Prometric wants you Microsoft Certified by June 30th!

So if you recall my emails about Microsoft Certification vouchers for $25 with Second Shot built in, you’re in semi-luck if you want an ‘extra chance’ to take exams and yet don’t want to worry about using up a voucher which has second shot built in!

Prometric is saying “Hey, come back.. take an exam and it’ll only cost $25”

I know what you’re saying “That sounds remotely familiar to your vouchers, but the Prometric Offer doesn’t seem to have Second Shot built in, or even available as an option!” Yea, there’s nothing I can do about that, but eventually I’ll run out of vouchers… so for every single person who wants one chance to take an exam, here it is! Thanks to Prometric!

So, like it says below, Limit one per customer, and Promo Code: MCPBACK ! :)

Oh, and if you’re looking to get in on the other vouchers I have while I still have some, let me know… but here’s to not looking a gift Prometric in the mouth!

Disclaimer:

Offer available for customers who have taken their last certification exam prior to January 1, 2007.
Also works if you have never taken any certification exams

 

SecondShot Microsoft Certification Program

We Want You Back - And We Want to Help Your Career! Hurry - Exams must be completed by June 30th 2009

 

In a tough a economic climate, how do you get a new job? How do you become indispensible in your current one?

…Improving and validating your technical skills can help.

That is why Prometric is providing a limited offer to the first 4,000 individuals to help get your Microsoft Certified Professional status current or achieve an additional certification.

Offer available for customers who have taken their last certification exam prior to January 1, 2007.

Use this promo code ‘MCPBACK’ and get a $25 USD Certification (Normally priced at $125 USD). This offer is valid for any exam in the MCTS/MCPD/MCITP track. Does not include Microsoft Office or Windows end-user (non-IT) focused exams.

Go to: www.Prometric.com/microsoft to sign-up for your next exam.

But you better hurry!
You must take your exam by June 30, 2009.

Offer valid in US and Canada only.

 

 

Limit one per customer.
Offer cannot be combined with second shot or any other offers or discounts.

Offer limited to the first 4000 registrations.

Free Testing Archive – Your Guide to Certification Freebies

To make it easier to find out what tests are currently available in general and in Beta’s, I’m creating this “link” more or less, which I’ll keep current as I can. – All dates update 04/15/09

 

71-680: TS: Windows 7, Configuring. May 5, 2009– May 18, 2009 (WIN7J)

NS1-501: NetApp Certified Implementation Engineer:SAN – October 23, 2008 – December 31, 2008 (No Code needed)

70-113: TS: Windows® Server 2008 Active Directory, Configuring (Pilot)July 31, 2008– December 31, 2008 (Code H640) (Qualifies you for 3 free vouchers after exam release)

71-505: TS: Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5, Windows Forms Application DevelopmentNovember 25, 2008 – December 15, 2008 (Code: X356Y)

71-563: Pro: Design & Dev Windows Apps Using MS.NET Framework 3.5October 13, 2008 – December 11, 2008 (Code: DW897)

71-564: Pro: Designing and Developing ASP.NET Applications Using the Microsoft® .NET Framework 3.5November 6, 2008 – December 1, 2008 (Code: RSC43)

71-565: Pro: Designing and Developing Enterprise Applications Using the Microsoft® .NET Framework 3.5November 10, 2008 – December 3, 2008 (Code: 999TR)

71-403: TS: Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008, Configuring – September 30, 2008 – December 15, 2008 (Code: VMM08) (Code may be expired, keep trying it)

70-656 Microsoft Desktop Optimization Pack, ConfiguringFirst 500 Free (Code: MDOP)

71-433: TS: Microsoft SQL 2008, Database Development – September 22, 2008 – October 10, 2008 (Code: F589G)

NS1-060: NetApp Accredited Support Engineer – September 12, 2008 – November 7, 2008 (No Code needed)

NS1-050: NetApp Installation Accredited Professional – August 1, 2008 – September 12 2008 (No Code needed) – Extended to September 12th!

71-450: PRO: Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Designing, Optimizing, and Maintaining a Database Administrative SolutionAugust 18, 2008– September 16, 2008 (Code: 239F4)

71-451: PRO: Microsoft SQL Server 2008, Designing and Optimizing Database Solutions – September 2, 2008 – September 30, 2008 (Code: 14F65)

71-653: Windows Small Business Server 2008, ConfiguringAugust 22, 2008 – September 25, 2008 (Code: SBS8)

71-654 – TS: Windows Essential Business Server 2008, Configuring – July 22, 2008 – ??? Sep 25?  (Code EBS08)

71-452: Designing a Business Intelligence Infrastructure Using Microsoft SQL Server 2008August 13, 2008– September 10, 2008 (Code: 3568C)

71-660: TS: Windows® InternalsJuly 21, 2008 – August 5, 2008 (Code WINT)

All older exams will not be referenced

071-450/071-451 Post Mortem: 2 SQL Beta Exams (WTF is going on?!)

I took these two beta exams this past week, and let me start off first by saying, Wow! These are quite possibly some of the most polished exams I’ve ever seen!

The content was clear and concise, the questions were spot-on, and the delivery was amazing! I had no comments to offer other than "Wow, great exam" (I’m paraphrasing!:))

However, going past that, we get into the depths of the Post-Mortem.

