Certification Exam Guides and Sample Tests

Soriathus Serpentine · Post by **Soriathus Serpentine** » May 2, 2003, 5:59 pm

With 6-7 years of on the job programming experience and off the job experience programming since I was about 8 years old, I'm looking at finally getting around to buckling down and getting certified in the next 3 months (my contract at Intel ends in little under 4 months). Looking for exam guides and sample tests for getting my MCSD (Microsoft Certified Solutions Developer). I'm taking the visual basic route to get it and choosing SQL Server as the elective.

Developing and Implementing Windows-Based Applications with Microsoft Visal Basic .NET and Visual Studio .NET is the first test I'm going after aka MS test 70-306.

Also any recommendations on guides that help you learn the core differences between Visual Studio 6 and Visual Studio .NET? Looking for online free or cheap PDF's. Book recommendations are ok too just don't want to go out and buy 3-4 books, just one if I have to so I have something to read on mass transit to and from work. The best way I learn is by doing so books that have projects at the end of the chapter that makes you USE your knowledge and re-apply it are great for the way my brain works.

Thanks in advance.

noel · Post by **noel** » May 2, 2003, 6:20 pm

Just download Kazaa, search on specific content, or the word 'transcender'. Study. Pass. Get a new job.

Soriathus Serpentine · Post by **Soriathus Serpentine** » May 2, 2003, 7:13 pm

Sounds like a plan man. Took a sample test of SkillDrill.com and got a 71% and the world average is 52.2% so pretty happy about the 71% especially since A. I haven't taken my Ginkgo today and B. I haven't started studying yet.

P.S. What is "transcender"?

Post by **pyrella** » May 2, 2003, 8:02 pm

Transcender is one of the larger companies who make study/testing materials for everything from cisco to A+ ceritification.

Also since you're more of a learn by doing, I like to find O'Reilly books read the stuff in there, and then apply it yourself.

cid · Post by **cid** » May 2, 2003, 8:09 pm

Just what the industry needs, another fucking paper MCSE.

The MCSE might get you an interview, but knowledge will land you the job.

The only reason I keep my certs up is because my company pays for the tests. Otherwise I would tell Micro$oft to fuck off.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » May 2, 2003, 9:38 pm

http://www.mcsebraindumps.com

Use that the week of your exam to go over the questions. Transcenders are good prep as well... don't use either till you read and understand the material of course.

http:///www.quickstart.com

Excellent classes. They are Microsoft certified and use Microsoft Official Curriculum(MOC). I just finished the class for 70-229 Developing and Implementing SQL server 2000. I will take the test next month.

I already took the SQL admin test (70-228) and scored a 933/1000 with 733 being minimum passing using the above study stuff.

I will be taking that Server 2K VB.NET test as the elective later this year to cap off the MCDBA. My company pays for my training so I am pretty stoked to get the certs to make my SQL Server and ASP programming exp worth something on the market when it comes time to get a better job. Good luck!

Rojer · Post by **Rojer** » May 3, 2003, 10:01 pm

Good luck man

getting into this field can either be very easy, or very hard, depending on what kind of a person you are.

Deward · Post by **Deward** » May 5, 2003, 10:18 am

The microsfot certifications are a joke. Anyone can pass them with no experience whatsoever just by going to the braindump sites and memorizing for an hour or two. The only people they fool are idiot human resources types. And once you finally do pass them all, you can guarantee that MS will cancel a couple of them and make you shell out your $100 to take replacement tests.

Deward

Soriathus Serpentine · Post by **Soriathus Serpentine** » May 5, 2003, 1:56 pm

cid wrote:Just what the industry needs, another fucking paper MCSE.

The MCSE might get you an interview, but knowledge will land you the job.

The only reason I keep my certs up is because my company pays for the tests. Otherwise I would tell Micro$oft to fuck off.

BTW Cid, learn to read, I've got 6 years of industry experience. I was programming for Epson when I was 17. And it's MCSD not MCSE. I'm a programmer not a network biotch. PROGRAMMERS RULE!!!!

Yes, a moron with a good memory can get any certification they want, but for those who actually know their shit and don't have the piece of paper it sucks when someone else gets the job because they have the f'ing piece of paper. I can't tell you even with 6 years experience programming, how many f'ing times someone with a goddamn piece of paper (MCSD or MCAD) gets the programming job before me. So, as they say, if you can't beat em, join em.

BTW, thanks Cane, I was planning on taking 70-229 Developing and Implementing SQL server 2000 as my elective for the MCSD.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » May 5, 2003, 2:51 pm

MCSD eh? Very cool man. I will probably get that after the MCDBA. Aye, one doesn't have to have experience to get the certs, that is apparent in many of the classes I have taken. However, some of us in the field(me, Sori, and many others) take the tests to give a resume or internal promotion boost to our experience.

If you are already a practicing network tech, C++/C#/VB/DBA/whatever, those damn tests are well worth the 125$ a pop. Often, an employer will look at a cantidate and say..hey, so and so has 5 years of SQL experience but hasn't made the effort to get the paper.... sad but true.

Let's face it, most IT Manager-types don't know shit from shinola--they just have a fancy MBA. Certification, to them, shows that the cantidate has taken the time to make it official, eh? I am all for taking and passing the tests. As far as the paper-only-no exp types, well some may be threatened by the mudflation in the job market, but any face-to-face interview can weed out the posers..

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » May 5, 2003, 2:53 pm

For the 70-229, make sure to be prepared up the arse man, I hear it is a bitch. Get yourself a copy of SQL Server and learn it as well as you can! I have been using it for a long time now and still find shit that stumps me.

cid · Post by **cid** » May 5, 2003, 3:00 pm

Canelek wrote:but any face-to-face interview can weed out the posers..

Exactly!

I have my: MCSE,MCT and CCNA

But I have the experience to back them up.

When I interview people, I get so many paper MCSE's that can't even tell me how to change a computers name or even map to a printer. These people take the respectability out of the MCSE program.

Soriathus Serpentine · Post by **Soriathus Serpentine** » May 5, 2003, 4:50 pm

Canelek wrote:For the 70-229, make sure to be prepared up the arse man, I hear it is a bitch. Get yourself a copy of SQL Server and learn it as well as you can! I have been using it for a long time now and still find shit that stumps me.

Exam 70–305: Developing and Implementing Web Applications with Microsoft Visual Basic® .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio® .NET

Exam 70–306: Developing and Implementing Windows-based Applications with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET

Exam 70–310: Developing XML Web Services and Server Components with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET and the Microsoft .NET Framework

Exam 70–300: Analyzing Requirements and Defining Microsoft .NET Solution Architectures

Exam 70–229: Designing and Implementing Databases with Microsoft SQL Server™ 2000 Enterprise Edition

As far as 70-229, that is going to be the hardest one for me I know, well that and 70-310. Both of them are the 2 pieces of the pie that I have the least experience in. I have a TON of database experience and some XML experience but very little SQL and no XML experience with VB. The others I just need to study up and focus on 2-3 areas I'm weak on. Just getting a few of these under my belt would be better than none, it'll be enough to get me the interview and then the interview is where I show off my knowledge face to face. Problem is that if you saw a resume where someone was claiming to have all this experience but no paper would you interview him, that's what I'm running into in a lot of places, or I get the interview and the person with the paper beats me to the job.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » May 5, 2003, 8:31 pm

If you know ANSI-SQL, T-SQL isn't that far off. As far as the material covered. It goes into much detail about Indexes, distributed Queries, shit like that...I should be receiving a new book from amazon soon...hope it covers all areas.