The interesting thing is there are some people who on paper come across as strong, but throw a simple programming problem at them and they give you a blank star

The interesting thing is there are some people who on paper come across as strong, but throw a simple programming problem at them and they give you a blank stare. I'm usually not playing the compiler type during the interview. Pseudo code would probably work since I want to see problem solving. (But those who could write pseudo code could just as easily substitute in their language de jour).