interview question
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Ravi Bhavnani wrote:
separating the wheat from the chaff
Is that a design pattern?
Todd Smith
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mr_lasseter wrote:
encapsulation, polymorphism, and inheritance
d@nish wrote:
Are you speaking of abstraction, encapsulation, polymorphism, modularity and inheritance?
The short answer is all of them. :rolleyes: Judging people on their recollection of text book answers gets you people who are good at reciting text book answers but not always good at delivering production grade solutions. Some people are great at text book answers but couldn't deliver working software if their life depended on it. Others may not know the technical terms but have evolved over the years and deliver professional grade software without giving a lot of thought how to describe it technically. Unless the person is going to be the architect, or are so set in their ways that they cannot learn new things, I would go with experience. I have worked in an R&D environment for most of my career and would trade two MTS (member of the technical staff) for a good TA (technical associate) or better yet an STA (senior technical associate) any day. When it comes to crunch time, which all projects eventually come to, the TA or STA will deliver, while the MTS will still be debating which the best approach to take is.
Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
Think inside the box! ProActive Secure Systems
I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopesYou are so correct! The guy I was hired to replace had a PhD in Computer Science, but he developed a reputation for breaking more software than he created.
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Congrats, hope the new job goes well.
Visit http://www.notreadytogiveup.com/[^] and do something special today.
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mr_lasseter wrote:
encapsulation, polymorphism, and inheritance
d@nish wrote:
Are you speaking of abstraction, encapsulation, polymorphism, modularity and inheritance?
The short answer is all of them. :rolleyes: Judging people on their recollection of text book answers gets you people who are good at reciting text book answers but not always good at delivering production grade solutions. Some people are great at text book answers but couldn't deliver working software if their life depended on it. Others may not know the technical terms but have evolved over the years and deliver professional grade software without giving a lot of thought how to describe it technically. Unless the person is going to be the architect, or are so set in their ways that they cannot learn new things, I would go with experience. I have worked in an R&D environment for most of my career and would trade two MTS (member of the technical staff) for a good TA (technical associate) or better yet an STA (senior technical associate) any day. When it comes to crunch time, which all projects eventually come to, the TA or STA will deliver, while the MTS will still be debating which the best approach to take is.
Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
Think inside the box! ProActive Secure Systems
I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes -
I had an interview on Friday. It was for a project on .Net 3.5. I have not worked on anything above 2.0. So I was tested on my knowledge of framework. There came this question and I could not recall modularity. Rest all, I was spot on and was in. Now I will be trained on framework 3.5 and then I would work on it. That's great for me as I have been working in VB6 for almost a year now. And that too after working in .Net 2.0 for 1 Yr 7 months.
जय हिंद
modified on Saturday, March 21, 2009 5:00 PM
d@nish wrote:
I have been working in VB6 for almost a year now.
Just in time then! :~
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Just curious as to everyone thoughts on asking OO if developers they know the three pillars of Object Oriented Programming. Our company has been interviewing lately and not many developers (some considered to be senior) can answer this question. Is this uncommon knowledge?
Mike Lasseter
mr_lasseter wrote:
Is this uncommon knowledge?
The classifications and terms may be uncommon knowledge to someone with experience in OOP, but no formal study. I would always ask the question, but weight it more for candidates who wave a diploma at me. Having said that, I believe every developer should spend time on learning and skills development, which can't but include a topic such as 'key pillars of OO'. Anyone interested in OO should, after about one year's experience, at least have come across these concepts.
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You are so correct! The guy I was hired to replace had a PhD in Computer Science, but he developed a reputation for breaking more software than he created.
Some here might think you were trying to imply something... :suss:
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Is it too much to ask for both? And yes I could answer the question, although to be honest I did have a hard time remembering what the 'I' stood for.
Mike Lasseter
No its not. I personally would bank on experience (just make sure the guy is not company hopping) but I fail to see why a solid experience would completely mask and obliterate an academic requirement.
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mr_lasseter wrote:
Is it too much to ask for both? And yes I could answer the question, although to be honest I did have a hard time remembering what the 'I' stood for.
