Get the inside track on J2EE architect certification  Pick up
plenty of pointers and avoid common mistakes   More than two
years ago, I volunteered as a beta tester for the Sun
Microsystems Certified Enterprise Architect for J2EE (Java 2
Platform, Enterprise Edition) Technology exam. I looked at the
planned syllabus and saw the value in the certification, so I
decided to go for it. Four months and a lot of hard work later,
I received my certificate and badge in the mail, almost as if I
had joined a very select fan club! Was it worth it? In a word,
yes. My straightforward goal was certification, but I was
pleasantly surprised that the certification process opened my
eyes to ideas and approaches I simply hadn't had time to
investigate in the hustle and bustle of my day job. I continue
to engage with Sun on the exam's content and structure and am
currently an examiner for the test. In this article, I share my
experiences and also pick the brain of Mark Cade, lead developer
of Sun's J2EE architect exam. If you wa