[Devious21]

I just had someone ask me about getting an A+ certification and the classes in the area were all in the $4k-$5k range, which is insane. A+ is a very entry level certification.

Find a decent PDF (or book if you prefer the real thing) on the A+ cert and start reading. Check Amazon for reviews. A lot of times you can tell which books are better for beginners, are better for strictly passing the test, etc. from the reviews. You'll miss out on having an instructor you can bounce questions off of but there's plenty of forums and online information available that should be able to answer most questions.

I would knock out the certification, then try to get a part time job at a PC repair shop to get some experience. I think if you're trying to start a side business, it would be very beneficial to see how an existing shop is run, what to expect, what tools and software you'll need, what a testbed looks like, etc.

But I agree with your friends. I would do Self Study + Real World experience over a 5 thousand dollar class.