This book from Microsoft is their official study guide to prepare for exam 70-224. The book provides a very comprehensive overview of the product in 29 chapters, covering everything from the basics through maintenance, troubleshooting, Outlook forms, Web Storage System, collaboration, Lotus notes connectivity, and GroupWise connectivity. 

Each chapter consists of several lessons designed for self-study. Lessons take about an hour each, and to perform the exercises in each lesson you will need at least two networked computers capable of running Exchange 2000 (a third computer for Outlook 2000 is recommended). The text is well-illustrated, contains examples where needed, and takes a task-oriented approach. The exercises are mostly step-by-step instructions you perform--it would have been nice to have some more open-ended exercises, or at least suggestions on further things you could try for further learning. What the exercises sometimes lack are explanations of why the particular steps are performed, and a fuller discussion of their results. 

If you can't take the time off (or your company won't cover the cost) for the full week-long Microsoft Official Curriculum course on Exchange 2000, this self-study guide is a good substitute. Note that you need a good understanding of Windows 2000 and Active Directory as a prerequisite to using the book. 

If you are planning to take exam 70-224 and have previous experience with earlier Exchange messaging platforms, try this book. If you have little previous experience with earlier versions of Exchange, or if your interest is more in learning day-to-day administration than passing an exam, you might want to try my book Administering Exchange Server 2000 first to familiarize yourself with the product before using this study guide for review and reinforcement.

I give this book stars out of five. Here it is on Amazon.