Comments on: On Interview Questions and Sort Routines http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/posts/on-interview-questions-and-sort-routines/ programming, politics, & other religious issues Wed, 08 Feb 2012 14:16:00 +0000 hourly 1 By: Brian http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/posts/on-interview-questions-and-sort-routines/#comment-34401 Brian Mon, 13 Apr 2009 22:11:52 +0000 http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/?p=1120#comment-34401 James: a book you might want to check out is <a HREF="http://www.amazon.com/Pragmatic-Thinking-Learning-Refactor-Programmers/dp/1934356050/ref=pd_bbs_sr_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1239658664&sr=8-1" rel="nofollow">Pragmatic Thinking and Learning</A>. The paper I linked to, The Programmers Stone, also has some good advice (well, up until the point where it wanders off into lala land, but that's a different post). James: a book you might want to check out is Pragmatic Thinking and Learning. The paper I linked to, The Programmers Stone, also has some good advice (well, up until the point where it wanders off into lala land, but that’s a different post).

]]> By: Trey Jackson http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/posts/on-interview-questions-and-sort-routines/#comment-34400 Trey Jackson Mon, 13 Apr 2009 20:47:56 +0000 http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/?p=1120#comment-34400 I heartily agree with this post. I am amazed at the number of people I've interviewed that can't answer basic CS 101 programming questions. People with 5+ years experience, fresh out of school, or with PhD's. It's embarrassing to interview such people, and it's embarrassing how many such interviews I've given... If you can't recreate the answers to CS 101 questions, then you're not worth hiring. Talk is cheap, programmers looking for jobs should be expected to program during the interview. Additionally, if you expect to hire the best (or even "good") programmers, then you'd better interview like it. Good programmers will shy away from companies that only ask easy, non-technical, non-programming questions during interviews. Remember, as an interviewer, you're also selling the company/job to the person you're interviewing. I heartily agree with this post.

I am amazed at the number of people I’ve interviewed that can’t answer basic CS 101 programming questions. People with 5+ years experience, fresh out of school, or with PhD’s. It’s embarrassing to interview such people, and it’s embarrassing how many such interviews I’ve given…

If you can’t recreate the answers to CS 101 questions, then you’re not worth hiring.

Talk is cheap, programmers looking for jobs should be expected to program during the interview.

Additionally, if you expect to hire the best (or even “good”) programmers, then you’d better interview like it. Good programmers will shy away from companies that only ask easy, non-technical, non-programming questions during interviews. Remember, as an interviewer, you’re also selling the company/job to the person you’re interviewing.

]]> By: Robert Fischer http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/posts/on-interview-questions-and-sort-routines/#comment-34374 Robert Fischer Thu, 09 Apr 2009 02:50:32 +0000 http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/?p=1120#comment-34374 @James If you "get the concepts down", but can't code it up in a language you're familiar with, you don't really have the concepts down. @James

If you “get the concepts down”, but can’t code it up in a language you’re familiar with, you don’t really have the concepts down.

]]> By: James Jackson http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/posts/on-interview-questions-and-sort-routines/#comment-34371 James Jackson Wed, 08 Apr 2009 02:57:09 +0000 http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/?p=1120#comment-34371 I'm a terrible programmer. You see, I can get the concepts down of something simple like a linked list, but when it comes time to write one I'm always looking at books to make sure I have the actual code down. Every once in a while I try to force myself to just sit down and write one without referring to any books, but I never come up with a good solution. Do you have any advice for someone like me? I’m a terrible programmer. You see, I can get the concepts down of something simple like a linked list, but when it comes time to write one I’m always looking at books to make sure I have the actual code down.

Every once in a while I try to force myself to just sit down and write one without referring to any books, but I never come up with a good solution. Do you have any advice for someone like me?

]]> By: brianstewey http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/posts/on-interview-questions-and-sort-routines/#comment-34370 brianstewey Tue, 07 Apr 2009 14:00:56 +0000 http://enfranchisedmind.com/blog/?p=1120#comment-34370 Since I commented on your original post and I guess this article is about me, I would request all who read this post to read the original post and the comments spoken of, before engaging the author in the content of this self gratifiying post. I would also like to say the following content of this post are fictional. "Those objecting to my post were packers. I’m thinking like a mapper." No one objected to your post, this is completely false. Also please don't call me a packer I could take insult to that if I wasn't so thick skinned. "This is exactly how the respondents were treating the sorting question: as a information packet." I can't speak for everyone but I didn't do that. Your post was about "real programmers" not about sorting algorithms, I used your section about sorting questions in interviews as leverage for my argument that you in fact consider yourself to a real programmer, whether you are aware of it or not. Since I commented on your original post and I guess this article is about me, I would request all who read this post to read the original post and the comments spoken of, before engaging the author in the content of this self gratifiying post.

I would also like to say the following content of this post are fictional.

“Those objecting to my post were packers. I’m thinking like a mapper.”
No one objected to your post, this is completely false. Also please don’t call me a packer I could take insult to that if I wasn’t so thick skinned.

“This is exactly how the respondents were treating the sorting question: as a information packet.”
I can’t speak for everyone but I didn’t do that. Your post was about “real programmers” not about sorting algorithms, I used your section about sorting questions in interviews as leverage for my argument that you in fact consider yourself to a real programmer, whether you are aware of it or not.

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