I tend to subscribe to the Guerrilla Guide[^] when doing interviews. Knowing the definitions of things like SOLID, OO Pillars etc. is book regurgitation. I want to know how someone applies said techniques, how they architect an application, what patterns do they commonly use, do they consider the absence of source control the 8th deadly sin, do they practice TDD & CI, can they design their own containers, etc. These are all questions which draw upon their past experiences instead of providing the definitions of academic terminology.
Todd Smith
Todd Smith wrote:
absence of source control the 8th deadly sin
There are other deadly sins? :omg:
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JimmyRopes wrote:
Are C++ and/or C# object oriented languages?
Not if you ask a SmallTalker (not that there are many of them left)
You mean we missed a few? Dammit, now I've got to reload.
Software Zen:
delete this;
Fold With Us![^] -
mr_lasseter wrote:
Someone who wrote code in SmallTalk
That begs the question “Are C++ and/or C# object oriented languages”? :) And yes the answer is pedantic.
Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
Think inside the box! ProActive Secure Systems
I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopesIf you want pedantry, that is not begging the question[^], but raising, highlighting, or introducing, the question. ;P
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Ah, the three pillars of object oriented programming: 1) Don't be a dumbass Oh well, just one.
Anyone who thinks he has a better idea of what's good for people than people do is a swine. - P.J. O'Rourke
Sounds like my interviewing technique, AYAJ. My goal is to answer the question, Are You A Jerk?
Software Zen:
delete this;
Fold With Us![^] -
Three pillars? Not sure. Are you speaking of abstraction, encapsulation, polymorphism, modularity and inheritance?
जय हिंद
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Todd Smith wrote:
absence of source control the 8th deadly sin
There are other deadly sins? :omg:
There's "No kettles allowed"... That's even higher! Iain.
In the process of moving to Sweden for love (awwww). If you're in Scandinavia and want an MVP on the payroll (or happy with a remote worker), give me a job!
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Just curious as to everyone thoughts on asking OO if developers they know the three pillars of Object Oriented Programming. Our company has been interviewing lately and not many developers (some considered to be senior) can answer this question. Is this uncommon knowledge?
Mike Lasseter
Calling them "pillars" is probably confusing the applicants (a sub-standard vocabulary is as much of a problem as lack of programming knowledge, IMHO).
"Why don't you tie a kerosene-soaked rag around your ankles so the ants won't climb up and eat your candy ass..." - Dale Earnhardt, 1997
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"...the staggering layers of obscenity in your statement make it a work of art on so many levels." - Jason Jystad, 10/26/2001 -
Three pillars? Not sure. Are you speaking of abstraction, encapsulation, polymorphism, modularity and inheritance?
जय हिंद
In true Douglas Adams trilogy style! :D
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encapsulation, polymorphism, and inheritance. So perhaps a better question would be what features make a language object oriented?
Mike Lasseter
That's a good question, but your "three pillars" aren't the answer to this. C provides encapsulation through compilation unit static entities, polymorphism through function pointers and inheritance through pointer casts. I wouldn#t call it "object oriented", though :) Anyway, if this question is a starter for a discussion about OO and related concepts, fine. If that's just a fact checker, and I get 4/4 points when I mention them in correct order, I'd be hesitant to work at your place.
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Is it too much to ask for both? And yes I could answer the question, although to be honest I did have a hard time remembering what the 'I' stood for.
Mike Lasseter
I just wouldn't waste the face-to-face interview with that.
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Just curious as to everyone thoughts on asking OO if developers they know the three pillars of Object Oriented Programming. Our company has been interviewing lately and not many developers (some considered to be senior) can answer this question. Is this uncommon knowledge?
Mike Lasseter
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If you want pedantry, that is not begging the question[^], but raising, highlighting, or introducing, the question. ;P
Brady Kelly wrote:
If you want pedantry, that is not begging the question[^], but raising, highlighting, or introducing, the question
Wikipedia:
In logic, begging the question has traditionally described a type of logical fallacy ...
When did I ever imply I was being logical? ;)
Simply Elegant Designs JimmyRopes Designs
Think inside the box! ProActive Secure Systems
I'm on-line therefore I am. JimmyRopes
