[ RD ] | Romil Dhakar's Diary http://www.romildhakar.com/blog Sun, 25 Apr 2010 16:45:12 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.7.1 en hourly 1 ITIL V3 ITSM Certification : Feb 2010 http://www.romildhakar.com/blog/itil-v3-itsm-certification-feb-2010/2010/03 http://www.romildhakar.com/blog/itil-v3-itsm-certification-feb-2010/2010/03#comments Mon, 01 Mar 2010 15:34:49 +0000 [ RD ] http://romildhakar.com/blog/?p=180

My ITIL V3 ITSM Certification Story


Certificate Name - ITIL V3 Certified ITSM, Eaxm ID - EX0-101, Total Questions - 40, Passing Marks - 65%, Cost - INR 8200, Date of Exam - Feb, 25th 2010, Level - Foundation, My Score - 80%

My Certificate:

ITIL V3 Score CardITIL Certificate

My Experience:

I was planning since long to try my hand on this qualification, but only till FEB 2010, I really pushed myself to give it a try. My schedule as always was short but dedicated. I did extensive research on Google in understanding the full syllabus and knowing what should be studied to get certified and also get good ITIL V3 knowledge. The exam was average :-) but said that, It needs 30 hours of serious study(although ITIL allots 18 hours for the syllabus, but thats for experienced guys). I took over 10 full length test’s which made me shiver because the scores I was getting was marginal to pass. Hopefully the questions I practiced were above the difficulty level of exam. The exam was great and It took me just 35 -40 min to answer all of them.  One advise, please practice as many questions as you can, until and unless this is done, you will err in exams(I have seen a 6 year exp manager clueless in some of the questions).

My References:

This book is very good to start and understand the core concepts of ITIL V3(which are differently categorized form ITIL V2). Its is free to download and is authored by renowned names in itSMF Forum. It is a pocket hand book and smartly gives a complete overview of fundamentals of ITIL V3. I started with this book, and with just 58 pages(that too very small) l took just few days to completely understand the ITIL fundaments.

  • Passing Your ITIL Foundation Exam by OGC (official Study AID)

I tried to get a copy of this book(FREE) but it was really hard, however, while searching for this book I found out many free resources which actually helped me score and get proficiency on the fundamental. I would suggest to go through this book(given that you have time, and want to know more on the exam) and get a rough idea on how OGC(the official body, sees the ITIL Certification Exam). Its also good to practice the questions given at the end of each chapter and at the back.

This study guide is Excellent. Its neat, and beautifully written, in simple yet effective language. Its a must read for cracking the exam. Its just 45 page but almost everything is covered. Its free to download along with few other useful resources which include a glossary of terms(better than Official one) and sample test FREE. Trust me, If you read it throughly and understand the concepts and have a three digit IQ, the ITIL ITSM certificate is just one Hour away :-)

  • Others

Apart form the above great free resources, I also took these free topic wise assessments and SIX full length test to make sure I am fully equipped with all the knowledge and skills to crack the test. You will have to register(just 1 min process) to access these wonderful FREE resources. Apart from that, I gave THREE official mock test’s which were very close to the difficulty level and distribution of actual exam. They are free to download over the net(ask me to send you if you want them fast). I also found few dumps and practiced them in last two days.

All in all I would rate the exam average, but the preparation should be systematic and remember, PRACTICE is the KEY. As a fresher I didn’t had much ITIL knowledge(though after reading I came to know, most of the practices and terms, we do and use daily in our CMMI L5 organization). I would love to share and help those how aspire to be ITIL ITSM certified. Please drop me a comment in case you have any quries. I will be happy to revert asap :-)

Thats all form my side. Study Smart, Practice hard :-)

]]> http://www.romildhakar.com/blog/itil-v3-itsm-certification-feb-2010/2010/03/feed IBM DB2 Certification : Sept 2009 http://www.romildhakar.com/blog/ibm-db2-certification-sept-2009/2009/09 http://www.romildhakar.com/blog/ibm-db2-certification-sept-2009/2009/09#comments Fri, 25 Sep 2009 12:58:02 +0000 [ RD ] http://romildhakar.com/blog/?p=135

My IBM DB2 Certification Story


Certificate Name - IBM Certified Database Associate, Eaxm ID - 000-730, Total Questions - 64, Passing Marks - 54%, Cost - INR 5000, Date of Exam - Sept, 24th 2009, Level - Foundation, My Score - 84%

My Certificate:

My IBM Certificate

My Experience:

I took the certification on Sept 24th 2009 at our GLC, at Capgemini, Pune.  Prior to this certification I never worked on DB2 hence I was an absolute beginner.  Please see the syllabus here. Through my research on Google, I came up with a schedule to crack this exam.

