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> ...the problem is maintainability is something that can really only be measured over a long time frame. I think here are certain heuristics that can be used
by CharlieDigital 4y ago
> ...the problem is maintainability is something that can really only be measured over a long time frame.
I think here are certain heuristics that can be used to examine this.
- Review GitHub repos if the have them; see how they structure code in actual projects. Yes, not everyone has a GH profile or spends time writing side projects, but if it is there, that's a great starting point.
- Focus coding interviews on writing testable code and test cases
- Observe how the candidate structures classes, functions, parameters; many simple decisions can affect maintainability; we even have standard measures like cyclomatic complexity that are objective indicators of maintainability.
- Have them write something simple but meaningfully complete as take home and see how they comment, document, organize, and explain their code
> So there isn't an easy way to really determine whether or not some produces lasting good work in a reasonable way in an interview, and you don't really need rockstar
Is writing maintainable code a hallmark of rockstars?
- gus_massa 4y ago> Observe how the candidate structures classes, functions, parameters; How long must be a project to be able to see how good is the interviewed choosing classes, functions, parameters? For a two hours project, I may write it in a single pass. Perhaps some small auxiliary functions. Do I have to add docstrings? Make it a three hour project. For test cases give me another hour.