071-451 was an excellent exam, the questions were very focused on your ability to Design, Optimize, and continually work on making sure that your data was delivered in a consistent fashion while also validating for performance and a number of other figures.   If you’re a day-in-day-out DBA who looks at improving your SQL Data, then this is the exam for you.

071-450 was also an excellent exam, the questions were very focused on your ability to actually manage your data, be it in clusters, clustered and non-clustered indexes, mirrors and especially the ability to back up your data.   If you happen to wear the hat of managing the databases and spending less time writing queries, this exam is spot-on and will be a breath of fresh air to you.

In all, I have nothing special to offer you outside of "If you know you’re stuff, you’ll be ready for these exams"

However, I did encounter something disturbing.   While taking 071-450 an exam focused on "Designing, Optimizing, and Maintaining" a database environment, I encountered a considerable volume of "How do I back this up" type of question, equally followed by a series of "How do I restore and get back into operation" type of questions.

Which leaves me to think, it’s 2008 already, is this seriously still a question?    I hear it in the field all the time as well, and I’m seriously disturbed.    The amount of data we have is growing, our windows – shrinking.   There are options and opportunities to ensure you have a quick, efficient and effective backup, restore and operational window.   When it’s still a question on the table – especially in an emerging product like SQL 2008, I have to seriously ask, Are we taking steps backwards instead of adopting the innovations available to us over the years?

Yes I work for NetApp, and yes I’ve seen the light offered by amazing solutions like SnapManager for SQL, and SnapManager for Oracle, and a series of other products to protect everything important within every small, medium and enterprise business.    And to be honest, this isn’t rocket science (Rocket Science is FAR easier) especially when you compare it to the number of "backup" options available to "try" to protect your SQL environment only to leave you scratching your head and still unsure about your availability and recoverability.  

And to be honest, this isn’t a commercial, whereas in reality that test was a wake-up call of "WTF is going on?!" I don’t want to be in this same position 2 years from now in 2010, and 12 years from now in 2020 and having it still be a question on the table of "How do we protect and recover our data?"   

Beta: 70-403: TS: Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008, Configuring (VMM08)

Hijacked verbatim from our good friends over at the Beta blog!

This information is also posted to the "Free Testing Archive!"

You are invited to take beta exam 70-403: TS: Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008, Configuring. You were specifically chosen to participate in this beta because of your current Microsoft Certification status or previous participation with Microsoft Learning. If you pass the beta exam, the exam credit will be added to your transcript and you will not need to take the exam in its released form. The 71-xxx identifier is used for registering for beta versions of MCP exams, when the exam is released in its final form the 70-xxx identifier is used for registration.
By participating in beta exams, you have the opportunity to provide the Microsoft Certification program with feedback about exam content, which is integral to development of exams in their released version. We depend on the contributions of experienced IT professionals and developers as we continually improve exam content and maintain the value of Microsoft certifications.

70-403: TS: Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008, Configuring counts as credit towards the following certification(s).

· TS: Microsoft System Center Virtual Machine Manager 2008, Configuration


Availability

Registration begins: September 23, 2008

Beta exam period runs: September 30, 2008– October 24, 2008

Receiving this invitation does not guarantee you a seat in the beta; we recommend that you register immediately. Beta exams have limited availability and are operated under a first-come-first-served basis. Once all beta slots are filled, no additional seats will be offered.

Testing is held at Prometric testing centers worldwide, although this exam may not be available in all countries (see Regional Restrictions). All testing centers will have the capability to offer this exam in its live version.

Regional Restrictions: India, Pakistan, China


Registration Information

You must register at least 24 hours prior to taking the exam.
Please use the following promotional code when registering for the exam: VMM08
Receiving this invitation does not guarantee you a seat in the beta; we recommend that you register immediately.

To register in North America, please call:

•Prometric: (800) 755-EXAM (800-755-3926)

Outside the U.S./Canada, please contact:

•Prometric: http://www.register.prometric.com/ClientInformation.asp


Test Information and Support

You are invited to take this beta exam at no charge.
You will be given four hours to complete the beta exam. Please plan accordingly.
Find exam preparation information: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/en/us/exams/70-403.mspx (may not yet be active)


Frequently Asked Questions

For Microsoft Certified Professional (MCP) help and information, you may log in to the MCP Web site at http://www.microsoft.com/learning/mcp/or contact your Regional ServiceCenter: http://www.microsoft.com/learning/support/worldsites.asp.

What is a beta exam?

Where can I learn more about the registration process?

Where can I learn more about the beta exam invitation process?

Where can I learn more about the new structure of Microsoft Certification?

Who do I contact for help with this beta exam or other MCP questions?

Thanks beta blog!

New NetApp beta exam! (NS1-060) Accredited Support Engineer

Welcome to another beta exam released in STEALTH!

Yes, this exam, NS1-060, will eventually be launched as NS0-060, and will be for an "Accredited Support Engineer".   So what does that mean? Hard to say, it seems like it may build upon the experience of the NS1-050 exam (which should be just dropping out of beta shortly)

And speaking of the timing, this particular exam will be available (Free $0.00) as a beta until November 7th!!!   Wow!

As usual, I will take the exam and provide a prospective post-mortem following the taking of it.

Be on the look out for other exams, and as I find out more details about it, I’ll be sure to share!

Good luck out there!