BlackBeltFactory's News

Alternative languages are currently the hottest thing on the JVM, so it's only fitting we should acknowledge them here at JavaBlackBelt, by simultaneously creating exams around two technologies that show just how vibrant the Java platform is.

There's an exam for the statically-typed Scala language, led by Jonhnny Weselly. If you know closures, can tell your map from your fold and compose your classes with traits, we need your questions!

On the dynamic language side, we've got a brand-new Grails exam, led by Mateusz Kwasniewski. If you know how Grails implements MVC and brings Rails-like productivity to standard Java frameworks, we'd be happy to get your questions.

• Running Groovy
• Fundamental Groovy
• Groovy Datatypes
• Groovy Control Structures
• and Groovy Beans

People often tell us that it's quite hard to figure out what JavaBlackBelt is all about.

And our new Coached e-Learning concept is going to add an extra layer to this confusion!

To solve this problem, we were planning to modify JavaBlackBelt website's home page, then we stepped back. Most web applications that we know have two sites.

• A "front" site that explains what it is.
• The application for registered users.

We decided to take this path too.

Starting today, when you go to www.JavaBlackBelt.com, you will find a new "get to know us" site - a set of multimedia resources explaining what JavaBlackBelt is and how people benefit from it. For existing users, you get to the application site, where you take exam and contribute, by clicking on "the community site" button.

The home page of new site contains a 5-minute video that gives an overview of JavaBlackBelt. Existing users may well discovery aspects of JavaBlackBelt that they can benefit from too, so please check it out.

We hope that our many new visitors to JavaBlackBelt will better understand how it all works and how they can best take advantage of JavaBlackBelt for their specific needs.

Distant Learning survey results

• How people learn Java
• The perceived disadvantages of classical courses and traditional e-learning
• The perceived advantages of coached e-learning
• Which course elements coached eLearning should offer
• Why developers take exams
• How many hours a week developers would spend on e-learning
• If managers would offer coached e-learning to their developers
• If developers think managers would allow them to take coached e-learning

Again, we would like to thank the 130 participants in this survey.

New survey, more points

We are launching our next survey as a follow-on, this time specifically on Coached eLearning.

You can take the new survey here: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=SaH59Fy0TxcZykQKMN_2ftZA_3d_3d. As usual, we will reward your participation to the survey with 10 contribution points per participant.

You'll be able to read our conclusions by the end of April 2009.