My level of java knowledge right now...i.e.: before starting preparation...

Now after knowing Java from past 3 years my teachers will be ashamed if I say "I am pretty new to java." So I am not new to java, I know java from past 3 years and yes have done pretty good amount of coding in it. But knowing java and passing the Sun certification examinations are two different things. You don't need to have working knowledge of java to do programs and even projects in it, but the Sun certification examinations demand that you should not only know good ways of programming in java but also know bad ways of programming in java. A normal java programmer will write a code which runs fine, but a SCJP programmer is supposed to write the most efficient code - and that's where you should know the intracacies and details of the programming language. So, here I am, I am able to write java programs..sometimes very long ones, but nah nah.. I don't even know were they efficient or not.

Talking to the point, I have gone through most basic Java programming books like the Complete Reference by Herbert Schildt, some chapters of Core Java and even some chapters of SCJP preparation books by Kathy Seirra & Bert Bates. I havn't given even a single Mock Exam and havn't started preparation for the examinations as such. So, this is where I am beginning. Let's start now.... join me.