"K3HVG" wrote in message
...
Nope.... I don't think I'm forgetting anything (regarding this discussion,
of course). In past times, the Extra did, indeed, connote something more
than the passing ability to zero the ohms scale on a Simpson 260 or use of
a U-Test-Em tube checker at the local drug store.

Are you familiar with the current 4b question pool? There are 500 questions
selected for a 50 question test. I am a BSEE and I believe that the
questions are by and large very good and not particularly easy considering
that one is not trying the get a degree or pass a PE exam. I scored 100% on
the test the first time I took it; however, I put in several hours of study
because it covered several areas that I needed to review and/or catch up on.
I would not characterize it as trivial. In theory the 500 questions could be
memorized by I think that would be much more difficult than learning the
material as a way to pass the test.Also, rote memorizing will cause one to
learn more than one might think. In College chemistry I had to memorize the
activity series of the periodic table, something that has benefitted me
greatly during my EE career (because many EE's get invoved in so many other
areas than EE). Either method is valid but I would think that most learn the
real material these days and the questions are not insignificant. They don't
compare to operating a tube tester or zeroing an ohm meter. Element 3b is
another story and that one does need a little work