hadn't spent the last year working as an admin tracking down problems... and some work I did on an embedded system helped too.

It was definitely tougher.

I got through 101 with no study. 102 I got a book for and it helped. 201... well, no books out there for it, yet.

Part of my problem with 102 was that I don't do X, don't do sendmail... So, I learned some of these things specifically for the test.

I forget what the restrictions are on discussing the test, so I'm trying to be vague about it... but I was surprised that one topic was such a big part of the test, when it didn't appear to be weighted that heavilly in the objectives. Its another one of those things that I've deliberately not worked with, though, so the testing software probably picked up on my weakness and went after me... Its an adaptive exam, so that makes sense.

 

[fluid11]

How many questions approximately, since it was adaptive?

Chris

 

[GoldenEternity]

The number of questions is set for the exam... I believe it was 54 questions in 90 minutes.

 

[lindaw1]

What are some good study guides for the LPI 101 & 102 and LPIC-2 Exams? Are these exams consistent of basic UNIX commands and Shell scripting? Please let me know if you have any suggestions.

Thank you.

lindaw1

 

[AIXSPadmin]

Just curious what you get/expect with a Linux Professional Institute certification?

 

[fluid11]

AIXSPadmin, what do you get with any other certification? What does an MCSE, CCNP, or CNE give you?


A decent study guide was O'Reilly's LPI in a Nutshell. The book covers both the 101 and 102 exams. I don't know of any study materials at all for the 2xx series exams.


ChrisP

 

[AIXSPadmin]

I don't have any certifications and think they are just really a waste of money.

Really, I can buy a book and read it and learn what I need to with the written information and hands-on learning. To pay a lot of money to a commercial business to take a test and then get a certificate from them telling me I now know enough is ridiculous.

To be honest, anyone (e.g., LPI) is a commercial enterprise; they are in business to make money, period. Offering a certificate and courses to obtain their certificate is a way for them to generate revenue. There is no value in any certificate. You can say the latest study shows that someone with a CISSP earns 18% more than someone without a CISSP, but I can point you to a study that shows only 20% of security professionals have a CISSP or any security certification. So the value is argumentative. To me it doesn't have any value, whereas a degree from an institution of higher learning has value. The schools are accredited and have to meet standards and guidelines. If a college wants to get backing from some professional organization, say from the Electrical Engineering Assoc, they have to meet certain education criteria set forth from them. Certifications have no standardizations for the most part and are having criteria set from a commercial organization in business to generate profit for its shareholders or owners.

I have no certifications, but have a bachelor's and master's degree. Businesses usually state requirements as bachelor's degree required. I have yet to see anyplace say LPI certificate required.

 

[fluid11]

LPI is still new, thats why you haven't seen it yet. I've seen jobs that require RHCE, but thats been around a lot longer. People who know about the LPI exams, know what it takes to pass them.

I personally think that a bachelors degree isn't that valueable. I'd much rather have 4 years of experience, then be sitting in a classroom learning calculus and science and some other stuff that I'll never use at work. Classroom traing is so slow, and after 4 years, there is a good chance that everything you learned will be out-dated by the time you graduate.

If your so against certs, then why are you in this forum and reading this post to begin with? Whether you like it or not, some jobs require certain certs and you can't even get an interview without them. I don't know about you, but I'd rather go out and get the cert and the job then sit here and complain about how certs aren't valuable.

Chris
LPI, MCSE (2K/NT4), CCNA, CNE, Linux+, A+, Network+, i-Net+, Server+, CIWA

 

[AIXSPadmin]

A bachelor's degree is invaluable? That is such an ignorant statement, and besides, unlike a &quot;cert,&quot; a degree teaches you the fundamentals which never change. The fundamentals of computer science haven't changed so that is what you learn, unlike just learning the newest gig to get your cert. A perfect example of a certification is the AIX 4.2 Sys Admin, or AIX 4.3 Sys Admin, or AIX 5L Sys Admin certs, for crying out loud they are just for the present, the most current &quot;thing&quot; out there! My master's in education teaches the fundamentals of curriculum development, measurement and evaluation, those don't change, just like the fundamentals of comp sci do not change.

 

[GoldenEternity]

I've got a couple AA's and a BA... I don't think I know the subject matter as well as I needed to know what was on the LPI tests...

They're both certifications; but a bachelor's degree costs a lot more in money and time than a cert like LPI does.

AIX isn't LPI... AIX isn't even a linux...

 

[coopw1]

Anyone done LPI level 2 exam or know of suitable reference material?

I have passed LPIC 101 102 and noted the thread at the start of this chain and felt the need to clarify. &quot;Certification does have value&quot;. The LPIC 101 102 were hard. You need to have a broad background knowledge and have worked with UNIX/LINUX for at least 18months in command line mode (stay away from the GUI side). Having certification both enhances professional standing, and authorative knowledge which should allow you to manage a LINUX system in an enterprise environment. This is very specific knowledge that is not presented to you by having a University Degree (I have both BSc, MSc). Of course employers look at the amount of professional experience potential employees have, but as a person in that role I personally always weight an applicant higher if they have certification with equal experience.

You need to earn this one LPIC level 1. 8 people including myself went on a 7 day boot camp (0700-2400HR everyday non stop LINUX!! - I have 3 years LINUX experience + IRIX adm cert) and 2 people passed - me included On those stats that's a 25% pass rate. Of course this is dependent on numerous variables, of which experience is important. For instance, 2 applicants run their companies DNS/ Apache webserver (failed), 1 applicant had MSCE (failed) 2 applicants were newbies (failed) 1 applicant had 2 years commericial help desk experience with UNIX (failed). 2 applicants had 2 or more years SYS ADM production environment experience with UNIX (passed).

Give it a go!