Computer Careers Book
Tuesday, December 28, 2004
MCP Certifications
This updates the article at:
MCP Certifications for Not Yet Techies
The basics of the MCP certification remains the same.
It's sort of a generic label that you acquire by
passing any one of many Microsoft certification
tests.
The real value is passing all the tests required
for the "real" certifications such as MCSE, MCSD
etc. The MCP label is simply something that does
recognize your achieve in passing one test -- nothing
to sneeze at, but not enough to get you anywhere
with your career.
It does have value in that it allows you to access
the restricted areas of the Microsoft website, where
you'll find information just for people who have
passed that first major milestone.
The current exams which you can use to acquire the
MCP label are:
Microsoft Certified Systems Administrator (MCSA) on Microsoft Windows 2000
MCSA: Security on Microsoft Windows 2000
MCSA on Microsoft Windows Server 2003
Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer (MCSE) on Microsoft Windows 2000
MCSE: Security on Microsoft Windows 2000
MCSE on Microsoft Windows Server 2003
Microsoft Certified Database Administrator (MCDBA) on Microsoft SQL Server 2000
Microsoft Certified Application Developer (MCAD) on Microsoft .NET
Microsoft Certified Solution Developer (MCSD) on Microsoft Visual Studio 6.0
MCSD on Microsoft .NET Microsoft Certified Desktop Support Technician (MCDST) on Windows XP
For more information, go to:
MCP
MCP+Site Builder
This updates the article at:
MCP + Site Builder for Not Yet Techies
This is another certification which Microsoft has discontinued,
though I can't tell you why, though I guess it does have to
with the building of web sites being too important to have
in one small little regarded certification, especially after
the introduction of .NET.
On their site, Microsoft calls it MCP + Site Building or
MCP + SB.
They do want to reassure you that most people who got this
certification continue to be certified.
If you are seriously building web sites you must already
know of or be using higher levels of technology, whether,
ASP.NET, VS.NET, Internet Information Server (IIS) etc.
MCP+I
This updates the article at:
MCP+I for Not Yet Techies
This certification is no longer being offered by Microsoft.
It dates back to the days when Microsoft was struggling to
integrate the Internet into its business strategy and was
still fighting the browser war with Netscape.
Now it apparently does not fit into their strategies. That
of course doesn't mean Microsoft does not consider the
Internet (that's what the "I" stands for) is important.
They consider it so important they've integrated it into
their technologies and certifications throughout, thus
making it unnecessary to have a special certification for
it.
The pages describing this on Microsoft's site date back
to 2001. The good news is that if you did get the
MCP+I certification, you're still considered certified,
which in practice means you can put it on your resume
and take advantage of the other benefits you get directly
from Microsoft.
From what I understand, this particular one never had much
market value to aspiring (or established) techies anyway.
MCDBA
This updates the article at:
MCDBA for Not Yet Techies
MCDBA tests now cover Microsoft SQL Server 2000.
You need to pass 3 core exams and one elective exam.
1. Core Exam SQL Server Administration:
You must pass one of the following:
Exam 70–228: Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition
Exam 70–028: Administering Microsoft SQL Server 7.0
2. Core Exam SQL Server Design:
You must pass one of the following:
Exam 70–229: Designing and Implementing Databases with Microsoft SQL Server 2000 Enterprise Edition
Exam 70–029: Designing and Implementing Databases with Microsoft SQL Server 7.0
3. Core Exam Networking Systems:
You must pass one of the following:
Exam 70–290: Managing and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Environment
Exam 70–291: Implementing, Managing, and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Network Infrastructure
Exam 70–215: Installing, Configuring, and Administering Microsoft Windows 2000 Server
Elective Exams:
You must take and pass one of the following:
Exam 70–216: Implementing and Administering a Microsoft Windows 2000 Network Infrastructure
Exam 70-293: Planning and Maintaining a Microsoft Windows Server 2003 Network Infrastructure
Exam 70–305: Developing and Implementing Web Applications with Microsoft Visual Basic® .NET
and Microsoft Visual Studio® .NET
Exam 70–306: Developing and Implementing Windows-based Applications with Microsoft Visual
Basic .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET
Exam 70–310: Developing XML Web Services and Server Components with Microsoft Visual
Basic .NET and the Microsoft .NET Framework
Exam 70–315: Developing and Implementing Web Applications with Microsoft Visual C#™ .NET
and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET
Exam 70–316: Developing and Implementing Windows-based Applications with Microsoft
Visual C# .NET and Microsoft Visual Studio .NET
Exam 70–320: Developing XML Web Services and Server Components with Microsoft Visual C#
and the Microsoft .NET Framework
Exam 70–015: Designing and Implementing Distributed Applications with Microsoft
Visual C++® 6.0
Exam 70–019: Designing and Implementing Data Warehouses with Microsoft SQL Server 7.0
Exam 70–155: Designing and Implementing Distributed Applications with Microsoft
Visual FoxPro® 6.0
Exam 70–175: Designing and Implementing Distributed Applications with Microsoft Visual Basic® 6.0
For more information, go to:
MCDBA
