I just bought the book ( 27 min ago). I wanted to learn Java along time ago, so now is the time :)

One question ( and more to come):

Is the book, Beginning Java 2, prepare the reader for Sun's Java Certification?

thanks.

Hello! This forum is kind of quiet. I check in once a week. I am working at chapter 8 now. If you post questions I will always try to answer them. There are also the forums at www.sun.com for quicker help. I hope you succeed with the book!
Do you already know about (object oriented) programming?
If not, take your time doing the first 7 chapters. Those chapters give you the object oriented basics for the rest: the whole corpus of the Java class library.

Better than that! It will teach you how to write your own Java programs. The Sun certification is (too) much concerned with tedious language details, the kind of thing the javac compiler will tell you about automatically (if you make a mistake).
There is also the Sun programmer certification and there you have to make an assignment (write a program).

If you work your way through "Beginning Java 2" you can do both the exams.

I want to do the Sun Certification too. I think I will buy the book by Rasmussen (ISBN 0-201-72828-1), to specially prepare for the Java Certification. But only when I am ready!

Sun recommends you would typically have 1 year of programming Java before doing the exam. If you'd type over all the examples and make all the exercises in Ivor's book (takes about 1 year) you would gain quite some experience.

Also try to use Java for your own little (fun) projects: that helps a great deal!
And: don't worry about the exam: it is multiple choice and you only need a 52% score.

bye bye
your fellow Java student

P.S.
Do you own a copy of the JDK1.3 version of Ivor Horton's book, or the SDK1.4 version????????

Ivor's book whilst good will not get you through the Sun Certification exam. The test is not easy and requires that you know most of the nuances of Java, however, if you do your preparation well then you to be able to pass. I can't tell you what is in the exam because you have to sign a confidentially agreement before you take it.

Have a look at www.whizlabs.com for information on the test and their test simulation program, which I think is fantastic, but no where near as tough as the actual exam.

Cheers

Martyn

Thanks alot Freezotic & Martyn for your quick respond.
I'm spending minimum 3 hrs/day reading the book. I need to learn Java, and I need to get the ceritfication. My study is so far so good. (even though I lose most of my study time playing with Java codes :) )

I'm running the Latest Sun's JDK, and i'm using multiple IDE's: JBilder,JDeveloper, and Jcreator. but I think I'm going to stick with JCreator for my study.

Freezotic,
I'm confident If I keep up my study in a daily basis, I can get the certification in April, maybe May. One Year is long way, and I need my PayRaise earlier than that :). I'll probably use what Martyn's suggested to get me up to speed.

Again thanks,

rchafei

Three months is tight but if you work hard it is achievable. Don't under estimate how tough the exam is, if it was easy the pass mark would be higher! Anyway, to assist you, I've listed below a few resources which should help you on your way. You will also need a certification specific book. There are lots around, have a look at amazon and read the reviews and choice the type of book that is most appropriate for the way that you study. I used and would recommend Complete Java 2 Certification by Heller and Roberts, published by Sybex, but that isn't to say that the others aren't better.

http://www.jchq.net/

http://suned.sun.com/US/certification/java/

http://www.javaprepare.com/

http://www.michael-thomas.com/tech/java/index.html


Cheers

Martyn