Re: REVIEW: Narbik's 2.0 CIERS-1 Bootcamp class

Unbelievable.

On Sun, Dec 6, 2009 at 00:45, Narbik Kocharians <narbikk_at_gmail.com> wrote:
> Nate, Thanks mate, thanks for your comments. Thanks.
> I was just doing what you guys paid me to do.
>
>
> Thanks again.
> Tyson, Don't worry my students will be prepared.
>
> On Sat, Dec 5, 2009 at 4:14 PM, Tyson Scott <tscott_at_ipexpert.com> wrote:
>
>> Nate,
>>
>> I am sure that Narbiks bootcamp was fantastic.
>>
>> But... do not skim over IPv6 and OER because it wasn't covered, as well as
>> any other topics.
>>
>> IPv6 Multicast for example is quite different than IPv4 Multicast. B No more
>> IGMP instead it uses MLD (Multicast Lister Discovery), it relies on GRE
>> tunnels between members when doing BSR RP configuration. And so on and so
>> on.
>>
>> OER can be an amazingly complex subject. B The flexibility and it's
>> integration with the different routing protocols can be a day's lecture by
>> itself. B But a bootcamp just doesn't allow for that even if it is covered.
>>
>> A week is never enough time to cover everything. B I find it to be that way
>> myself. B So take what you learned from the bootcamp and compare it to the
>> blueprint. B Make sure you take your own time to deep dive into the subjects
>> not covered in the bootcamp.
>>
>> Regards,
>>
>> Tyson Scott - CCIE #13513 R&S, Security, and SP
>> Technical Instructor - IPexpert, Inc.
>> Mailto: tscott_at_ipexpert.com
>> Telephone: +1.810.326.1444, ext. 208
>>
>>
>> -----Original Message-----
>> From: nobody_at_groupstudy.com [mailto:nobody_at_groupstudy.com] On Behalf Of
>> Nate
>> Lee
>> B Sent: Saturday, December 05, 2009 6:06 PM
>> To: mamiller2_at_comcast.net; Cisco certification
>> Subject: Re: REVIEW: Narbik's 2.0 CIERS-1 Bootcamp class
>>
>> Hi Michael, His MPLS coverage was really great, starting with LDP and
>> moving
>> into the VPN creation, VRFs and finally moving on to redistribution. B It
>> really cleared up some questions I had regarding labels and especially with
>> the MP-BGP address families.
>>
>> We did not really go over IPv6, but I didn't see that as an issue since it
>> is nearly identical after you get used to the addressing. B In addition, the
>> workbooks he provides have some really solid IPv6 labs that cover all the
>> topics under that heading. We also did not go over OER, although I'm not
>> sure how big of a role this topic will have on the lab.
>>
>> Nate
>>
>> On Sat, Dec 5, 2009 at 11:26 AM, Michael <mamiller2_at_comcast.net> wrote:
>>
>> > Hi Nate,
>> >
>> > Nice write up! B But I have one question and that is when compared to the
>> > Cisco v4 blueprint what topics were not covered in class?
>> >
>> > Thanks - Michael
>> >
>> >
>> > -----Original Message-----
>> > From: nobody_at_groupstudy.com [mailto:nobody_at_groupstudy.com] On Behalf Of
>> > Nate
>> > Lee
>> > Sent: Friday, December 04, 2009 11:00 PM
>> > To: Cisco certification
>> > Subject: REVIEW: Narbik's 2.0 CIERS-1 Bootcamp class
>> >
>> > Just finished up the last day of Narbik s CIERS-1 boot camp and wanted to
>> > do
>> > a write up on it while the experience was still fresh in my mind. B Sorry
>> if
>> > I get a bit long winded, I hope some of you who may be looking into his
>> > class find this to be helpful.
>> >
>> > I had been looking for a Routing and Switching boot camp to attend in
>> order
>> > to polish my skills and help prepare me for my lab date coming up in
>> March.
>> > With no dearth of choices, I looked online for reviews and asked
>> questions
>> > in forums to other candidates who have attended various vendor s
>> > classes. B After
>> > narrowing it down to Internetwork Expert and Narbik s boot camp, I
>> > eventually settled on Narbik s because he was going to be having one in
>> > Minneapolis and I could forego the travel costs. B This didn t work out as
>> > there was not enough demand in MN so the class was cancelled. B Although
>> > they
>> > offered me a refund, I was impressed with the personal attention I had
>> > received from Narbik on the mock labs I was working on so I decided to
>> > stick
>> > with his class. B The fact that his class was costs around 50% less when
>> you
>> > figure in the workbooks certainly didn t hurt either. B When you are
>> paying
>> > out of your own pocket, every little bit helps J B They sent out the new
>> > workbooks he has been producing which I found to be B extremely well
>> > designed
>> > and thought out. B I also purchased the IE Volume I workbook but prefer
>> the
>> > formatting and explanations of Narbik s so I have been focusing on them
>> up
>> > to now. B Each lab is setup perfectly to illustrate a particular
>> technology
>> > from many different angles. B The workbooks contain very thorough
>> > explanations and verifications each step along the way and focus on
>> > individual technologies one lab at a time.
>> >
>> > Enough with the prologue, onto the class ..
>> >
>> > I arrived in Glendale via the Burbank airport the day before class and
>> > after
>> > waiting an hour for the hotel shuttle to appear, made it to the Hilton
>> > where
>> > he holds the classes. B The hotel is in a very nice part of town and the
>> > rate
>> > was decent enough for a nice hotel ($129/night). B I grabbed a bite to eat
>> > and went to bed early to get a jump start on the next day. B Word to the
>> > wise
>> > B skip the $10 optional add on breakfast buffet - the food there is
>> > terrible. B I can t believe people normally pay $20 for that when there
>> are
>> > some decent alternatives within a block of the hotel.
