SCJP Exam for J2SE 5: A Concise and Comprehensive Study Guide for The Sun Certified Java Programmer Exam [Paperback]

Paul Sanghera (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: May 30, 2006 | ISBN-10: 1590596978 | ISBN-13: 978-1590596975 | Edition: 1

Sun has released the latest version of Java, J2SE 5.0 and accordingly updated the Sun Certified Java Programmer (SCJP) exam to CX-310-055 quite recently.

An SCJP book has the largest Java certification market because the SCJP exam is a pre-requisite for all other five Java certification exams. Apress adds this new SCJP exam book to its list of certification books, including SCJD Exam with J2SE 5, Second Edition by Terry Camerlengo and Andrew Monkhouse.

Best selling author, Paul Sanghera, offers a cohesive, concise, yet comprehensive book on all the topics covered by the SCJP exam. With a laser sharp focus on the exam objectives, it goes beyond just being an ‘exam cram’. The material is presented in a logical learning sequence: a section builds upon previous sections and a chapter on previous chapters. All concepts, simple and complex, are defined and explained when they appear the first time. There is no hopping from topic to topic and no jargon without explanation. No prior knowledge of Java programming is assumed.

Although the primary purpose of the book is to help the reader pass the SCJP exam, it will also serve as a good reference after the exam.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Special Features:
Hundreds of questions modeled after the real exam with fully explained answers.
A complete practice exam with questions modeled after the real exam and fully explained answers.
The only SCJP exam book that offers hundreds of complete runnable code examples, explained in the book, that you can download and experiment with. This is a code intensive exam.
The only SCJP exam book that offers the Codewalk Quicklet feature based on the process based codewalk philosophy to prepare you for efficient response to the code based questions in the exam.
The only SCJP exam book that offers the Exam Quick Prep feature which recaps all the important points for the last hour preparation before taking the exam.
The only SCJP exam book that provides useful information and analysis for the programmers who are considering updating the J2SE 1.4 certification to J2SE 5.

About the Author

An expert in Java technologies, and TCP/IP networking, he has ten years programming and substantial teaching experience in Java. He has earned several industry certifications including Sun Certified Java Programmer, Sun Certified Business Component Developer, CompTIA Project+, and CompTIA Network+, As a Software Engineer, Dr. Sanghera has contributed to the development of world class technologies such as Netscape Communicator, and Novell’s NDS. He has been Director of Project Management at successful startups such as Weborder and MP3.com. Dr. Sanghera has taught technology courses at several universities in the San Francisco Bay area in the fields of Java technologies, TCP/IP Networking, Unix/Linux, Windows Server, and Technical Writing. With a Master degree in Computer Science from Cornell University and a Ph.D. in Physics, he has authored and co-authored more than 100 technical papers published in well reputed European and American research journals. He has also presented talks by invitation at several international scientific conferences.

Dr. Sanghera has contributed to the development of the SCJP exam by participating in the blue print survey and the beta testing.

Product Details

• Paperback: 424 pages
• Publisher: Apress; 1 edition (May 30, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1590596978
• ISBN-13: 978-1590596975
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.5 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (14 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,057,153 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

About the Author:
Paul Sanghera is a scientist, project manager, technologist, educator, speaker, author, and an entrepreneur. He has a diverse background in multiple fields including physics, chemistry, biology, computer science, RFID, nanotechnology, and project management. He holds a Master's degree in Computer Science from Cornell University, a Ph.D. in Physics from Carleton University, and a B.Sc. with triple major: physics, chemistry, and math. With expertise in multiple application areas, and having worked in various roles including director of project management and director of software developemnet at companies from Netscape to MP3 and at research labs from CERN to Cornell, he has a broader view of project management.

Paul has worked as a senior software engineer at Novell, and Netscape, and has contributed to technologies such as NDS and Netscape Communicator. As a senior software engineer and an engineering manager, he has been on the ground floor of several successful startups such as WebOrder and mp3.com.

He has taught a multitude of courses in math, science, and technology all across the world including San Jose State University and Brooks College. The author and co-author of about 150 science research papers published in American and European research journals, Paul has made professional presentations by invitation at several international conferences.

