6/4/2001 -- Sun officially announced its new Java Web Component Developer certification today at the JavaOne conference, held in San Francisco.

As reported earlier by CertCities.com, this new title, designed to certify a candidate's skill in "constructing large-scale J2EE technology-compliant e-commerce applications," is the first of several new Java certifications Sun is expected to add to its current roster throughout the year. Details on other titles have not been released.

Robert Pedigo, director of certification for Sun, said the Web Component Developer exam will feature multiple-choice, fill-in-the-blank and scenario-based questions, and will go live in late July. The price will be $150 (U.S.). Because the new certification is considered "master-level," Sun's Certified Java Programmer (SCJP) certification will be a prerequisite.

Pedigo released to CertCities the objectives list for the exam, which will soon be posted on Sun's Web site. Although the list is too long to be reprinted here, below are the exam's 13 core objectives:

• The Servlet Model
• The Structure and Deployment of Modern Servlet Web Applications
• The Servlet Container Model
• Designing and Developing Servlets to Handle Server-side Expectations
• Designing and Developing Servlets Using Session Management
• Designing and Developing Secure Web Applications
• Designing and Developing Thread-Safe Servlets
• The JavaServer Page Model
• Designing and Developing Reusable Web Components
• Designing and Developing Java Server Pages Using Java Beans
• Designing and Developing Java Server Pages Using Custom Tags
• Designing and Developing a Custom Tab Library
• Web Application Design Patterns

The exam is currently being offered in beta format at JavaOne.

Pedigo said that Sun created the new certification in order to meet customer demand. Pedigo would not release numbers regarding how many people participate in Sun's certification program, but he told CertCities that the overall program, which includes both Java and Solaris titles, has seen a 648% growth rate over the last year.

In an interview with CertCities yesterday, Pedigo spoke about some other changes that may be upcoming for Sun's certification program:

• Sun is "examining very carefully" moving the SCJP exam to adaptive format. Pedigo said Sun is considering this change for several reasons. "It's a dramatically more efficient way to test...timewise it's more respectful," he explained. "Also, it's a good security measure [because individual questions are less exposed] -- something we're very conscious of." According to Pedigo, the decision whether or not to convert the exam to adaptive format will be made by mid-July.
• Pedigo also said that Sun is considering implementing recertification requirements for both its Java and Solaris certification programs. According to Pedigo, no decisions have been made as of yet regarding what those requirements might be, but if such a program is implemented, he said that the requirements "will be incredibly responsive and respectful" toward those they affect. Pedigo said a decision regarding this change will be made by late Summer.

Details on the new Web Component Developer certification will soon be posted on Sun's Web site. In the meantime, for more information about Sun's certification program, click here. -B.N.