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Are you sure? I don't think the pseudocode whiteboard exercises are pointless, I think they're a useful filter. You can make them simple, and anyone remotely c
by GlennS 8y ago
Are you sure?
I don't think the pseudocode whiteboard exercises are pointless, I think they're a useful filter. You can make them simple, and anyone remotely competent who isn't completely crippled by nerves should be able to zip through them.
They don't have to be about esoterica. I just want to know that the candidate can attack and break down a problem, even if they don't know how to do all the bits immediately.
And I want them to have heard of a hash table before.
I've switched to 1-2 hour homework exercises on the advice of an experience colleague though.
- vfc1 8y agoThe problem is, there is a huge disconnect between hash tables and the work we do every day, so why to use that as a criterion? Homework exercises seem like such a better way to go, its much closer to the actual work experience. And its easier for the interviewer, all they have to do is to assess if the person actually did the exercise themselves.
- GlennS 8y agoWait, what? What sort of programming do you do where you don't use hash tables every day?
- vfc1 8y agoAlthough hash tables are used internally by libraries, they are not directly used by the application developer. When was the last time you had to hand code a hash table? Unless you are a library developer, its an example of a task and knowledge that will never be needed. If its something that is never used in that particular job, why ask it in the interview in the first place?
- GlennS 8y agoWell, our disagreement is just a matter of miscommunication then. I never said anything about hand coding a hash table. I would like prospective candidates for programming jobs to know that there is a thing in their language of choice that lets them make fast lookup tables.