MS 70-331: Cliff Notes Edition

Here is the slides for my presentation at the BuckeyeSPUG user group.  In recap, I'm a big proponent of studying for a certification. Aside from the obvious benefits (career, job, etc), there is another hidden benefit: Knowledge.! In the process of studying you WILL uncover areas/features that you probably were not aware that they exists.

Exam 70-541 – Developing for WSS 3.0 Study Guide

One of my goals for 2009 is to get certified in SharePoint development. I have found that you can get some good/cheap/professional online training from Microsoft Learning.  If you go to this link Microsoft eLearning Collection and follow the instructions, you can obtain the e-learning promotion code.  Then you get to use this code to choose ANY training material for only $35.00.  I have chosen the Collection 5385, which coverts all of the topics needed for the 70-541 test.

• Course 5386: Working with Server and Site Objects WSS 3.0
• Course 5387: Programmatically Securing WSS 3.0 Sites
• Course 5388: Programming Lists and List Events in WSS  3.0
• Course 5389: Managing Documents and Libraries in WSS 3.0
• Course 5390: Working with List Metadata and Content Types in WSS 3.0
• Course 5391: Customizing Navigation and Layout in WSS 3.0

Their course is very interactive. It contains videos, labs, code snippets, games, etc

Once you finish with the course, then you can start doing the interactive labs. Microsoft gives you one full hour to use on the virtual labs.  I’ve found that this is plenty of time to complete the labs, if you don’t do the extra assignments.

The only issue I have with the labs, is that I wish I could get a hold of the solution code that is being used in those labs.

Overall, I did like the simplicity of these labs.  I would highly recommend them for anyone looking to pass the exam 70-541.

I took the 70-541 test today.  It is a 3:00 hour test.  According to my calculations, I needed to get 41/59 correctly answered questions in order to pass. I did get more than 41 questions correctly answered. ;)    At the end of the test, I have but 22 minutes left, time flies when you are having fun.!

Hints for the test?  Setup your own VPC and a Domain Controller, so that you can go explore web parts and Document Workflows a little deeper than what they offer on the eCourse.  It certainly helped me a lot… ;)

Certification vs Google Developer

 

I have seen this thread so many times.  Those who don't have certifications always batching those that have them. Yes there are lots of paper certs developers out there.  Braindump sites has brought the core values of the certification down.  But consider the facts:

Certification Preparation Facts:

1. to become certified you need to at least study the preparation guide for the exam
2. you will need to read at least one book on the subject
3. you would probably take some simulation test before taking the exam

 

A certification WILL not get you a job.! There are lots of factors that influence the decision to hire someone.  However, having achieve a certification in a new technology goes a long way to show that you have the Passion and Commitment to stay on top of the technology.

Yes, writing a blog entry does show that you are into technology.  But having to study to pass a test is a different beast.  A blog is written on your spare time, and there is no commitment to when you need to blog.

I hate when someone will tell me that they don't know something, but they are fast learners and they can find it really quick on google.  That's great, but when you are in presenting in front of a client, they expect you to know EVERYTHING right there.  When hiring a developer, there should be a base level knowledge that they should have. Knowing the basics first and then knowing how to find information in the internet for other stuff is fine with me.

Basic knowledge like how to use the xmlWritter, or what the background worker is? or creating a delegate. Using globalization and resources?  About ClickOnce deployment?  All of these concepts and more are required on the certification exam for .NET.

When you start getting into the Enterprise playing field, certifications are more valuables in terms of knowledge, rather than chrome on your resume. i.e. knowing what can be done and how it can be done in BizTalk is more important to a client, than the actual detailed implementation of it.  This is because every client out there has a different problem that they want you to solve, and they are looking at you for answers.

Once again, certification alone does not qualify ANY developer to get a job, but at least it shows that this person has the determination to study and learn the basic to do his job.  Which one will I hire?  The one that has a black belt in google searching or the one that took the extra time, to learn something.

Do you have the time to study?  Do you have the determination and commitment?  Do you have the experience? and most important of all Are you Passionate about Technology?

Certification Pros:

1. your team will only move as fast as the slowest developer.  Requiring a certification, will set the base by which you can start moving forward.  You don't have to start guessing what level is each of your team members.
2. Invest some training $$ on your team, they will feel appreciate [read more...]
3. Think like an owner..!! Everyone wants to work for a Gold Certified Partner. Well, getting those Microsoft competencies takes some requirements:
   1. Customer references
   2. CERTIFICATIONS Requirements...!!

