Passed the 1.4 exam, scored 80%.
Like most everyone else, my lowest section scores were Threads and GC (66% each). Inversely I did very well on Flow Control/Assertions/Exception Handling, java.lang classes, Language Fundamentals, and Overloading/Overriding/Runtime/OO. Remaining sections were average to above-average (75-80%).
Background:
- programmed
Java since '97 (off and on), with bulk of my Java experience in web apps (
J2EE) realm
- spent most of the past year doing C# instead of Java
- decided cert was best way to get back into Java after being in .NET land
Preparation:
I used only the K&B book, and took both CD mock exams (88% and 86% each), as well as 4 of Dan Chisolm's exams (didn't score myself on those). Total of a week of hard studying. (Also attended a local JUG's weekly exam-preparation session this past spring, but missed half the sessions and never really studied hard then due to work conflicts).
Comments (for my version of the exam):
- the real exam was a bit tougher than the K&B exams, and a bit easier than Dan Chisolm's
- format and similiarity of questions definitely close to K&B
- a good 25% of the exam covered GC and Threads (our favorite subjects)
- very little emphasis on bit shifting (i recall maybe one question on it, though that may not be the case for others)
- even mix of code-based and "sentence"-based questions EXCEPT in Collections (I don't recall seeing one code-based ? on it - again, may be different for others)
The rest had a good mix of topics, though it had more emphasis on Threads than K&B mock exams did.
Oh - and, no, there will not be subject headers for each question, like the LearnKey K&B has.
Anyway, that's all I can think of right now short of giving up actual questions
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