I seriously studied for 3-4 hours daily for a week and cracked the exam with decent score. I could have performed well but the SQL related questions were a bit tricky (at least for me) and some questions regarding database concepts were confusing. Over all the exam was OK and for a beginner, It is not tough but not that easy also. With good planned approach I hope everyone can easily crack this.

My References:

The Fundamentals tutorial series provides an introduction to SQL (Structured Query Language) and covers how DB2® 9 is packaged and installed, how to create databases and database objects, and the basics of database security and transaction isolation. These tutorials provide a solid base for each section of the exam. However, you should not rely on these tutorials as your only preparation for the exam. This is FREE to download from IBM DeveloperWorks website.

  • DB2 9 Fundamentals certification Study Guide by Roger E. Sanders

This book written by Roger E. Sanders, covers everything needed to know to pass the DB2 9 Fundamentals Certification Exam (Exam 730). The prerequisite for all intermediate and follow-on DB2 certifications, XML usage, basic table creation, a rich set of sample questions, and detailed answers are all included, forming the foundation for understanding the newest version of IBM’s flagship database product. Regardless of what future certification path the reader is planning on pursuing, this study guide will chart a course for proficiency in DB2 9. The sample questions at the end of each chapter and at the back are really worth. May question in actual exam were same or almost like them.

  • Dumps

They are not reliable but help to build confidence. I downloaded few latest dumps from sites across the web and found that not all are accurate but few were pretty close to being called a dump. I answered them to evaluate my proficiency. One of my friends had recently scored 90% in this exam, she was a great help. Her QnA(provided by some Institute) were good for practice.  All in all I would strongly recommend that you test yourself with dumps but only after studying the core topics thoroughly.

I still have these resources as soft copy. Please write a comment describing your need and I will email you the same. I would appreciate your feedback and queries. I would love to answer any queries related to the same. My other certification experiences are here. Please read them too.

All the best for your Attempt :-)

]]> http://www.romildhakar.com/blog/ibm-db2-certification-sept-2009/2009/09/feed Here I am sitting in my office at night http://www.romildhakar.com/blog/here-i-am-sitting-in-my-office-at-night/2009/03 http://www.romildhakar.com/blog/here-i-am-sitting-in-my-office-at-night/2009/03#comments Fri, 06 Mar 2009 16:08:20 +0000 [ RD ] http://romildhakar.com/blog/?p=69 This Poem is very close to my heart. It describes how life is … being a professional

Here I am sitting in my office @ night… 
Thinking hard about life 
How it changed from a maverick collage life to strict professional life…… 

How tiny pocket money changed to monthly paychecks 
but then why it gives less happiness…. 

How a few local denim jeans changed to new branded wardrobe 
but then why there are less people to use them 

How a single plate of samosa changed to a full Pizza or burger 
But then why there is less hunger….. 

Here i am sitting in my office @ night… 
Thinking hard about life 
How it changed….. 

How a bike always in reserve changed to bike always on 
but then why there are less places to go on…… 

How a small coffee shop changed to cafe coffee day 
but then why its feels like shop is far away….. 

How a limited prepaid card changed to postpaid package 
but then why there are less calls & more messages…… 

Here i am sitting in my office @ night… 
Thinking hard about life 
How it changed….. 

How a general class journey changed to Flight journey 
But then why there are less vacations for enjoyment…. 

How an old assembled desktop changed to new branded laptop 
but then why there is less time to put it on………. 

How a small bunch of friends changed to office mate 
but then why after 8′o Clock it always feel like getting late…. 

Here i am sitting in my office @ night… 
Thinking hard about life 
How it changed….. how it changed…….

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