Java 2 Exam Notes

Rating:
Summary: Sloppy
Review: Although this book is a good review for the certification exam, it is filled with errors in code and language. Many code examples, when applied into JDK, gave results that were different than expected (compile errors etc.). Computer programming textbooks, especially a study guide for certification, cannot afford to be sloppy.

I am not a publisher and do not claim to know anything about publishing. However, I was taken aback by the lack of attention given to the correctness and compilibility of the code examples. I would compare it to missing ingredients in a book of recipes. It might be excusacble as an oversight or typo - but what good is it to you if you have to keep second-guessing the contents.

Do not attempt to take the certification exam with this book as your only source (unless you are a Java Guru and a walking Java compiler). The most helpful book I have found is Deitel & Deitel's Java How to Program Third Edition. All of their code compiles cleanly and they give wonderful explanations of the topics at hand.

You can buy The Complete Java 2 Certification Study Guide, by Simon Roberts, Philip Heller and Michael Ernest (although this book has many errors and is bone dry when it comes to real life analogies and examples) and use the Exam Notes review as a review only!! There is a lot that is mentioned in the review book that is not covered in the Study Guide and vice versa.

I am a computer professional for close to ten years and am relatively new to Java. I was able to get Sun Certified only through mixing and matching the strengths of many Java books and web resources.

I still think it's worth your time to get the review book - but just be aware that it does not come without its shortcomings.

Good luck to all you certification candidates!! The exam is tough!!

Rating:
Summary: Java 2 Exam Notes: Programmer's Exam
Review: I am a novice JAVA programmer, but I am also a 15-year computer professional; in my opinion this book is a good refresher book AFTER you've read the author's first book "The Complete Java 2 Certification Study Guide". The content was very good as a reminder of what to study for. In addition, the information on the SUN certification process was as up-to-date as possible, at the time of publishing. But the book should not be your first exposure to the JAVA certification process UNLESS you consider yourself a JAVA-guru. I will definitely have this journal-sized book in my car, in order to peruse it one final time before I walk in and take the exam.

Rating:
Summary: good book
Review: I got the book and didn't see any of the typos that other people were mentioning and I am a consultant who uses the language quite a bit... perhaps it was a newer edition, but i found this book useful

Rating:
Summary: Very good review for exam.
Review: I passed the Java 2 programmer's exam this morning and with a comfortable margin. This book is the primary reason why I passed. I would recommend "Thinking in Java", "Complete Java 2 Certification Study Guide", and this book. That's all you will ever need to pass. I did it from scratch, on my own without any instructor or experience. Starting from scratch without knowing java to taking the exam and passing took me about two months. Good Luck!

Rating:
Summary: Very good review for exam.
Review: I passed the Java 2 programmer's exam this morning and with a comfortable margin. This book is the primary reason why I passed. I would recommend "Thinking in Java", "Complete Java 2 Certification Study Guide", and this book. That's all you will ever need to pass. I did it from scratch, on my own without any instructor or experience. Starting from scratch without knowing java to taking the exam and passing took me about two months. Good Luck!

Rating:
Summary: Full of errors and typos.
Review: I typically don't bother writing reviews but the quality of this book is upsetting. In terms of the content this book is alright but don't expect to get away without one of the larger ones. This is only a brief review after all and sometimes not well explained. However, I must say this book is the lousiest quality I have seen for a while now. More errors and typos than all the books together I have read during the last year. Be aware, this book is brief and compact and it gives you a lot of brief and compact misinformation.

Rating:
Summary: Sloppy Sloppy Sloppy!
Review: I'm not ready for the exam yet, but already I've picked out numerous typos, goof-ups and errors. Seriously it seems like they didn't even bother to proof read it before printing. The more I read the angrier I get - there's no excuse for this kind of sloppiness in a text that deals with very complicated material, where subtle differences in meaning make a HUGE difference for the exam. I'm tempted just to not finish reading it, it's very difficult to read, worded poorly and circularly, and often just does more to confuse me than help. The full size study guide is much better. Read that first and then approach these exam notes critically, and DON'T rely on them. If in doubt check your facts with other sources, cause this book can't be trusted.

Rating:
Summary: good exam cram book
Review: Of couse, it is not the first (but final) book for exam. Smallest available. I was pleasantly surprised on exam to see 2 exact questions from the book and see clear warnings ( like 'if(1)' will not compile - as C programmer I would be trapped after reading 600 page study guide). I passed thanks to this book. Take samples from the book seriously. ;->