Introduction to the Web Component Developer Exam

Well, let me begin by congratulating you on your decision to get yourself a Web Component Developer certification. It is a good decision and the subsequent series of articles in my blog would help you attain your goal.

Any goal needs a start and well, this chapter is the starting point on our journey towards SCWCD certification.

So, lets get started!!!

Introduction to the Web Component Developer Certification:

The Sun Certified Web Component Developer (SCWCD) certification covers the basic Web development concepts “Servlets” and “Java Server Pages (JSP)”

Servlets are classes that look like those you use in basic Java Programming, except they extend special purpose classes that enable them to respond to Web server requests. JSP pages extend servlet technology with a simple HTML (or XML) syntax. You can also include normal Java statements inside JSP files.

The servlet container actually compiles JSP pages into a servlet the first time it is requested.

Official Definition of a JSP:

What good would this series of articles be if we dont look at the official definition of the technologies we are going to get ourselves certified with.

“JavaServer Pages is the Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE) technology for building applications for generating dynamic Web content, such as HTML, DHTML, XHTML and XML. The JavaServer Pages technology enables the easy authoring of web pages that create dynamic content with maximum power and flexibility.”

Benefits of using JSPs for developing Web Applications:

There are a lot of significant benefits of using JSPs for developing our Web Applications. They are:
a. Write Once, Run Anywhere
b. Code Re-use
c. Support for Scripting
d. Supports Actions
e. Supports both Static & Dynamic Content
f. Supports N-tier Enterprise Application Architecture
g. Superior Quality Documentation & Examples (All over the internet)
h. Reusable Tag Libraries

Official Definition of Servlets:

We saw the official definition of JSPs and now it is time to take a look at the same for Servlets.

Servlet is a Java technology based Web component, managed by a container that generates dynamic content. Containers, also called as Servlet Engines, are Web Server extensions that provide the Servlet Functionality. Servlets interact with other web clients like JSPs via a request/response mechanism implemented by the Servlet Container

Benefits of using Servlets for developing Web Applications:

Servlets are an integral part of any J2EE Web application. The key benefits of using Servlets in our web applications are:
a. They are faster than CGI scripts because each CGI script produces an entirely new process that takes a lot of time to execute, whereas a servlet creates only a new thread.
b. Servlet API is standard and available easily on the internet (like JSPs)
c. Servlets have the advantages like ease of development & platform independence (like Java)
d. They can access all the J2SE and J2EE APIs
e. Can take the full advantage & capabilities of the Java programming langauge
As you can see, there are numerous advantages of using the Servlet & JSP technologies. This is exactly why numerous organizations use them as a staple part of their J2EE application development work.

Exam Trivia:
How would you convince your employer that you are capable in the use of JSP and Servlets and can be a useful addition to their workforce?
The answer is simple and a No Brainer – Get yourself SCWCD Certified!!!

The SCWCD Exam:

The SCWCD Exam is a 90 minute exam in which the candidate is expected to answer 60 questions. A Majority of them (almost 90%) are multiple choice questions. You are expected to choose all the correct answers of a question in order to get the full marks for answering that question. If let’s say, a question has 3 right answers and you choose only 2, you will not get full points for that question.

The Exam is moderately difficult or even significantly difficult for novice programmers. You need to get atleast 37 of the 60 questions right in order to pass the exam.

Preparing for the SCWCD Exam:

First and foremost requirement to pass the exam is to prepare for the exam properly. You cant pass the exam by just going through exam questions/answers dumps over the internet. A dedicated preparation is essential. The sequence of articles in my blog would help you do that. At the same time, you need a computer that has Java in it and you should get some hands on practice in coding components that are covered in the SCWCD exam.

You’ll need the following in your computer:

• Install Java (V 1.4 or higher)
• Install Tomcat V4.0 or higher (It is a free Web Server)
• Download the JSP 1.2 and Servlets 2.3 specifications

Once you are done with this, you are all set to get yourself a SCWCD Certification.

Well, thats it for this chapter. Lets dive into concepts you need to know for the exam, one by one in the subsequent chapters.

Next Chapter: Servlet & JSP History

Chapter 1: Refreshing Java

We begin our quest of the Java Programmer certification with refreshing what we know about java.
• Java is one of the most popular programming languages
• It can be used to create stand-alone or enterprise class applications
• It is an object oriented programming language

Some of the key terms we may be using throughout this series are:

• Class - A Class is a Template that describes the kinds of state and behavior that objects of its type support
• Object – Objects get created at runtime. At runtime, when the Java Virtual Machine (JVM) encounters the new keyword, it will use the appropriate class to make an object which is an instance of that class. That object will have its own state, and access to all of the behaviors defined by its class.
• Methods – These are pieces of code surrounded by a pair of flower braces “{}” and containing a name. They may or may not take arguments. These arguments would be used by the method for its processing
• JVM – Java Virtual Machine – This can be considered the system in which all the java program code you write will get executed
• Keyword – A keyword is nothing but a word in English but one that has a specific meaning in the java programming language. It can be considered similar to a command that instructs the JVM to perform a certain action. For Ex: the new keyword tells the JVM to create an object of the class on whom the action is performed
• JDK – Java Development Kit – This is the piece of software that needs to be installed in your computer if you want to run Java programs
• Interface – An Interface can be considered similar to a skeleton that defines a broad type pattern that must be adopted by all its children.

If you are unable to understand any of the keywords, don’t worry they will be taken up in detail when we go through further articles in this SCJP Series.

Lets get down to business. Click on the Next Article Link to read the next article in this SCJP Series.

Previous Article: SCJP An Introduction

Next Article: Chapter 2 – Declarations

Sun Certified Java Programmer – SCJP

Java is a very powerful language and is being used by many programmers around the world (including me) to develop enterprise applications. The base of the whole J2EE Universe is plain old Java. Java is one of the most powerful object oriented programming languages ever created (Though some people using other languages might disagree) With so many people who know java available in the job market, an employer would like to know how knowledgeable his prospective employee is in the language. In such cases a certification from the company that created the language would be very useful indeed.

Sun Certified Java Programmer or SCJP is the most fundamental certification for Java Programmers. The purpose of the following series of chapters is to help programmers who aspire of becoming a Sun Certified Java Programmer succeed in their goal.

Assumption: This series is written with the assumption that anyone who wishes to take up this exam would have the basic fundamental knowledge of the Java Programming language. We do not begin with what is Java or how to write a class. It is assumed that you know what java is and know how to write, compile and execute a Java program.

Next Article: Chapter 1 – Refreshing Java

Happy Reading!!!