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Self-Assessment

The reason we included a Self-Assessment in this Exam Cram 2 book is to help you evaluate your readiness to tackle Microsoft certifications. It should also help you understand what you need to know to master the topic of this booknamely, Exam 70-306 "Developing and Implementing Windows-Based Applications with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET." But before you tackle this Self-Assessment, let's talk about concerns you may face when pursuing an MCSD (Microsoft Certified Solution Developer) or MCAD (Microsoft Certified Application Developer) for the .NET platform and what an ideal MCSD candidate might look like.

MCSDs in the Real World

In the next section, we describe an ideal MCSD candidate, knowing full well that only a few real candidates will meet this ideal. In fact, our description of that ideal candidate might seem downright scary, especially with the changes that have been made to the program to support the .NET development platform. But take heart: Although the requirements to obtain an MCSD may seem formidable, they are by no means impossible to meet. However, be keenly aware that it does take time, involves some expense, and requires real effort to get through the process.

Increasing numbers of people are attaining Microsoft certifications, so the goal is within reach. You can get all the real-world motivation you need from knowing that many others have gone before, so you will be able to follow in their footsteps. If you're willing to tackle the process seriously and do what it takes to obtain the necessary experience and knowledge, you can takeand passall the certification tests involved in obtaining an MCSD or MCAD.

Besides MCSD, other Microsoft certifications include the following:

MCSA (Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator) This is the brand-new certification that Microsoft has provided for those Microsoft professionals who are not going to design networks but rather administer them. This certification includes three core exams and a single elective .
MCAD (Microsoft Certified Application Developer) This is aimed at software developers functioning at a departmental level with one to two years of application-development experience. The MCAD certification requires two specific exams, plus a third elective exam drawn from a limited pool of options. The 70-306 exam is a core exam for the MCAD credential.
MCDBA (Microsoft Certified Database Administrator) This is aimed at database administrators and developers who work with Microsoft SQL Server. The MCDBA certification requires three core exams and one elective exam.
Other Microsoft certifications The requirements for these certifications range from one test (MCP) to several tests (MCSE).

The Ideal MCSD Candidate

The MCSD test is aimed at software developers. The requirements have recently been revised for .NET and include one exam on Web application development, one on Windows application development, one on XML and server development, one on solution architecture, and a fifth, elective exam drawn from a different, but limited, pool of options. The 70-306 exam that this book prepares you for fulfills the Windows application exam requirement for the MCSD.

Just to give you some idea of what an ideal MCSD candidate is like, here are some relevant statistics about the background and experience such an individual might have:

Don't worry if you don't meet these qualifications or don't even come that closethis is a far-from-ideal world, and where you fall short is simply where you'll have more work to do.

Academic or professional training in applications-development theory, concepts, and operations. This includes everything from programming and deployment planning through database integration and Web deployment.

Two or more years of lead development experience, including business process analysis, deployment management planning, and solution architecture design within an enterprise.

The .NET MCSD platform is somewhat different from previous versions of the Microsoft development languages; therefore, you'll really need some hands-on experience. Due to the structural changes made in creating an object-based development environment built around a Common Language Runtime, the more hands-on experience you have, the better.

Experience in developing applications designed to run within the Windows 2000 Server, Windows 2000/XP Professional, and soon the Windows .NET Server environments. A solid understanding of each system's architecture, installation, configuration, maintenance, and troubleshooting is also helpful when testing your code.
A thorough understanding of the software-development lifecycle is important, including analysis, design, development, testing, deployment, and maintenance of an application.
An understanding of how to implement security for key network data in a Windows 2000/XP environment.
Working knowledge of the .NET programming environment, preferably with some hands-on experience with the Microsoft Visual Studio .NET development tools. The time you take practicing the use of Visual Studio .NET will be time very well spent!

Fundamentally, this boils down to a bachelor's degree in computer science (or equivalent experience on the job), plus two years' experience working in a position involving applications design, testing, deployment, and maintenance, with some experience in database integration. We believe that well under half of all certification candidates meet these requirements and that, in fact, most meet less than half of these requirementsat least, when they begin the certification process. But because all the people who already have been certified have survived this ordeal, you can survive it tooespecially if you heed what our Self-Assessment can tell you about what you already know and what you need to learn.

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Hausman K., Gunderloy M.

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