Some guidance here please ...

[Biju Mathew]

Hello all,
I had some questions about this certification which I could use some clarification on.

1. At the moment Im doing my MCA (Masters in Computer Appliction)and I would to learn a bit more about Java than what my book is most likely going to teach me. So Ive decided on taking a SCJP by studying in the free time I have. The last time I did learn java I beleive the version of the book I was learning was 1.1 or 1.2 (not quite sure on this) and it has been ages since I have touched or look back at Java at all. Ive found that the book "SCJP Sun Certified Programmer for Java 5 Study Guide (Exam 310-055) " is recommmended. Will I be biting off more than I can chew by starting from here or would you recommend a beginner book for me?

2. It is better for me to take the 1.5 exam than the 1.4 exam at this point correct?

3. If anyone is from this forum is in India could you please tell me if this version of the book is available here?

4. Can I acheive the same by self study? Im definitely in no position to go outside and study at any institute.

5. Should I take the SCJA exam (this is the name of the first one before SCJP right?). Considering that the exam fees is going to be something mroe than INR 8000 I would prefer to stay away from it . But nonethe less if its in my best interest I wouldnt mind.

Thanks in advance.

[Nik Arora]

Hi Biju,
If you dont know anything about the java and you are the beginner i would suggest you to take Head First Java and learn the basics and go for "SCJP Sun Certified Programmer for Java 5 Study Guide (Exam 310-055) " and study this book for the exam but if you are familiar with java then i would suggest you to buy the "SCJP Sun Certified Programmer for Java 5 Study Guide (Exam 310-055) " and start studying. This book is for SCJP 1.5 exam and its the latest version , it has new features. So go for SCJP 1.5. The book is available in India. All the best


Regards
Nik

[Jesper de Jong]

Hello Biju, welcome to JavaRanch.

1. In Java 5.0 (or 1.5, that's the same), there were added a number of new language features. If you know Java 1.2, then there are some things you'll have to learn to get up-to-date with the current version of Java. If you're planning to do the SCJP, then a book like the Exam Study Guide you mention will be very useful.

2. The current version of Java is version 6.0 (1.6); it's best to do the newest exam available, so take the 1.5 exam, not the 1.4 exam.

4. That depends on you... If you can't figure something out you'll have a lot of people here on JavaRanch to ask questions...

5. Lookup the prerequisites (or ask Sun or your exam center) for the SCJP certification. I don't know what the SCJA certification is. I didn't do this before my SCJP exam (Note, I did the SCJP in 2001 or so, a long time ago).

[Biju Mathew]

2. The current version of Java is version 6.0 (1.6); it's best to do the newest exam available, so take the 1.5 exam, not the 1.4 exam.

Can I do everything in 1.5 if I install version 1.6 on my computer?

Thanks for the help.