OK after that tennis marathon here's a wee change of subject, as this is about my Microsoft exams as I was studying to get my 2nd Microsoft Windows 7 exam out of the way (70-685), but I have had a bit of a debacle with the college out in Motherwell (or Motherwell college if you like!).
At the start of the year, I was supposed to sit the exam just after I had started work with Zurich Financial Services (which I am still there, for now!) and I went out to Motherwell college. But when I got there I found out from the woman invigilating the exams that my exam didn't download as the Prometric server had crashed. Now Prometric are supposed to provide testing and assessment services for IT exams, and to say they have given the college problems has been an understatement. Suffice to say that night I didn't get to sit my exam as the supervisor was concerned I would run short on time, and the Windows 7 70-685 is very difficult (perhaps even more so than the 70-680).
So after that I arranged another date to go back (which was last Thursday there on 26th January) to Mothewell college again, and I was quite keen to get it out the way, and hopefully get a pass. And on that day, that's when the snow decided to come to town, regardless I was able to still get out to the college, but again when I got there the problems with the Prometric server reared their ugly head again. This time the exam invigilator (Laura I think!) said that my exam voucher was no longer valid as it had already registered me to sit the exam, even though I had never started it, since it hadn't properly downloaded last time! And of course she couldn't get me another one, so that meant once again my attempt to sit the exam had been thwarted!! So I was pretty pissed off by then, as by this time I had wasted two trips out to the back of beyond (at Shieldmuir station) to get there. And the first time was particularly annoying since I had to wait an hour for the train (as only one train an hour comes at Shieldmuir!) and then it was another hour to get home. Thankfully the second time, my tutor from the course very kindly gave me a lift back. But it was another wasted journey, and it was really infuriating to wait all this time to no avail once more. It was also the same for one of the guys I was on the course with, as he had sat the exam once, it first of all said he had passed, then it came up as an error, then he had to resit the exam and it chucked out half way through it!!
As for Prometric for a so called "leading global provider of comprehensive testing and assessment services" they really are utterly pathetic and provide a really piss poor service. Despite the fact they are closely connected with Microsoft, you think they should provide a professional service to its clients that is efficient and works. Instead they made the Motherwell college staff look like idiots and me and my fellow course man without a qualification once again.
And this does lead me onto another bugbear about the Microsoft exams in general, as with this exam and the previous one, I felt from the course material I have learned something, but from doing the exams I feel have learned nothing, as the two are so different. The exams definitely encompass stuff that is way outside the course material we were given, which really annoys me. I guess you will always get stuff like that in exams, but Microsoft seem to have taken a mish-mesh of different exams, such as Windows Server exams and Windows Desktop Support exams, and blended them together, in order to confuse and annoy the students taking the exam. In fact when I originally did this course I later found that our class was actually used as guinea pigs to see how the course was and how easy/difficult it would be. As it turned out it was anything but easy, however it certainly is a good course to do and if you want another IT qualification under your belt, then its one to go for.
But once again that's me waiting to find out, just when the hell am I going to finally be able to sit this exam and get it out the way. Hopefully I won't be out at Motherwell college again as it really is too far away, and its been a massive waste of my time so far going out there. I've made it clear to my tutor so far that I don't want to go out there again, so if they can try and get my a test centre somewhere in Glasgow, that would be much better.
Anyways that's all waiting to be sorted, in the meantime I'll just on with work and gaming. ;-)
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