If you are interested in a quick, high level overview of how multicast works in IPv6, check out this doc at Cisco.com:

Cisco IOS IPv6 Multicast Introduction (pdf)

Pretty easy read, just a few pages long and provides a decent intro. If you don't know what MLD is, keep in mind this doc has a typo and defines it as "lister" instead of Listener. Check out the MLD RFC for the formal definition. 

If you've had your focus turned from the news lately, here's a quick update.The last of the IPv4 addresses have finally been allocated as can be read about here, here, and here. What does that mean for all of us network engineers out there? Time to actually sit down and start learning IPv6. 

Now, even though the final blocks of IPv4 spaces were allocated, it doesn't mean the Internet is going to stop, or even slow down because of that fact. Several /8 address pools were allocated which means they still have to be put to use in provider networks and handed out to consumers. 

I view this news as similar to the new year. People gather around and celebrate the digits in the year rolling to the next sequential number. Yay, a new number! It's kind of silly in a way, but we do it to help put a close to an era (last year) and look ahead to the future (and help keep track of time). Similarly, IPv6 is coming, we all know it, so let's acknowledge it and embrace it. We've got a little bit of time before we're forced to configure an interface with a v6 address, so let's get practicing. 

I've found some resources to help you in your endeavors to be the next IPv6 configuration master. Read on for the list and feel free to post links to your favorite IPv6 reference guides and training resources!

Here are a few questions to get the synapses firing on a Friday...

1) When calculating the composite metric, does EIGRP use the MTU?

2) Assuming default EIGRP behavior, what two vector metrics are used to calculate the composite route metric?

3) What are the default K values set to in EIGRP?

After the surprise wore off from seeing how low salaries for IT managers can go, I started to wonder how much of a bump in salary the average network engineer would get with achieving a CCIE. This is the only current survey I could find, I searched and found a bunch of data from 2008, 2004, and older. 

So, for supposedly recent CCIE data, here ya go...

Over the past few years, Cisco has gradually been introducing products in the consumer space, either through acquisition of companies or innovation of new products. The Flip Camera is one of those Cisco products that was part of the package when they acquired Pure Digital in 2009. 

If you have never seen a flip, it's basically a cell phone sized HD video camera with built-in compact flash. It's built to be an easy, consumer grade point and shoot video camera. You pull it out of the box, charge it up (or put batteries in it if it's a cheaper model) and start recording video.