Webmantica is the next generation web development company focusing on web design, web development, web marketing, logo and branding

Even though I have never been a big fan of certifications, diplomas, and the likes as substitutes for a good dose of hands-on work experience, I decided to test my PHP knowledge which I accumulated over the years, and sit for the ZCE exam. For those of you who don’t know what a ZCE exam is, you can check it out here. Getting PHP certified is an excellent way to test your PHP knowledge AND differentiating yourself when approaching prospective clients and employers.
 
First, I went to the Zend Certification website to check out the suggested study material needed to prepare for the exam. Then, I wrote a study plan! What comes next is a step-by-step description of what I did to prepare for the ZCE exam which I took and passed on first try on July 25th, 2008. Of course, this may or may not work for you.

1. I purchased the Zend PHP 5 Certification Study Guide by Davey Shafik and Ben Ramsey. Being a real maniac when it comes to taking tests, I also got my hands on a PHP 4 study guide. I studied them both THOROUGHLY. For each chapter I read, I wrote down on a sheet of paper all the functions (and parameters) and concepts which were mentioned in the books.
2. I then went to the PHP website and studied every single word mentioned in the Language Reference, Security section, Features section, and part of the Function Reference.
    
   In the Function Reference I concentrated on the following sections:
   http://www.php.net/manual/en/refs.basic.php.php
   http://www.php.net/manual/en/refs.compression.php
   http://www.php.net/manual/en/refs.xml.php
   http://www.php.net/manual/en/refs.database.php
   
    
   In the Database Extensions section, I studied the PDO, and the MySqli section very carefully. I reviewed the most used PHP.INI directives.To those of you who are thinking that they can pass the ZCE exam just by reading the study guide: it doesn’t work that way. The exam tests BOTH your PHP knowledge accumulated on the job AND language syntax (functions and parameters, etc) which you can only know by reading the PHP Manual very carefully.
3. I purchased a 10-exam pack of mock tests from Vulcan. I suggest everybody try these tests before sitting for the actual exam as they give you a chance to get acquainted with the test format and difficulty level. Some people have complained they took and passed the mock exams but failed the real one. I believe the key here is to actually get excellent grades on the mock exams rather than just passing them. With regard to the difficulty level of mock exams as compared to the real ones, I can only say there are almost unnoticeable differences between the two. Taking notes of stuff I never heard of on the mock exams and studying them afterwards really helped me further my PHP knowledge. I bought 10 exams, but I actually took just 5. Why? Because many of the questions on the exams are repeated over the over again on subsequent exams. Thus, you tend to memorize questions which actually defeats the whole purpose of taking sample tests.
4. Scheduled a test date, sit, and passed on first try!

 
I hope this step-by-step process will benefit others while preparing for their ZCE exam. I’m actually willing to donate my remaining 5 mock exams credits to whoever asks for it first!
 
Here’s a pdf file of my php5 notes

 
Also, we are currently growing our business and we will soon need help from outside contractors. Interested freelancers/contractors are encouraged to apply here

Yes, that’s right: we are incorporating!! Hello and welcome to Webmantica. You may have already guessed it by looking at our company name and tagline, but just in case – we are a web design and development company.

Before you go like, “Yawn, yawn, just another web design shop”, stop and read on. We are a team of extremely passionate and happy folks committed to make the web a better place by designing and developing elegant and advanced websites. We have more than 10 years of experience in the design and application development fields, both in the US and internationally, as freelancers, programmers, and consultants. During the last two years we have been working together on several mid-size projects and liked it so much we have now decided to join forces permanently and incorporate!

Webmantica was born out of pure passion for design, the web, and application development. This is what our About Us page recites. Well, believe it or not, there isn’t really much else to add. We delight in creating elegantly valid and advanced websites adhering to the most strict web standards and best practices currently available.  Webmantica will entertain web application development requests from any part of the world where there is a need for meticulously crafted and elegantly designed websites.

You may have noticed an Italian flag next to the American one on the top right corner menu of our website. By glancing at our first and last names, you may have probably figured out we are of Italian descent. In layman’s words, this means good taste is in our DNA and that we love sipping good wine while gulping small bits of parmesan cheese at sunset. Company-wise, this means we do have a translated version of our website so that our non-English speaking Italian clients and prospective clients can find their way around the site more easily.

Well, that’s it for now. It’s time to go back to work. Please let us know what you think. Give us feedback, both good and bad. We take everything!!