CIW foundation basic question

[IThurts]

Hello, i have been informed that once i pass the CIW foundation course i will be eligible to hold the certification of "CIW web associate", is this correct, and/or is this how it works?

I know a very basic question, but many sites have confused me in re to this,and was just after some clarification please?

Thanks

[BosonJosh]

Yes, I believe that this is correct. Link

It should be noted, however, that all this really means is that you have a basic knowledge of HTML tags. The CIW Associate certification is not going to land you a job as a Web designer. I have never seen employers asking for CIW certified professionals. In my experience, I've found it's more important to create a portfolio of work than it is to get CIW certified.

[IThurts]

Originally Posted by BosonJosh

Yes, I believe that this is correct. Link

It should be noted, however, that all this really means is that you have a basic knowledge of HTML tags. The CIW Associate certification is not going to land you a job as a Web designer. I have never seen employers asking for CIW certified professionals. In my experience, I've found it's more important to create a portfolio of work than it is to get CIW certified.

Hi there, Yes i sort of realised this after people are drumming in left right and center, however i am of th opinion that i need to learn the skills anyway tbh, in the RIGHT way, so achieving the said certification will get me started on that, from there WHILST i work and revise and learn, i shall build my portfolio that way by creating a webpage of some sort that showcases my work. Know what i mean? It only makes sense that employers want to see what you can do

[BosonJosh]

That's certainly a valid approach. I like to use certification exams as a benchmark myself. It gives me something to focus my studies on.

[IThurts]

Thanks...i hope im aiming at the right foundation xam though..lol...its the 1d0 - 510 foundation CIW exam right?? Its just i cant find any books for it! Theres one that was written up in 2002 on amazon that looks great but its for 1d0-410...

Can i also just clarify that 1d0-510 is the LATEST exam and that i should be preparing for that one

Thank you for your invaluable help

[BosonMichael]

Unfortunately, you won't likely find any books available for the new version of the exam... publishers and practice exam providers gave the CIW certifications a chance back in '02, and the books didn't sell well due to lack of demand for the certification. Since they can't afford to lose money by developing products that won't sell well, none of the publishers or practice exam providers are creating an updated version of their training materials (at least, not to my knowledge).

If you want to know any information about the exam - latest exam number, number of questions, passing scores, etc., always always ALWAYS get that info from the vendor's Web site - Josh provided the link to CIW, below. Otherwise, you may end up getting outdated information.

Hope this helps!

[BosonJosh]

The makers of the CIW certification sell exam preparation products for the exam, although they are a bit pricey. LINK

[IThurts]

Originally Posted by BosonMichael

Unfortunately, you won't likely find any books available for the new version of the exam... publishers and practice exam providers gave the CIW certifications a chance back in '02, and the books didn't sell well due to lack of demand for the certification. Since they can't afford to lose money by developing products that won't sell well, none of the publishers or practice exam providers are creating an updated version of their training materials (at least, not to my knowledge).

If you want to know any information about the exam - latest exam number, number of questions, passing scores, etc., always always ALWAYS get that info from the vendor's Web site - Josh provided the link to CIW, below. Otherwise, you may end up getting outdated information.

Hope this helps!

WEll it helps me greatly in one way, but not really for my self study method
Will the 410 exam books not really cover the same sort of general area that the 510 might? How are people supposed to self study if the books are not available?lol. I have given you a little rep boost due to this info that i wasnt at all aware of. And to your friend josh for posting the link...great help so thanks.

So is it still "safe" to buy exam prep/books that were meant for the 410 exam (previous/retired one)??

[IThurts]

Originally Posted by BosonJosh

The makers of the CIW certification sell exam preparation products for the exam, although they are a bit pricey. LINK

I took a look but the only issue is that i hope they ship to the UK??it'll be roughly around £150.

[BosonMichael]

Originally Posted by IThurts

WEll it helps me greatly in one way, but not really for my self study method
Will the 410 exam books not really cover the same sort of general area that the 510 might? How are people supposed to self study if the books are not available?lol. I have given you a little rep boost due to this info that i wasnt at all aware of. And to your friend josh for posting the link...great help so thanks.

So is it still "safe" to buy exam prep/books that were meant for the 410 exam (previous/retired one)??

Like Josh, it's been a looooong time since I took the CIW exams. I am not sure what has changed since that time, nor have I taken the new 510 exam, so I wouldn't be able to tell you how the 510 exam differs from the 410 exam, if any. Obviously some things are different, or they wouldn't have created a new exam. To what extent it's changed, I cannot say.

There are self-study books... just none from the big-name publishers. As you've seen, CIW themselves offer self-study books, but they're incredibly expensive. There may be an authorized reseller in the UK who can sell you those materials - perhaps someone with experience in this area can provide better information.

[nellyp123]

Originally Posted by IThurts

I took a look but the only issue is that i hope they ship to the UK??it'll be roughly around £150.

No they don't!!. This has been an issue that i tried to get around but failed. Your only option is to use the U.K distributors, but you will have to pay hundreds more!!!!!!!

Good luck!

[IThurts]

Originally Posted by nellyp123

No they don't!!. This has been an issue that i tried to get around but failed. Your only option is to use the U.K distributors, but you will have to pay hundreds more!!!!!!!

Good luck!

Nah gonads to that! I have a guy who has the official CIWbooks who wants to sell me all 4 and the cd etc for £100...i hope they are for the new exam and not the old one!! If not, my bro lives in chicago,so will ask him to buy them and ship them here? The 510 self study kit equates to around £150...not bad for 4 official EXAM books really eh?

[nellyp123]

Originally Posted by IThurts

Nah gonads to that! I have a guy who has the official CIWbooks who wants to sell me all 4 and the cd etc for £100...i hope they are for the new exam and not the old one!! If not, my bro lives in chicago,so will ask him to buy them and ship them here? The 510 self study kit equates to around £150...not bad for 4 official EXAM books really eh?

Good on ya! Hope everything goes well.

[IThurts]

Originally Posted by nellyp123

Good on ya! Hope everything goes well.

Thanks...just a little OT...you made a comment in one of my other threads saying that web designers should maybe learn to use photoshop?....could u maybe go into a little detail as to why photoshop? Editing imagery and such u mean? Or could ANYONE answer it at that please

Thanks

[nellyp123]

Originally Posted by IThurts

Thanks...just a little OT...you made a comment in one of my other threads saying that web designers should maybe learn to use photoshop?....could u maybe go into a little detail as to why photoshop? Editing imagery and such u mean? Or could ANYONE answer it at that please

Thanks

Well....with Photoshop you can build what is called a comp (composition). Basically a mock up of your web site. Armed with that you can get a real feel of what your site will look like and when you get advanced enough, you can import it to either flash CS3 or Dreamweaver CS3 and create all the interactivity to it.

You can also create logos, buttons and some nice background graphics using gradients. Not only that but also you learn about editing images...which is what it was designed to do!!! If you are lucky enough to buy the CS3 suite with Photoshop extended, then you can also learn a bit of 3D animation.
The one thing that all the top designers are raving on about is it's integration with Flash CS3.
One other thing you need to bare in mind is that most employers will ask for someone with Photoshop skills.
The best thing for you to do is perhaps buy a copy of web designer magazine or the .Net mag. That way you can keep up with latest in web design!

Here the link to there web site www.webdesignermag.co.uk