Paul lives in Silicon Valley, California.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

34 of 36 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best SCJP Study Guide and Java 5 Book to Learn Java, April 22, 2007

By 

AndyMoorty - See all my reviews

This review is from: SCJP Exam for J2SE 5: A Concise and Comprehensive Study Guide for The Sun Certified Java Programmer Exam (Paperback)

I have just passed the SCJP for J2SE 5 exam largely after preparing from this book. However, to be on the safe side it might be good idea to consider using more than one resource to prepare for this exam, because the exam is certainly not a walk in the park. I have read all the three SCJP for Java 5 study guides from cover to cover. So I would like to share my experience with these study guides in the context of both the exam and learning Java:

"SCJP Exam for J2SE 5" (this book) by Paul Sanghera.
I found this Study Guide the best among all, especially for the beginners. As another reviewer said the author has the unique approach of saying only what is necessary. He also has the skill of making difficult concepts easy to understand without compromising accuracy. The material is organized in such a manner that we also learn Java while preparing for the Exam. Because everything is explained from scratch, and there is no hopping from topic to topic, this book is especially suitable for the beginners. Here are some features in the book that I especially liked:

* All concepts are clearly defined and explained by using visuals where necessary. It makes this book self-contained.
*Tons of code examples explained in the book, which I downloaded from the book website and experimented with them to build confidence.
* The Exam Quick Prep appendix. I went through this just before the exam to refresh all the important points quickly.
* Exam's Eye View, Caution, and Notes throughout all chapters, which re-enforced important points.
* An appendix that provides useful information and analysis for those who are considering updating the J2SE 1.4 certification to J2SE 5.
If you are a beginner, this is your book. If you are an advanced Java programmer, this book will still take you through the exam without boring you.
Bottom line: I agree with another reviewer that books like these are hard to find.

"SCJP for Java 5" by Kathy Sierra and Bert Bates.
This is a good book for advanced Java programmers, but rather over-hyped. If you are planning to buy two books to prepare for the SCJP exam, this is the second book I will recommend. However, this is NOT the book for the beginners. If you do not have intensive Java programming experience, do not use this book as your first book. If you want to use this book, first study Sanghera's book.

"Complete Java 2 Certification" by Phil Heller and Simon Roberts.
If you want to buy three SCJP for Java 5 study guides, this is the third one I will recommend. It does not do justice with some of the exam objectives. Overall exam coverage is not that great, but you will learn some Java topics.

28 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Book: He Did It Again, June 15, 2006

By 

Vipin - See all my reviews

This review is from: SCJP Exam for J2SE 5: A Concise and Comprehensive Study Guide for The Sun Certified Java Programmer Exam (Paperback)

This is a great SCJP certification book which can also be used to learn basic Java programming. Previously, I used Dr. Sanghera's SCBCD Exam Study Kit (from Manning) to pass my SCBCD exam, and liked that book very much. Now, I have read this book from cover to cover to upgrade my SCJP certification, and I would say: He did it again!
I myself have always wondered, if SCJP is the first real Java programming certification, then why people have to buy one book to learn Java programming and another book to pass the certification. Well, this book is the answer to this question: you don't have to. With this book, you can learn basics of Java programming while preparing for the exam. It presents the material in a logical learning sequence: like a training session or a classroom course. I love the author's style: same in both books. Each concept is explained where it appears for the first time, and there si a perfect flow. So it's not an exam cram, and there is no hopping from topic to topic. But yet each chapter and each section in a chapter is focussed on exam objectives.
Here are some features that I liked:
1. Unlike SCBCD exam, SCJP exam is code intensive. Recognizing this fact, the book presents complete runnable code examples discussed in all chapters. You can download these programs, and execute them, and experiment with them to get comfortable with the code.
2. The Exam Quick Prep appendix is very useful to recap all the important points for the last hour preparation before taking the exam.
3. There is no CD, but a complete practice exam with detailed answers is given as an Appendix.
4. I also like the appendix that provides the useful information and analysis for updating a previous SCJP certification to J2SE 5.

If you are an advanced programmer, of course you can still use the book because it is very focussed on the exam objectives. just ignore chapter 1.
I recommend this book to all Java programmers who either want to pass the SCJP exam, or learn basic Java programming, or both.

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A very well written book but not completely enough for Java 5 exam, December 23, 2006

By 

Debater (Minneapolis USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: SCJP Exam for J2SE 5: A Concise and Comprehensive Study Guide for The Sun Certified Java Programmer Exam (Paperback)

This book is pretty good for a beginner of Java. I usually have this 'fat book phobia' which makes me disinterested to read bulky books. So i generally look for something to teach me all the concepts in a crisp and concise way. This book does exactly that. Most of the Java 5 topics are clearly and nicely explained in simple and easy to understand terms. I know that it takes a lot of experience and skill to write books in such a way. But for anyone who wants to take a java certification and aim to score more than 90% I highly recommend this book PLUS the Kathy sierra's book for Java 5 certification to cover all the topics. Some topics like join() method in Threads, unary operators e.t.c are not covered or do not have enough/correct exam oriented information about.