If you think that certifications are used only for evaluating a prospective candidate, think again. How does your company benefits from having certified developers?  Can you company truly stand out among other companies out there without certified people? If you want to be a Business Partner with some of the big companies out there like Microsoft, IBM, Sun, guess what?  You need certifications...!

The guy that study and did that extra effort is the one I want on my team, and in my Company [Quick Solutions, Inc.]

Windows DNA and Biztalk 2000

Being the certification freak, I subscribe to anything Microsoft related. A few weeks back, I have received an email notifying me that the Exam for BizTalk 2000 is going to be retired.! http://www.microsoft.com/learning/exams/70-230.mspx

Of all of the certification tests that I have taken, this is the one that has the most meaning to me.

It's been almost 10yrs since I first hear about this product. Why BizTalk? This is my story. Right at the beginning of the dot COM era, I was an independent consultant doing COM and MTS. I actually knew how to get Windows NT4 to work with DCOM. Those were the years that I have abandoned C++ and their MFC for VB4 and VB5.

I remembered being part of the beta tester for VB5 and VB6 and signing NDA's. I was just starting to play with SQL Server 6.5 when I got this offer from a consulting company up north. They were based on Michigan and they were looking for Developers to work on this new joint application with Ford Motors [carpoint.com]. They mentioned that I would be working alongside Microsoft Consultants developing this new application that was going to revolutionize the automobile industry. I passed all 2 tech phone interviews and drove up there to meet them. Everything went fine, and I did get the Michigan Battle song played while talking to one of the PM's.! Funny, I don't really care about Football.

When the offer came, there were so many factors that I had to take into account. It was just about the same that I was making at that time in Columbus, so the money factor was not there. The challenge factor was there. It was the beginning of Internet boom, and as I can remember signing bonuses and stock options were very popular. Moving up north did not seem like a good career move, so with great dispair, I passed on this one offer.

2 years later, I am playing with this technology preview called BizTalk. Oh yeah, that was it. I am still doing the *what-if's* all of the time.

The buzzword of the day back then was Windows DNA [Windows Distributed InterNet Applications Architecture], then Microsoft stated their new strategy with the eCommerce .NET servers: Commerce Server 2000, Exchange 2000, SQL Server 2000, Application Center 2000, ISA 2000, BizTalk 2000 and some other that I can't remember. And BizTalk was one of the main core that will glue them all together.

I embraced this technology fully. It was the time that there were lots of mergers and acquisitions. Integration was starting to become a real enterprise problem. I had my share of integration projects with Unix and Windows.

The certification for this BizTalk 2000 did not come out until about 2001. I had to admit, I had to take this test 2 times to pass it. There were no materials to study for. At the time there were only 2 books that I could study from:

So finally I conquered this test.

Now, after obtaining every single BizTalk Certification (including the ones that dont exist... ;), I can only say that I will miss this test the most for the significance it had in my life..

It is amazing to sit here and think that this product has evolved so much in the past 10yrs. I can't hardly wait when Oslo comes out.

70-504: Windows Workflow Foundation 3.5

Part of working in the Solutions Team for Quick Solutions, Inc., is that we get special offers for all kind of Microsoft stuff. The latest one was an invitation to participate in the Beta Test for the exam 70-504- MS .Net Framework 3.5 Windows Workflow Foundation.

In order to study for this beta test I have to install vs2008.

Since I am not doing any C++ programming, I decided not to install any of the C++ components. By unselecting it, I saved almost 2GB in space...!! However, when I open Studio 2008 for the first time, I've got this error:

Package Load Failure

Package 'Visual C++ Resource Editor Package' has failed to load properly ( GUID = {74AAD8B2-3294-49CB-BB5D-E9BAB132BFD5} ). Please contact package vendor for assistance. Application restart is recommended, due to possible environment corruption. Would you like to disable loading this package in the future? You may use 'devenv /resetskippkgs' to re-enable package loading.

Selecting Yes, got rid of this dialog box. Now I went and try to create a sequential workflow application, and this is what I got:

An error occurred while loading the workflow. Please correct the following error and try reloading the document to view the workflow.

The designer could not be shown for this file because none of the the classes within it can be designed.

