A new SCJP2 - 94 %

[J Hreich]

Hello all,
with great pleasure, I can now say I am an SCJP2. Thanks to everyone on this board, esp. Val, Rob, Maha, Ajith and many others for their informative posts.
I have known Java for quite a while now (Summer 1995, alpha release. I wrote an applet that demonstrated the Vista/350 functionality for Bell Northern Research (now Nortel)). Since then, I wrote small applications, mostly in grad school. I have been mostly programming in C++ for the last 5/6 years, so I have a good OO background.
Besdies Javaranch, I owe my good score to PGJC (Programmer's Guide to Java Certification). This book is just great and very thorough. I didn't read any other text books. Not only is this book good for certification, it is a great reference. I think its standard is well above that of the test and its exam is remarkably harder.
Here are my scores on the mocks I did:
Marcus 1: 85 % (3 weeks ago)
Marcus 2: 96 % (last week)
Marcus 3: 94 % (yesterday)
Mughal's PGJC: 90 % (2 days ago).
19 Hardest Questions by Bill: I got 17/19.
I didn't have JQ+
These were the only mocks I tried.
Mughal's book is extremely thorough, and the questions are amazing (both review questions and test questions).
As for the exam, I think it was very fair. I got stuck on the first 2 questions (thread questions) and I spent like 15 minutes or so on them. Don't panic if this happens (I did). Just mark them and move on.
- the java.util questions were extremely simple. Only basic knowledge of core interfaces/ implementing classes and functionality is needed.
- java.io very basic as well. No tricks. I think I got 4/5 IO questions. I got one wrong because I left IO till the last two days and I seem to have forgotten the c-tors of filter output streams.
- Many questions about threads (around 7 or eight). Nothing too complicated though. Knowledge of synchronized blocks, wait/notify/notifyall, extending Thread, implementing Runnable are all necessary
- I can bet one question had no correct answer.
- java.awt and java.awt.event - Know the layouts (including GridBagLayout, though you don't have to become a professional). Know the the event classes and the event interface methods (return types and parameters).
- More to come later.
ps. I hate that they round the score down. I got 56/59. It is 94.9 %
Good luck to all

[Raghav Mathur]

Good job jay .

[Rob Ross]

Congratulations Jay. Great score too!

[J Hreich]

thanks

[Nazmul Huda Sarkar]

Congratulation Jay...Great score

[shailesh sonavadekar]

congratulations & all the very best for the future.

[J Hreich]

Thank you all!