Reviews for Programmer's Guide to Java SCJP Certification: A Comprehensive Primer

1. Covers all for the test but is written very chaotic

   Rated 3 out of 5 stars, February 12th, 2010

   This book covers everything needed for the java certification with examples and exams. But. It is written in a very chaotic way. Author does not begin with basics and jumps directly to the more sofistacated things and just after a few pages there is described these basics. For example: at first are described static variables and just after 20 pages is described modificator static.
   I don't recommend it for begginers. It can be useful for people who already know programming in java but for begginers it will be hard to understand all of it.

2. Everything you need to pass the SCJP Exam

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, June 12th, 2009

   I bought the 2nd Edition of this book in 2005 and studied it for 6 months, in the end taking my Java 1.4 exam and passing it first time. It's brilliantly written, covering topics from the ground up, and presenting very relevant questions at the end of each chapter. The mock exam on the disc was also excellent.
   
   It's partly thanks to this book I landed my current job, a truely worthy investment. And it's now on my desk, doubling as a reference manual.
   
   I've now bought the Third Edition, for Java 1.6, and I can assure you this book is written to the same high standards, I won't need any other aid to pass the exam. I tip my hat to the authors, their Java Certification books are some of the best tech books I own!

3. A Great Book

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, September 12st, 2005

   What Can I say, I bought this book recently, half expecting that I would end up buying another to support the material. but I was seriously wrong this book has everything you need to know to pass the exam. Detail and explanations are clear as crystal enabling the reader to get the full idea of whats actually happening and why in code. I read the book in 4 days and took the exam and passed first time with only this book.

4. Excellent study guide, excellent reference

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, October 12th, 2004

   If you are studying to become a Sun Certified Programmer for the Java 2 Platform 1.4 this book will help you to receive not just a passing grade but an excellent understanding of the intricacies of the Java programming language. Mughal and Rasmussen aren't satisfied with simply giving you a minimal understanding of Java so that you can pass a test. They are interested in helping you to understand the language at a deeper level. After all, it is much easier to pass the certification exam when you actually understand the material rather than when you have simply memorized a lot of details.

   I'll give you an example of the level of detail that the book covers. Section 5.2 of the book covers Selection statements. The section starts with a description of the if statement followed by an activity diagram which explains the flow of the statement. The authors then show a simple example followed by a clear explanation of the if statement. Then they do the same with if-else, this time using several examples. The same level of detail follows for the switch statement, again providing clear text, with a simple activity diagram, followed by several well explained examples. Finally, the section ends with several review questions. What this means is that this book can serve you well even after you have passed the certification exam. You will be hard pressed to find a better written reference.

   The book covers all the information you need to pass the certification exam and covers the material needed to connect all the pieces together. The included CD has several mock exams with questions that will help you understand the type of questions that you will face on the actual exam. If you do well on the mock exams you will do well on the real thing. Overall, this is an excellent book for studying for the Java certification. But it is such a good reference that you will want to keep it nearby even after you have passed the certification.

5. The best out there

   Rated 5 out of 5 stars, November 12th, 2003

   I used the previous edition of this book to easily pass the Java 2 1.4 exam, and would have done even better with this edition. The mock exam questions were of a high standard; I thought they were pitched at a slightly higher level than the exam itself. I'd recommend this book over the others if you want to pass the exam and learn the core java language in a rigorous way, rather than just to pass the exam.