>> >
>> > Narbik showed up promptly at 9 and introduced himself to us. B He seemed
>> > like
>> > a nice guy, very outgoing and friendly. B He got unpacked and readied his
>> > infamous whiteboards and markers. B By now I m sure that everyone has
>> heard
>> > the following: He doesn t use slides and uses only a whiteboard, he
>> teaches
>> > and doesn t lecture, he has a different philosophy than other instructors
>> > towards teaching and he knows all the commands by heart. B I d read it
>> > before
>> > in other people s write ups of his class but didn t really care if he
>> used
>> > a
>> > whiteboard or not, I was here to learn IOS, and couldn t have really
>> cared
>> > less as to whether or not he drew on a board, in fact, it almost sounded
>> > gimmicky to me.
>> >
>> > After the introductions, he gave us an overview of what we were going to
>> be
>> > studying and then went right at it. B It took about 15 minutes for my
>> > preconception of what makes for a good learning experience to be
>> completely
>> > blown away. B The guy is born to teach. B He is concise and articulates
>> > complex ideas in such a way that ensures everyone understands the
>> problems
>> > and all the possible solutions within each blueprint topic. B Not only do
>> > you
>> > hear what tactics to use, but where and why you would or would not use
>> each
>> > option. B He really draws you into the class and makes you excited to
>> learn;
>> > never once during the week did I feel bored in class, he really kept the
>> > wheels in your head turning the whole time.
>> >
>> > When it comes to the whiteboard, like I previously stated, it certainly
>> > wasn t a selling point for me, but after seeing him in action with it, I
>> m
>> > not looking forward to the next slide driven training I m sure I will
>> > eventually have to attend. B Got a B what if B question about the current
>> > topology being discussed? B BAM! B Within 3 seconds, he has redrawn it to
>> > illustrate and answer to your question as well as explain the all
>> important
>> > B why? B behind the answer. B This is something you simply don t get with
>> > PowerPoint decks and really enhanced his ability to go into detail and
>> > clarify questions from the class. B The whiteboard may not sound like
>> much,
>> > but in his hands it was an invaluable tool to convey ideas in a far more
>> > interactive and dynamic fashion than I was used to. B The class was about
>> > 60/40 lecture to lab time which I found to be a good balance that allowed
>> > me
>> > to take in a bunch of information and then work on some labs to let it
>> all
>> > soak in before jumping into the next topic.
>> >
>> > I m sure most CCIE boot camp instructors can rattle off tons of commands
>> > like they were singing the alphabet. B They wouldn t be very qualified if
>> > they couldn t. B Narbik has that down pat, but on top of that, he really
>> > raised the bar for what I perceive a great teacher to be. B Narbik takes
>> > each
>> > topic, breaks it down into well thought out, logically arranged parcels
>> and
>> > explains it in an understandable manner without having to resort to
>> dumbing
>> > the material down. B On top of that, the entire week the guy never once
>> > looked at a slide or opened his laptop to pull up a router or switch. B He
>> > did it all on the white board. B From his head. B Every single topic. B It
>> > didn t hit me what a difficult task this would be to pull off in an
>> > effective manner until the second day when I realized that runs the
>> entire
>> > class without any sort of written syllabus in front of him. B Somehow he
>> > manages to do this freeform thing while still keeping the class very
>> > structured. B You never thought he was rambling or meandering when he
>> spoke,
>> > it was always very to the point. B It just seemed like second nature for
>> him
>> > to be teaching the material. B He really knows every command, every
>> option,
>> > and every flag in every header inside and out. B More than once during the
>> > week he started writing out the potential values of a header field or the
>> > results of an obscure show command and everyone in the class just stared
>> > with a look of disbelief that he was doing it all from memory. B You would
>> > check it on your laptop and sure as shit he had it nailed spot on every
>> > time. B He isn t rattling them off just to show off his knowledge either;
>> it
>> > is always integrated into the class in a way that the theory and the
>> > configuration flow together as a single idea. B You never felt like you
>> were
>> > being overwhelmed by a vast array of archaic commands because he always
>> > showed the practical use for them.
>> >
>> > The final thing that stood out to me as we were leaving on the last day
>> was
>> > that he made sure that we all knew that he considered the class to be the
>> > beginning of an ongoing relationship until we get our numbers and
>> reassured
>> > everyone that he was just an email away if we had problems with the labs
>> in
>> > the workbooks. B The guy even gave *everyone* in the class his cell phone
>> > number on the first day in case there were issues while we were doing
>> labs
>> > outside the classroom time during the week. B I can certainly say that I
>> > have
>> > never had an instructor do that before.
>> >
>> > Overall, I walked away feeling like a much stronger candidate that got
>> much
>> > more than my money s worth out of the class. I feel focused, re-energized
>> > and even excited to hit the books and labs regardless of whatever new
>> > foreboding news passes through groupstudy regarding V4. B I plan to study
>> > hard until March and then re-sit the class he is doing outside of San
>> Jose
>> > (no charge of course) the week of my lab to re-blast my brain with all
>> the
>> > knowledge I can before I hit the real deal.
>> >
>> > The worst part of the class is that it is in sunny southern California.
>> B I
>> > now have to head back to a well below freezing Minneapolis. B Good study
>> > weather though, right?
>> >
>> >
>> >
>> > Nate
>> >
>> >
>> > Blogs and organic groups at http://www.ccie.net
>> >
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>>
>>
>>
>>
>>
>
>
> --
> Narbik Kocharians
> CCSI#30832, CCIE# 12410 (R&S, SP, Security)
> www.MicronicsTraining.com
> Sr. Technical Instructor
> YES! We take Cisco Learning Credits!
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Received on Sun Dec 06 2009 - 00:56:33 ART