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This. The most important takeaway from a face-to-face interview for me has always been to gauge a candidates general problem solving ability. When developing,

This. The most important takeaway from a face-to-face interview for me has always been to gauge a candidates general problem solving ability. When developing, you'll constantly be solving problems that are new to you, in areas you may not be familiar with.

EwanG 14y ago
Because we presume that an interviewee is desperate enough that they won't give the "honest" answer - well, I'll google that and see if I can't find someone else who has already found the answer. Seriously, between Google and Wolfram Alpha, do you think that any of these inane questions can't be answered within a reasonable level of proximity? Don't believe me? I just googled "golf balls in a school bus" and had a page full of answers in seconds including how they solved it as well as the number. https://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&q=golf+balls+in+a+school+bus https://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&#... Better, why not ask me to pseudo-code a problem you've faced recently? Wouldn't that tell you a LOT more about whether my skills and your needs align?
- yummyfajitas 14y ago
  Go use Google and Wolfram Alpha to find the answers to "how many fashion items are for sale on the internet?" If you can do that, I'm truly impressed by your google-fu. Also, as I said, the fashion items question is a problem I faced at my last job.
  - EwanG 14y ago
    I highlighted your question, right-clicked and chose to Google it, and it was answer number 3 on the returned results. I suspect Alpha would give more useful detail, but then I really think that wasn't what you were looking for. Slightly more seriously, going to Google first for ANY such problem would highlight both what is already known about the issue, and profitable answers to look for further information.
  - v0cab 14y ago
    Then why wouldn't you ask a real-world question like that, rather than a stupid one about filling a bus with golf balls?
- DanBC 14y ago
  > Seriously, between Google and Wolfram Alpha, do you think that any of these inane questions can't be answered within a reasonable level of proximity? Using Google? 3 in 600 searches used the + operator, and of those 2 were wrong. Saying "I would understand the problem, I would work out a suitable search query, I would use available resources, I would evaluate the responses I got; here's the result when I used a typical question like this".
malandrew 14y ago
The most important general problem solving skill is the ability to eliminate problems entirely so that you don't need to come up with a solution at all. I think it's prudent to know the etymology of the word problem, whose origin is in "proballein", which literally means "thing thrown forward", much like a hot potato. And like a hot potato, the easiest solution is to throw it forward until it cools down. i.e. it comes to rest with someone who no longer sees it as a problem. Handled elegantly and diplomatically, the "it's not my problem" approach to eliminating problems is a perfectly acceptable strategy, especially when you poorly understand the problem and the benefits of finding a solution. Eventually, if it is a problem worth solving, it will come to rest with the person who sees an opportunity in solving it and is equipped to do so. In fact, this is essentially the very basis of all rational economic activity.

EwanG 14y ago

Because we presume that an interviewee is desperate enough that they won't give the "honest" answer - well, I'll google that and see if I can't find someone else who has already found the answer. Seriously, between Google and Wolfram Alpha, do you think that any of these inane questions can't be answered within a reasonable level of proximity? Don't believe me? I just googled "golf balls in a school bus" and had a page full of answers in seconds including how they solved it as well as the number. https://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&q=golf+balls+in+a+school+bus https://www.google.com/search?source=ig&hl=en&rlz=&#... Better, why not ask me to pseudo-code a problem you've faced recently? Wouldn't that tell you a LOT more about whether my skills and your needs align?

yummyfajitas 14y ago
Go use Google and Wolfram Alpha to find the answers to "how many fashion items are for sale on the internet?" If you can do that, I'm truly impressed by your google-fu. Also, as I said, the fashion items question is a problem I faced at my last job.
- EwanG 14y ago
  I highlighted your question, right-clicked and chose to Google it, and it was answer number 3 on the returned results. I suspect Alpha would give more useful detail, but then I really think that wasn't what you were looking for. Slightly more seriously, going to Google first for ANY such problem would highlight both what is already known about the issue, and profitable answers to look for further information.
- v0cab 14y ago
  Then why wouldn't you ask a real-world question like that, rather than a stupid one about filling a bus with golf balls?
DanBC 14y ago
> Seriously, between Google and Wolfram Alpha, do you think that any of these inane questions can't be answered within a reasonable level of proximity? Using Google? 3 in 600 searches used the + operator, and of those 2 were wrong. Saying "I would understand the problem, I would work out a suitable search query, I would use available resources, I would evaluate the responses I got; here's the result when I used a typical question like this".

malandrew 14y ago

The most important general problem solving skill is the ability to eliminate problems entirely so that you don't need to come up with a solution at all. I think it's prudent to know the etymology of the word problem, whose origin is in "proballein", which literally means "thing thrown forward", much like a hot potato. And like a hot potato, the easiest solution is to throw it forward until it cools down. i.e. it comes to rest with someone who no longer sees it as a problem. Handled elegantly and diplomatically, the "it's not my problem" approach to eliminating problems is a perfectly acceptable strategy, especially when you poorly understand the problem and the benefits of finding a solution. Eventually, if it is a problem worth solving, it will come to rest with the person who sees an opportunity in solving it and is equipped to do so. In fact, this is essentially the very basis of all rational economic activity.