The Circle of Certification Life

Once upon a time one might have supposed that flamboyant singer and songwriter Elton John, 71 and still not letting the sun go down on he, would someday be best-remembered, years after his death, for one of his soaring rock ballads: "Candle in the Wind," "Tiny Dancer," "Rocket Man." Then in 1994 the energetic performer and eyewear pioneer collaborated with Walt Disney Studios on an animated movie about animals roaming free on the African savannah and "Circle of Life" was born.

The song's simple yet powerful message made it an instant metaphor for the giddy ups and humbling downs that each of us must confront, as well as for just about everything in life that both goes and comes around. One such cycle that's particularly familiar to those of us in the tech industry is the (most often) three-year rotation that keeps popular IT certifications up-to-date. Every given number of years, a certification is overhauled to ensure that it stays current and relevant.

It's not the case with every IT credential, of course, but quite a few do have a refresh timeline. Tech industry association CompTIA, which administers a number of very popular journeyman-level certs, regularly turns over its well-known and widely-used certification inventory. CompTIA's oldest and perhaps best-known cert, A+, which validates basic computer hardware and software knowledge, will officially enter its newest iteration tomorrow with the release of exams 220-1001 and 220-1002.

Here at TestOut Continuing Education, we've been planning for this transition since the last A+ refresh (in 2016), and we've already updated our A+ training. We've got 103 simulation labs, more than 17 hours of videos instruction, 22 additional hours of demonstrations, 184 text lessons, 127 quizzes, and more than 1,100 practice exam questions to help you master the new material. By the time that you're through with our course, you'll know A+ like the back of your hand.

We don't want you to get left behind in the circle of certification life. In The Lion King, young Simba gets flustered by the tragic death of his father and tries to run away and do his own thing, leaving the animal community that surrounds Pride Rock to fend for itself. There's no reason, however, for you to get similarly spooked by the new A+ with its fancy four-digit exam codes. This is just life in the certification savannah. Stick with TestOut CE, and we'll help you roll with changes.