Fellow Ranchers,
I am happy to post that I have passed the SCJP, and beside just blowing my own horn here, I'd like to share my process for those of you in route.
First, I used the book (Kathy Sierra and Bert Bates). I can't recommend this enough. It really does a great job preparing your for the exam. 5 stars! I read the whole book, did all of the exercises and then after reading the book I went back and did the exercises again. When I missed one, I'd go look up the answer, no matter if it was a easy question or a hard one. Make sure you "get" the fundamental stuff, if you don't its impossible and frustrating. Keep going though the 2 minute drills. Do all of the examples, don't just "think" you get it, prove it to yourself and see if it complies and runs. Read them over and over again until you understand them and if you don't, go back and look it up and if you still don't get it, post your question on the SCJP forum. I can not tell you how much the Java Ranch community has helped me. I would get high quality responses to any question that I had and most of the time it was almost instant. I wish software vendors had the same support as the Java Ranch!
Secondly, I bought mock exams. First I bought Whizlabs, but I found a lot of the questions weren't the same as the book. I decided that I would like to buy additional mock exams and I purchased JQPlus. That is a great product. It really recommend it. It is a great value at $25 (US).
Third, once I passed the mock exam (just one in fact) I went ahead and scheduled the test. I reviewed all of the 2 minute drills and took notes. I studied my notes the morning of the exam and then took the test.
Java Ranch is a great resource, it really help me learn Java!
Yea and thanks,
Chris Judd