Tiago Nodari

Thanks Shawn for your honest answer, my guess is that a lot of Java programmers will be opposed to the EL, as its only natural when you change the way you do things, but like you said, there are benefits.
Your book is in my wish list but the current situation in Brasil is making it almost impossible to buy books, the currency exchange is killing us
plus I am in between jobs, waiting for a response from an interview, its a J2EE project, maybe they decide to use the JSTL and that will give a chance to learn more
thanks for the chapters, I will take a look at them. I also saw a few posting about JSTL and struts, that is another subject I want to learn a little bit more about...
[ August 21, 2002: Message edited by: Tiago Nodari ]

I know only a little of JSTL, and as Shawn mentioned in another post, one of the main reasons behind the EL is so web authors can have something a little easier to work with, and as for the Java Programmers the benefits is writing less code in JSP... I haven't yet learned the benefits of the EL, and I think a lot of Java Programmers will feel the same way I did. Disliking the EL, but I think we have to give it fair chance, after all they put in a lot of hard work and there is somethin useful for all of us
Shawn mentioned that his book is in the style of Web Development with JSP, which I really liked, learn by great examples
Plus I want to thank everyone at Javaranch, not only is this a great forum, but the initiave of book giveaways is great...
[ August 21, 2002: Message edited by: Tiago Nodari ]

A few days ago I started to try to learn to use the JSTL and my first opinion was really bad, the examples were all using the EL, which might be great for ppl that don�t know Java, but personally I didnt like at first. A lot of ppl have been telling that EL is great and etc. They might be right, maybe its just weird to see a JSP with tons of $
As for the taglib, its looks really powerful, and useful, that is what got me looking for material and examples, but with no examples or material on using the JSTL without EL, I my learning at a halt
As for the books that are coming out, hopefully they are not using EL in the entire book. Maybe Shawn can tell us about his book
I loved Web Development with JavaServer Pages�
I dont know if the EL will bridge the gap between non-java coders and JSP, I think it will just drive the java coders nuts, since java coders are going to be bugged the entire time to provide variables with content in this format, or that and etc... I see a lot o ppl in lists asking who to format date, how to manipulate strings and etc and I don�t think the EL is going to solve all that. I Know the JSTL has some taglibs that will help with some of these things, but the bottom line is JSP will still need Java coders and now with EL, is one more thing for us to learn
But to the JSTL team, I have to say congratulations, since the Taglib looks really useful...
And note that my opinions are of someone that isn�t involved with JSTL and want to learn�
that is just my two cents, kind big so maybe my 2 dollars
Tiago nodari

Sometimes its not a programming trick, it might be something to do with business logic, something you dont want ppl to know. A lot of companies like to hide how they do things, that is how they stay alive. The code that was passed in a Obfuscator is a pain to understand, a pain to subclass, since most class names and methods get changed to a, b, kdje and stuff like that
Trust me there are ppl who will get a class, javabean, and etc and decompile and use the code, I have seen ppl steal code, sometimes spend tons of time understanding a code that was obfuscated and then use it at clients saying they had made the code.
I dont mind sharing the code I write, I never personaly used an obfuscator, but its sometimes I think about it, just so some idiot cant just steal my code and say he coded...
a friend suggest this obfuscator, its free, looks pretty good. My friend sent me some code that came out, and it is a pain to read.
http://proguard.sourceforge.net/
tiago

If you create client applications (like Together, netbeans, etc) you have to use a Obfuscator, or someone will decompile it an steal your tricks, also if you create JavaBeans and want to sell them, you need an Obfuscator if you want to allow ppl to try your beans, or they will just download and steal the code decompiling java code is so easy and the decompile code is readable...

Personally I found the exam a Pain in the XXX, asks tons of questions that are things you simply don't do, that the compiler tells you and that you can find in the API in seconds.
have to watch out for everything, i got a traditional question, the code was really simple and by quickly looking at it you saw the result, but if look carefully, the main signature is wrong.
The best way to prepare if you ALREADY know Java is to pick up some study notes:
http://www.geocities.com/velmurugan_p/notes.html
or buy a book, or use both, it wont be hard, just have to pay attention, like 10 minutes after I finished the exam, I started think about it and remember a few questions that I think I missed just because I was careless. If you haven�t been working with Java for awhile I suggest you get a good java book, since the certification books don�t really teach you java�
I hate sitting down and taking an exam without material, its not real, I always use the api, or a reference card or a book or a tutorial, there is always something you are going to miss.
If you get nervous in exams you should be careful, go to the questions you have a better knowledge of. On my exam my first question was about strings, then 9 about threads, then 2 about AWT. I would have been crushed if the first 5 questions were AWT, haven�t worked with AWT, I got the questions about concepts right, but the ones that involved knowing method names, not close
The best thing todo is to do mock exams, I did very few of them, mostly JWhiz, if I had done more I think I could have done a little better.. The questions that JWhiz used are very similar to the ones on the exam, I saw a few questions that were almost identical. The mock exams are good to take from the start of your studying so you can focus on the subjects you need to learn.
And don�t worry about time, 2 hours is a enough� took me about an hour to finish the exam�
Now all I can say is that you feel relieved after you exit the test booth�.
sorry about the huge post...
back to looking for in the us...

thanks to everyone who has asked a question and ppl whlo answered it, i dont post much, mainly just read the forum, and i just wanted to say thanks...
a special thanks to Velmurugan Periasamy !!
The StudyNotes are as good as any book, at least I think so...
now just need to find a sponsor for a h1-b
tiago

thx... going to order the book...
I have the edocs, going to start reading them while the book arrives...
Just passed the SCJP...
I hate taking tests...

Can anyone give any tips on how to get started on preparing for the BEA WebLogic Developer Certification exam? I will be taking the SCJP on tuesday and after that I want to get started on the BEA Exam.