Sun Certified Web Component Developer Study Companion: SCWCD Java EE 5 (exams 310-083 and 310-084)

This book is a study guide for any candidate preparing for the new Java EE 5 version of the Sun Certified Web Component Developer exam (310-083 and upgrade 310-084). It contains the theory behind why the Web container operates as it does, and important notes, hints and tips on the types of trick questions to look for in the exam. By combining logical and easy-to-follow discussions with clear visual aids and diagrams, you will learn how the container works, and, by the end of the book, you'll be wondering why servlets, JSPs and tag libraries seemed so complicated before. By combining the theory taught in this book with practical experience, you will not only succeed in passing the exam, but will do so confident that you are able to solve problems and draw-up solutions on the job.

Reference Material
Have you ever found that you couldn't quite remember the names of the XML elements or attributes in the Deployment Descriptor or Tag Library Descriptor, or perhaps you've had problems recalling custom tag life cycles? Not a problem! Helpful visual diagrams show at a glance the important schemas, without having to resort to knowing the XML Schema or DTD languages, as used in the specifications.

Who is this book suitable for?
This guide is not intended as a beginner's book. It assumes prior, although basic, knowledge of J2EE, the Web container and the Extensible Mark-up Language (XML) core syntax. However, thorough explanations are presented to give an excellent grounding in the subject area. In addition, particular attention is devoted to the subjects of the Expression Language and custom tag libraries, both of which are new or have been significantly updated in the 1.4 version of the J2EE platform. No knowledge of either of these more difficult topics is assumed.

Additional Chapters
The two additional chapters present a summary of all the new features available in Java EE 5.0, including the platform's change of name! These are suitable for anyone already working confidently with J2EE 1.4.

Charles Lyons is an independent computer consultant based near London, UK, with over five years of programming experience in a wide variety of fields and applications ranging from microprocessors and machine code to the Web, three-dimensional graphics and modelling, and client- and server-side programming using Java. Self-taught, his career began as a Web page designer, hand-coding pages in raw (X)HTML, XML and CSS. His interest quickly spread to the dynamic serving of data, using server-side programming languages like PHP, and eventually onto the Java language. Combining Java Enterprise technology with Web page design just seemed like the thing to do, and so here we are - this book is a culmination of his years of experience with the Web and Java. This book is based on his own experiences, and mostly from the process of learning from his mistakes and misconceptions!