3rd try, need to ace exam this time: Programmer's Guide to Java Certification

[Sandhya Jayaram]

hi,
i have tried to score good in my previous exams but fell short of getting through by one mark!!, this time i want to give it my best shot and not scrape through but socre 85% atleast. this book "A Programmer's Guide to Java Certification: A Comprehesive Primer, Second Edition" by Khalid
Mughal and Rolf Rasmussen, whuch i happened to see at a bookshop has all the right stuff for me to get my concepts even stronger and ace my exam with flying colors. i sincerely hope to win this book
-sandhya

[Khalid A. Mughal]

A common strategy is to take 2 to 3 mock exams when you feel you are ready.
Unless you pass them, it is not wise to take the actual exam.
Our mock exam is considered hard by some readers.
Some readers also swear that even scrapping thru our mock exam is a good indication that you will pass the actual exam.
:-)
Wish you all the best.
khalid mughal

[Sandhya Jayaram]

That's a great tip. thank you. will strive hard to get through the mock exams in your book, so that i do really well in my actual exam.
-sandhya

[Jeff Bosch]

JavaCertificate has free exams keyed by exam topic. While the questions are slightly easier than the real thing, this set of exams can help you identify weak areas. Then, when you're up near 100% here, start working the SierraBates (or other closer-to-the-real-thing) practice exams until you're scoring 90% or more.
You can also peruse the Certification Results forum here at JavaRanch to read tips from others who have attained high passing scores.
Best wishes for success on your exam!

[Sandhya Jayaram]

Thanks, Jeff. i have started working on the mock exams slowly. hopefully, should have no problems this time
-sandhya

[Andres Gonzalez]

Have you tried Marcus Green's Exams?
good luck

[Sandhya Jayaram]

yes, i have, andres. but i guess i need more mock exams to work on.
-sandhya

[Ko Ko Naing]

Have u tried JQPlus Simulation Software? People found out that JQPlus is almost the same as the real exam and even u can win it free, when participating in JDiscuss.com, SCJP forum...

[Harwinder Bhatia]

Hello Sandhya
Since you have Mr. Khalid's book, I would really recommend working through all of Dan Chisholm exams. They are laid out based upon the chapters from this book. It would probably take you about 2-3 weeks just to do all the 570 odd questions on his website but it would definitely boost your score by 10-20% ... trust me on this.
And don't get discouraged even if you don't do too well on his exam. A score of 50% on his exams is good too.
Link to Dan's website:
http://www.danchisholm.net
And of course, all the best to you for the exam !
Cheers
Harwinder
[ December 16, 2003: Message edited by: Harwinder Bhatia ]

[Sandhya Jayaram]

unfortunately, i do not have Mr.Khaled's book. the last book at that bookshop got sold out the next day i went to buy it. when i saw the java ranch book promotion, i thought i might give it a try to be one of the lucky ones to get a copy of the same.
-sandhya

[Harwinder Bhatia]

Well, there are other shops. Since you have internet access, you can order it online. If you are in the US, then there are zillion websites but if you are in India, you could try www.firstandsecond.com . Last I checked, they had that book available and there isn't much difference difference in price online or from a bookstore.
And yeah, make sure you order the Indian print (probably Rs.400-500) compared to the US print (~Rs.2500). They have both.
(Ummmm ... you could order the US print, if you have lots and lots of money and don't believe in charities ).
Cheers
Harwinder
[ December 16, 2003: Message edited by: Harwinder Bhatia ]

[Khalid A. Mughal]

FYI: An Indian reprint of our book (M&R) is not yet available.
It is very hard to say when it will become available as a reprint in India.
Sorry!
All the best.
khalid mughal

[Harwinder Bhatia]

Hello Mr. Khalid
I have the "Indian" print of your book for version 1.2. I had bought it in April this year when I was in India. The price of the brand new book was Rs. 270 ( < $6). I think this book is good enough for the 1.4 exam if we could download the upgrade chapters and the latest exam engine from your website.
The book helped me a lot in my exam.
Thanks
Harwinder

[Sandhya Jayaram]

i plan to give the exam end of this year, max 1st week of next year. i think the last time i did not do enough coding, this time i am trying to spend some more time there. also plan to give more mock exams which will let me know my weak areas exactly and also work on the time factor.
i need to focus more on GC, overloading, overriding, runtime type & object orientations, threads and java.lang. that's a long list!!
-sandhya

[Khalid A. Mughal]

Apparently an Indian reprint of our book is available!
Read here:
https://coderanch.com/t/244170/java-programmer-SCJP/certification/Query-Khalid-Book
Cheers.
-- khalid mughal

[Sal DiStefano]

Hi
I don't mean to be sarcastic here but how experienced are you with Java? Is there a reason for you to rush into your third exam? Why not take some extra time, Know more then just enough to pass the test, then take it a final time.
You can know before the test starts that you will pass it because you know the material. This is a question that always makes me wonder. I know the person who gets 100% and the person who passes by 1 question are both certified, but which would you rather be?
Sal

[Sandhya Jayaram]

hi sal,
i totally agree that if i give the exam i would rather aim for 100% rather than just pass. i had given the exams in early 2002. and after that, it is now i am taking it.
i have been exposed to java for 3 yrs but in terms of coding experience i am average. i certainly will give the exam only when i have given enough exams and am confident enough. the reason i say that i will give the exam end of this year is because i have certain goals. only with this deadline, i get enough motivation to put in the hard work required and then some.
-sandhya

[Ko Ko Naing]

Originally posted by Sandhya Jayaram:

the reason i say that i will give the exam end of this year is because i have certain goals. only with this deadline, i get enough motivation to put in the hard work required and then some.

I'm also that kinda person. No deadline, no study. That's why I bought a voucher with very close expiration date on it, 31st May 2004... I have to finsh both SCWCD in January and SCBCD in May so that I got three months studying time for SCBCD...
But having deadline like that is also stressful to ourselves... I don't like that kind of stress too. But I have to do it for myself... :roll:

[Sandhya Jayaram]

yes, some of us need that kind of light pressure on ourselves to perform well in studies/ projects, and we do perform well. the stress is there, but in the end it is all worth it
-sandhya

[Sandhya Jayaram]

right now, i am on the Threads chapter and need more information on that. more in detail
-sandhya

[Sal DiStefano]

Have you looked at SUN's website. I use the Java tutorial often, you should also try oreilly's website. Search on "Java Threads" on Google
Sal

[Ko Ko Naing]

Originally posted by Sal DiStefano:
Have you looked at SUN's website. I use the Java tutorial often,
Sal

I recommend Java Tutorial from Sun Site also... When I did SCJP 1.2, I got a lot of knowledge from that site...
Also studying for the SCWCD, I feel that Sun's J2EE Tutorials are much easy to understand than Tomcat's... But it's my personal opinion...
The Choice is Yours...

[Sandhya Jayaram]

Thanks, i shall certainly look at all possible sources to make each concept on threads clear. Also on the collection framework, other than the sun website, any other recommendations on where i could find tutorials?
-sandhya