A+ certification

The A+ certification demonstrates competency as a computer technician. Officially, CompTIA A+ certification is a vendor neutral certification, that covers numerous technologies and operating systems from such vendors as Microsoft, Apple Inc., Novell and some of the Linux variations.
The A+ certification exam was developed in 1993. There have been four versions of the A+ exam, the 1993, 2003, 2006, and 2009 objectives, which are broken down into two separate exams. Successful completion earns a designation as a "CompTIA Certified Computer Technician".^{[citation needed]} The 2003 objectives contained the A+ Core Hardware Exam and the A+ Core Operating System Technologies Exam, and were retired on June 30, 2007. The 2006 objectives require that a candidate successfully pass the A+ Essentials and one elective: IT technician, remote support technician, or depot technician. The 2009 certification requires passing two exams: Essentials and Practical Application.
The A+ exam is intended for information technology professionals who have the equivalent of 500 hours of hands on experience. The exams are computer based and composed of multiple choice questions, of which there may be more than one correct answer. Over 800,000 people have earned the A+ credential worldwide, to date.
Topics of the Essentials/Core examination include IRQs, direct memory access, and practical computer repair, including the installation and repair of hard drives, modems, network cards, CPUs, power supplies, PDAs, and printers. The focus of the exam is not theory, but practice. Sometimes graphics are used in exam questions. Topics included in the Operating Systems Exam include memory management, configuration files, and historical operating environments rather than newer, cutting edge technologies.
In September 2006, the CompTIA A+ test was updated so that the test taker must take the CompTIA A+ Essentials (220-601) test along with one of three other tests (220-602, 220-603, or 220-604). Each of these elective exams offers candidates the opportunity to specialize their A+ certification to match their desired career path.
With the introduction of the 2006 A+ exam, candidates were offered a grace period whereby both the 2003 and 2006 versions were available. As of June 2007, the 2003 version of exams is no longer available in the United States. In some countries, the grace period was extended to December 2007. The 2003 version was also extended in cases where the A+ certification exam was included in a course of study. Also, most legacy support questions have been excluded. The existing CompTIA A+ 600 series exams remain relevant and are in use by organizations and educational institutions throughout the world. The regular, non-academic English version of these exams will retire in the U.S. and Canada on February 28, 2010. The educational versions of these exams (JK0-601, JK0-602, JK0-603 and JK0-604), as well as the German, Korean, Arabic, Chinese and Japanese translations of the 220-601 through 220-604 CompTIA A+ exams, will remain in the market for use until August 31, 2010.^[1]
The A+ certification along with Network+ may be used to qualify as an elective for Microsoft's MCSA and MCSE certification. ^[2]
In order to receive CompTIA A+ certification a candidate must pass two exams. The first exam is CompTIA A+ Essentials, exam number 220-701. The CompTIA A+ Essentials examination measures necessary competencies for an entry-level IT professional with the equivalent knowledge of at least 500 hours of hands-on experience in the lab or field. Successful candidates will have the knowledge required to understand the fundamentals of computer technology, networking, and security, and will have the skills required to identify hardware, peripheral, networking, and security components. Successful candidates will understand the basic functionality of the operating system and basic troubleshooting methodology, practice proper safety procedures, and will effectively interact with customers and peers. CompTIA A+ is ISO 17024 Accredited (Personnel Certification Accreditation) and, as such, undergoes regular reviews and updates to the exam objectives.

Reference:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/A%2B_certification#A.2B_certification:
Retrieval Date:04/26/10