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Opinions/Questions About SCJA

 
Greenhorn
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Greetings,

I passed the SCJA on September 5th, 2006 with a score of 92%. I think the test would have been much more difficult and hard to study for if I didn't have several years of Java experience. It's hard to study for breadth and know what is going to be important for this exam. I have a couple of questions I'd like to ask regarding this test.

First, the only place I can find my percentage score is on the Examination Score Report given me at the testing center. The testing center I have to use (not another one within 100 miles) is of very poor quality. They even said their printer was out of order and I was afraid I wouldn't get the score report. Ultimately, they did give me a printout. The score results also did not appear on-screen, so I wouldn't have known if I passed or not had they not been able to give me the printout. The question is, where else can the percentage score be found other than on the score report? I've looked in my accounts at Sun and Prometric. They only state that I passed and don't give the percentage score.

Second, I'm of the mind that this certification wouldn't be of much help to display on my resume, etc. (I had to take the certification as part of a college degree program I'm pursuing.) Can anyone give an indication of worth of this particular certification?

Thanks for any and all help.

TR
 
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Hello Terry,

Congrates for passing SCJA. Yes, I agree with you there is no other way that you will get your score other than prometric center print out copy. You can contact to Prometric Center directly and let them know about this matter. If they do not have a answer contact to Sun Directly or email at SunCert@Prometric.com.

Regarding you second question, SCJA is an entry level certification, so you will not have that impact like SCJP. SCJA and SCJP its not comparable. Both have their own meaning and impact. But still, its good way to start off with Java.

I also agree with you that to have a good score in SCJA , your expreince will have definate edge for that.

I am looking forward to SCJP now. The most unfortunate thing about passing SJCA , you wiil not have a logo. The funniest thing is sun is allowing "Java - Get Powered" (although not for resume) Logo for free and not providing logo for Sun Cerified Java Associate.

All the best, looking forward for SCJP now.

Regards,
Hardik Pandya
SCJA - 90% Sept 25,06
 
Terry Roe
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Hardik,

Thanks. I'm still collecting opinions about how valuable SCJA really is. The more I see, the more I'm starting to think that it's not an easy exam to get a high score on. Therefore, it might be more valuable than I'd originally thought.

BTW, the letter I received from Sun included a URL for the SCJA logo. I'll post it here, but you have to verify your eligibility to use the logo before you can actually download it. I just filled out the form and we'll see how long it takes to be validated. Here's the link for anyone who is interested:

http://logos.sun.com/logosite.jsp?Category=third&Logo=java-cert-ass&Page=requestclick

Interesting abbreviation in the Logo parameter, eh?

Thanks for the response, Hardik.
 
Sheriff
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Originally posted by Terry Roe:
...http://logos.sun.com/logosite.jsp?Category=third&Logo=java-cert-ass&Page=requestclick

Interesting abbreviation in the Logo parameter, eh? ...


Doh!
 
author and cow tipper
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There is no doubt about the value of the SCJA. It certainly demonstrates a wide understanding of Java and Java technologies; and that's the whole point. If you're working with Java, and you want to be able to speak to developers, architects, developers, and even salespeople, you've got to know about J2EE, J2ME, Servlets, EJBs, and all the other stuff SCJA tests you on.

I think there is real value in the SCJA certification. On the other hand, I think there are some rather cryptic things you are tested on in the SCJP exam that you'd never encounter in real life.

As an entry level exam certification, I think SCJA is right on the money.

-Cameron
 
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I received my certification package this week and was able to download the logo file. However, I haven't found a viewer that will open it! What kind of viewers are you guys using on these files?

Thanks,

Dave
 
Cameron Wallace McKenzie
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What's the file extension?

-Cameron McKenzie
 
David A Smith
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Its an .eps file. I tried installing a plugin from Irfanview and also tried several other apps that said they could read .eps files, but they don't work. Irfanview gives me a decode error.
 
marc weber
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Originally posted by David A Smith:
Its an .eps file. I tried installing a plugin from Irfanview and also tried several other apps that said they could read .eps files, but they don't work. Irfanview gives me a decode error.


This question is asked frequently in the SCJP forum, so if anyone has a good solution I would like to add it to the FAQs.

(My logos are still on my Windows machine, which I haven't even turned on in nearly a year. I didn't have any problems with the logos, but I don't recall exactly how I opened them.)
 
Sheriff
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According to this, you can open an eps file with

Mac / Windows: Adobe Illustrator, Acrobat, or Photoshop; most image-editing programs can at least view the preview image

 
David A Smith
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Originally posted by Pauline McNamara:
According to this, you can open an eps file with



I've tried two different machines (one XP Pro and one XP Home) and haven't been able to open them on either machine. I even re-downloaded them just to make sure they weren't corrupt or something.
 
marc weber
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Originally posted by David A Smith:
...I've tried two different machines (one XP Pro and one XP Home) and haven't been able to open them on either machine. I even re-downloaded them just to make sure they weren't corrupt or something.


What application(s) have you tried? For free options, the latest Adobe Reader should work.

(Although even if you can preview the images, I think a question still remains about how to use the images. Anyone...?)
 
David A Smith
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Originally posted by marc weber:

What application(s) have you tried? For free options, the latest Adobe Reader should work.

(Although even if you can preview the images, I think a question still remains about how to use the images. Anyone...?)



Well I was initially trying to use Irfanview. I also downloaded the plugin for irfanview thats supposed to allow you to view these images. That didn't work. When I tried letting windows recommend a viewer for me one of the options I got was "zPicture Browser". Idownloaded this one and tried it, but it didn't work either. I've tried two or three others that I can't remember the names of now. I don't think I tried the latest Adobe. I'll go back and try that.

Not sure what I'd use these for now. Initially I was trying to update my resume, but I ended up using the .tif file for this. I guess its just the principal of the thing now.
 
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