The reaction you're getting is that the question seemed abusive. I also had that sense, but I was also very curious about your question, so we explored it, per

The reaction you're getting is that the question seemed abusive. I also had that sense, but I was also very curious about your question, so we explored it, perhaps not unlike how we might have in an actual interview. Interviews are two-way streets. It seems to me that you're a bit defensive about your interview question! Now what? :) Mind you, I do like this sort of interview question as a question not so much as a fetch-a-rock exercise. The thing is that when you ask this sort of question you can very easily explore the candidate's ability to explore the solution space and show off what they know, but there's an end time, while with a task it can easily become a time sink, especially if the candidate chooses to go above and beyond and... fail to make the cut because in that time you picked a different candidate.