Using my 2nd brain, aka Google, I came across a lot of other post relating to this error, but none of them applied to my configuration. My configuration is Vista x64, with BizTalk 2006 R2, and Visual Studio 2005 Team System installed. I have installed the SDK for .NET 3.0 some time ago.

I can create workflow projects in 2005. However, using the .NET 3.5 does not seems to work.

When I compare both projects VS2005 and VS2008, the only differences I've found is that the 2008 reference these assemblies: System.WorkflowServices .Net 3.5, and the System.ServiceModel. The new assembly points to this location:

c:\Program Files (x86)\Reference Assemblies\Microsoft\Framework\v3.5\System.WorkflowServices.dll

Then I started to dig out more information on the Event Logs. Then I found the culprit:

The Windows update "Update for Windows (KB929300)" was successfully installed. (Command line: ""C:\Windows\system32\WUSA.exe" "e:\setup\..\wcu\dotnetframework\dotnetmsp\x64\NetFX3.0-KB929300-v6000-x64.msu" /quiet /norestart")

It seems that after the setup has finished installing, it needed to reboot my machine. However, the /quiet and the /norestart flags did not report anything back to me. So I did not know I had to reboot for the workflow application 3.5 to work.

Now I can get back to reading Pro WF Windows Workflow in .NET 3.0, and try to run some samples out of the SDK before my test.

Microsoft Biztalk 2003 Certification

I open my mail this saturday, and I finally got the promised new credentials from Microsoft. The certificate says that I am a Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist BizTalk 2003: Custom Applications.!!!



Oh yeah. Now I can say with confidence that I am a MCTS in a Microsoft product that does not exists.!!!

And of course the most famous signature in the world.!! Bill Gates....



I feel like special Ed: I've got mail, yeah, yeah....

Exam 70-631: WSS 3.0 Configuring - Study Guide

I have passed the 70-631 test.! Now I am the proud owner of a new MCTS:

Microsoft Certified Technology Specialist: Windows SharePoint Services 3.0, Configuring

To prepare for the exam, I have used the Preparation Guide for Exam 70-631 from the Microsoft site.

• Deploy Windows Sharepoint Services 3.0 (WSS)
• Monitor Windows Sharepoint Services
• Configure Network Infrastructure for Windows Sharepoint Services
• Managed Customization
• Administer Windows Sharepoint Services
• Configure Security for Windows Sharepoint Services

I will say that this guide is very close to the test. I think each skill being measured had almost a corresponding question on the test.

One thing that came handy for me was the Help file that comes with Sharepoint Services. This is where you can find it: C:\Program Files\Common Files\Microsoft Shared\web server extensions\12\Help\1033\PSCONFIG.CHM.

The product team apparently did not spend enough time putting this together. They took the information and made it into a CHM file. No contents, no navigation, no search. But still, it has some good background information.

BTW, hit the BACKSPACE when you want to navigate back on this CHM.



I will recommend to go through this document at least once before taking the test.

Exam 70-235

I have passed the Microsoft exam 70-235. Now I have bragging rights to Biztalk, having passed all 3 exams. :D

70-230: Designing and Implementing Solutions with Microsoft® BizTalk Server 2000, Enterprise Edition.

74-135: Developing EBiz Solutions Using Microsoft BizTalk Server 2004

70-235: TS: Developing Business Process and Integration Solutions using Microsoft® BizTalk® Server 2006

Microsoft 070-552 Certification

What I did for my x-mas vacation:

In 2005 I was fortunate enough to join the geekiest of the geek in a road trip. This was the VS launch event in Detroit, MI. In the launch event, all of the attendees got some swag. One of the best one was a free voucher for a Microsoft Certification test.

Since this voucher was going to expire on December 31, I decided to use it and take shot at one of the new certification test. This would really give me a true assessment of my kung-fu skills in the art of .NET. I chose the 70-552 which is the upgrade exam for going from .NET 1.1 to .NET 2.0 certification.

This test was a MONSTER!!. 3.5hrs of nothing but sheer in-depth, no holds-barred .NET knowledge. I wished I had practice a little bit more before taking this test. This test is the equivalent of taking 3 separate tests. Needless to say, I did not pass, out of 1000 questions (so it seems after the first 2hrs in there); I only got 52% correct. I will try again on the spring time ;)

I would definitely recommend this test to anyone who wants to test his skills on .NET 2.0.

Hints: after you are done reading CLR via C#, then read it AGAIN and AGAIN, until you memorize it.