Just got back from taking the 70-551 exam (71-551 in beta).

3 sections, 30 questions each (for a total of 90 questions). Each section correlates to the Official Exam Objectives published by Microsoft. At the end of 90 questions (at around 87 actually), I was exhausted and could not wait to be done. Luckily, I felt I did pretty well on the last section so did not have to spend much time reviewing it and could just end it. The whole test took roughly 2 1/4 hours (although I had 3 to complete it if I wanted).

Each section allowed 60 minutes to complete. No going back once you've completed a question although the usual Previous/Next is allowed within a section, and a review at the end of each section.

I found the test hard in some places and easier in others. The first section (on .NET Framework) I may have barely gotten 60%. The next section, on web development, was also tough but I did slightly better, say 70%. And the final section, on design and development in general, I did better still at 80%-90%.

So who knows if I passed. I don't. The results come in 8 weeks apparently.

Anyways, on to the Windows test next Sunday. Don't forget to visit my 70-551 Wiki. I am starting one for the Windows exam 70-552 as well.

 

One fun way to learn - for me at least, your mileage may vary - is to watch a training video and do the exercise alongside the instructor. The instructor creates a new project, I create a new project. The instructor adds a TreeView control to the web page and creates a new dynamically bound data source, well... you get the idea.

Some great ASP.NET 2.0 videos are here. Useful for studying for the certification, hint hint.

 

I somehow signed up to take a couple of upgrade exams in the next couple of weeks - 70-551 for web development and 70-552 for Windows development. This will get me the new Microsoft MCPD certifications.

I have started adding content to my Wiki to cover this upgrade exam.

UPDATE: The wiki has been closed due to spam abuse. But follow my next MCPD adventures here.

 

I don't know what I did specifically to deserve it, but thanks to Microsoft for sending me a Microsoft Award for Customer Excellence (ACE) for Visual Studio 2005, otherwise known as the Ship-It Award.

It arrived today. A nice square Lucite cube. A bit smaller than I expected, but nice nonetheless.

The funnest part, oddly, was opening it. It came enclosed in three nested boxes. That's three times better than if it just came wrapped in one box.

I was looking at the referral logs for my blog, and tonight one entry surprised me.

Someone got to this website by searching the words "How to be a terrorist" in Yahoo! search.

I don't know the wisdom of doing this in a post-9/11 world, but I had to see it for myself. So greetings to all the three-letter U.S. agency employees that are reading this. But I searched that term in Yahoo!, and my website is number 6 on the list.

Yikes.

For the record, you will not learn how to be a terrorist from me. I've had a bad week at work, but not that bad. Never that bad.

The search results link to my post "How to Spot a Terrorist From 100 Yards" so at least the search is somewhat relevant.

I never mentioned on this blog what I did in December. I achieved my MCAD for .NET certification.

Today I got my Welcome Kit. A lapel pin, a wallet-sized card, a certificate suitable for framing...

Oh, and the right to post this logo to my blog:



W00t w00t!

On November 18, 2004, I wisely wrote:

The U.S Senate just passed a bill that would raise the Federal Debt Limit by $800 billion to $8.2 trillion. Who wants to take bets on how long that $800 billion is going to last?

Now, the U.S. is within a easy reach of the $8.2 trillion limit. They'll be there in a few weeks. Whoever chose "14 months" as the answer to my rhetorical question is the winner. Congratulations! Everyone else in the United States is the loser. So here we are again. We've reached the debt ceiling. The U.S. is at risk on defaulting on some payments. Congress will probably rubber stamp another $800 billion or more increase in the ceiling. When Ronald Regan took office in 1981, the entire U.S. debt was $1 trillion. Now that is what the U.S. borrows every year. Something is not right here. Which American politician has the guts to stand up and say something?