Study Guide

Informatica Professional Certification Examination I

PowerCenter 6 Advanced Mapping Design
Includes Informatica PowerMart 6.x / Informatica PowerCenter 6.x
The PowerCenter 6 Mapping Design examination is composed of the eleven sections
listed
below. In order to ensure that you are prepared for the test, review the subtopics
associated with
each section. The Informatica documentation is an excellent source of information on the
material
that will be covered in the examination. If you are thoroughly knowledgeable in the areas
mentioned in this Study Guide, you will do well on the examination.
The examination is designed to test for “expert level” knowledge. Informatica strongly
urges you to attain a complete understanding of these topics before you attempt to take
the examination. Hands-on experience with the software is the best way to gain this
understanding.

1. XML sources and targets

A. Be familiar with the procedures and methods involved in defining an XML source
definition.
B. Know how to define and use an XML target definition.
C. Know the limitations associated with using XML targets.
D. Understand how XML definitions are related to code pages.
E. Know how to edit existing XML definitions.
F. Understand how the Designer validates XML sources.

2. Data type formats and conversions

A. Understand the date / time formats available in the transformation language.

B. Be familiar with how transformation functions handle null values.
C. Know the valid input data types for the various conversion functions.
D. Know how transformation functions behave when given incorrectly formatted
arguments.
E. Know how to extract a desired subset of data from a given input (the hour from a date /
time, for example).
3. The Debugger

A. Be familiar with the procedure to run a debug session.

B. Know the rules for working with breakpoints.
C. Know how to test expressions in a debug session.
D. Be familiar with the options available while using the debugger.
E. Know how debugger session properties and breakpoints can be saved.

4. TX (External Procedure) transformation

A. Understand how external procedures and advanced external procedures work.

B. Understand the relationship between function arguments and TX ports.
C. Know the restrictions involved in using an Advanced TX transformation.
D. Know how TX is affected when the Informatica server runs in Unicode mode.

5. Router transformation

A. Understand the purpose of the various types of Router ports.

B. Know how to use the default group.
C. Be familiar with supported and unsupported Router configurations.
D. Understand how multiple true conditions are handled by the Router.

6. Normalizer transformation

A. Be familiar with the possible uses of the Normalizer transformation.

B. Understand how to read a COBOL data source in a mapping.
C. Be familiar with the rules regarding reusable Normalizer transformations.
D. Know how the OCCURS COBOL keyword affects the Normalizer transformation.

7. Dynamic and shared lookup caches

A. Know the difference between static and dynamic Lookup caches.

B. Know the default cache properties.
C. Know the advantages and disadvantages of dynamic Lookup caches.
D. Be familiar with the rules regarding Lookup SQL overrides.
8. Mapping parameters and variables

A. Understand the purposes of mapping parameters and variables.

B. Know the parameter order of precedence.
C. Know how to view pre-defined parameters and variables.
D. Understand how to use the property mapping variable aggregation type.
E. Be familiar with the rules affecting parameters used with mapplets and reusable
transformations

9. Data Previewer

A. Know the connectivity requirements and options for the Previewer.

B. Know the limitations of the Previewer.
C. Know where you can use the Previewer.

10. Advanced expressions

A. Be familiar with all special functions, such as ABORT and ERROR.

B. Know the allowable input data types for the Informatica functions.
C. Understand how to use expressions to set variables.
D. Know the details behind the meaning and use of expression time stamps.
E. Be familiar with the use of conditional aggregate functions.

11. Mapping optimization

A. Know how to obtain performance data for individual transformations.

B. Know when is the best time in the development cycle to optimize mappings.
C. Be familiar with specific mapping optimization techniques described in the
documentation.