Who's in charge here?

[Michael Pearson]

I have been missing something in my life...
After a 4 month layoff, I have the urge to be patiently prodded to write better Java programs.
I hope Johannes is doing OK, but I'm glad to be in the care of Jason and Pauline.

[jason adam]

Well where in the heck have you been??

[Johannes de Jong]

Welcome back Micheal. Were you that "certified" when you left. I cant remember seeing that many certificates in you signature. Heck with these behind your name I'm sure you can get some decent work here at ING, they are heavy into VAJ.
As for I hope Johannes is doing OK , I haven't been better. Its only that Java & JR have been moved to the "back-burner" till about the end of Feb , whilst I sort a few things out for myself.
[ January 09, 2002: Message edited by: Johannes de Jong ]

[Pauline McNamara]

Hey, long time no see! Welcome back.

[Matthew Phillips]

Welcome back.

[Michael Pearson]

Originally posted by jason adam:
Well where in the heck have you been??

I quit my position with my previous employer in July of last year with the intention of doing some self-study and independent consulting for awhile. The work I was doing from September through December had me traveling a lot and I lost touch with the Ranch.
Glad to be back
[ January 10, 2002: Message edited by: Michael Pearson ]

[Michael Pearson]

Originally posted by Johannes de Jong:
Welcome back Micheal. Were you that "certified" when you left. I cant remember seeing that many certificates in you signature. Heck with these behind your name I'm sure you can get some decent work here at ING, they are heavy into VAJ.
[ January 09, 2002: Message edited by: Johannes de Jong ]

The SCJP and IBM OOAD were the toughest to prepare for. I've been using VAJ as my primary IDE since 8/01 so that was straightforward. The CIW OOAD exam tests for knowledge of the Unified Process, which gives it added value over the IBM exam.
Since I�m transitioning my career focus from manufacturing applications to IT/Web technologies I find it helps to have some certifications on the resume. Recruiters and employers feel more comfortable. This will probably be irrelevant after I do a few more projects and have pure IT experience.
I wish you the best of luck prioritizing your life. I went through a similar task the past 12-16 months and it was worth the effort.
Mike

[Carol Murphy]

I feel very small and unimportant because I have no Certified this that and the other to put after my name, although some of the people I work with in the pharmacy feel I am certainly certifiable, but I think that's in another area..........
My question is this, are the assignments on the cattle drive as challenging to those of you who have passed exams as they are to those of us who can't even contemplate considering taking the exam?
Just curious!

[Marilyn de Queiroz]

It seems to me like most of the students go through (at least a good part of) the Cattle Drive before taking exams. But those of you who have taken the SCJP exam (for example) before joining the CD, I'd be interested in hearing your answer to this as well.

[Lance Finney]

Originally posted by Marilyn deQueiroz:
It seems to me like most of the students go through (at least a good part of) the Cattle Drive before taking exams. But those of you who have taken the SCJP exam (for example) before joining the CD, I'd be interested in hearing your answer to this as well.

I finished the SCJP certification about the same time I started the drive, and I started the SCJD test a couple months later (put it on hold when I got a job). My guess would be that certification helps in some ways (more familiarity with certain classes, less need to hunt around the API). However, we still need to get used to the javaranch coding style and Marilyn's nitpicks.
Lance

[Michael Pearson]

When (or if ) you take a certification exam has a lot to do with your experience, programming background and need.
Having a cert doesn't make me a better programmer. Since I'm doing contract work it makes it easier for me to get noticed.

[Carol Murphy]

I have this Java2 Certification software from Sybex which is soooooo very confusing. Studying the material and then doing the practice tests has been very deflating. I have much better success trying to actually do something like one of the cattle drive assignments. My understanding of the basic concepts involved is very sketchy, yet I seem to be able to flesh out a program that works, to my amazement. The nit-picking is where I really learn what it is I still need to grasp.

[Johannes de Jong]

My understanding of the basic concepts involved is very sketchy, yet I seem to be able to flesh out a program that works, to my amazement.
Ditto here

[Michael Pearson]

I second Johannes.
You�re learning a lot from the Cattle Drive.

How to write code with respect to an existing style guide

How to write code from a specification that is sometimes vague

The importance of peer review

Persistence - finishing what you started

Fundamentals of Java 2

Introduction Object Oriented Programming

Introduction to Servlets

Introduction to JDBC

Getting a program to work to the high standards of the Cattle Drive is an accomplishment.
[ January 17, 2002: Message edited by: Michael Pearson ]

[Matthew Phillips]

I passed the Sun Certification about a month ago. I think that going through the Cattle Drive and studying for certification is exercising two completely different skills.
On the cattle drive I am learing to program. Although all of the concepts that I have learned have been taught in Java, I have applied them to other languages as well.
While studying for certification I learned some of the finer points of the Java language. A person could certainly pass the exam without writing one line of code, although it would be difficult.