February 9, 2012

Training Tip Tuesday: Interview with Kevin Wallace

Todays Training Tips come from Cisco Press Author Kevin Wallace. Kevin lays down a few tips for the TSHOOT exam and SWITCH exam and also discusses his pursuit of the CCIE Voice. You can listen to the audio here, and read the transcript of course, or if you prefer to you can subscribe to the podcast at http://podcast.globalconfig.net or using iTunes where it’s posted as well.

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The Kevin Wallace Interview transcript.

This transcription is "as-is" and may not accurately represent the audio interview.  In other words, its best to listen to the audio.
[0:00:00] Brandon: Alright. I want to welcome all you to the GlobalConfig.net interview series here at gllobalconfig.net. We’re dedicated to helping you study for network certification. I’m Brandon Carroll and I’m your host and blogger here at GlobalConfig and today I want to welcome a very special guest Kevin Wallace. How you doing Kevin? Kevin: Hey Brandon, it is fantastic to be with you. I’m doing fantastic, thanks for having me on today. Brandon: Thank you for coming on. I really appreciate your taking some time out of your day to share with the listeners some study tips, we’ll get into that in a little bit here and also a little bit about your background. I think everybody – - for a long time we’ve read your books and watch the videos so you’re a name that everybody knows in the industry and get a little bit of a background on you. I think you know we get that connection to you and it helps us relate a little bit more. We certainly appreciate that. Kevin: Oh yes, be glad to. Brandon: So, yes, so with that said can you tell us a little bit about your background? Kevin: Sure be glad to. To kind of – - for those of your listeners that aren’t super familiar with my name what I’m doing now I write a lot a titles for Cisco [Read more...]

Update on my progress.

It’s been a few days since I’ve had a real post, although I have added some comments into the link posts that I’ve added.  If you haven’t noticed I just installed a new toolbar on the bottom of the site for your reading enjoyment.  If you find something you like you can easly share it now.

As for me, it has been crazy.  At one point in time I had 13 people in my house.  Now that all the visitors are gone and things are settled down I am getting back into the swing of things.  I’ve done some light studies for R&S and it looks like the CCIE in 90 days is not going to work out.  That’s ok with me, I wouldn’t feel like it was quality study time anyhow and going to take the lab would be like throwing 1400 bucks away.  I’m going to slow things up a bit.  Not because I want to, but because I have to.

The work front is interesting.  I have been at home since Cisco Live and don’t have travel scheduled until the last week of August.  I’ve been asked to pick up some of the voice classes, which brings me back to the issue I had before about whether I should work on the Voice or the R&S CCIE.  The R&S classes that I teach keep coming up, QOS next week and BGP in a few weeks, but at the same time I have to focus some of my learning time on what my job requires which is Voice.  So I am working in the CIPT1 course and getting certified to teach it.  It’s mostly all CUCM so it’s not too bad to study but it’s different when you are learning how to teach something versus how the technology works to impliment it.  It also cuts into my R&S study time.  Who knows if I will ever find the right balance.  In the mean time I will jump back and forth between R&S and Voice Studies.  I have the IPexpert BLS for both and plan on getting both of those CCIE Certifications someday.

Also, since everyone talked so highly of it, my wife and I have started P90x.  1-week down and I’m feeling pretty good.

Well thats if for now.  I hope to have some more technology focused posts in the near future.  Until then…study hard!

CCIE Voice Reading: Deploying Cisco Unified Presence

A few days ago I posted a list to the Cisco Press books on the CCIE Voice recommended reading list. There has been more conversation on the OSL regarding an updated list for the v3 Blueprint. Jason Granat, a list member, recommended the book “Deploying Cisco Unified Presence” by HouTong Luo. presence I’ve ordered my copy and its on the way! Thanks Jason! Great Recommendation.