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> "what's the favorite bug you've ever fixed?" favorite is kind of odd phrasing because you're cursing the bug as you're chasing it. Maybe "what's the most elu

> "what's the favorite bug you've ever fixed?" favorite is kind of odd phrasing because you're cursing the bug as you're chasing it. Maybe "what's the most elusive bug you've ever fixed?" would be better? Problem is that most of those situations were painful and I've generally blocked out the details now many years later so I'm not sure I'd have a lot to say other than cuss words.

eyelidlessness 2y ago
It’s great phrasing, if you’re filtering for people who enjoy solving problems. Many of my favorite parts of software development are the parts I curse while they’re challenging (if they’re challenging for good reason, or even just for amusing/absurd reasons).
- UncleOxidant 2y ago
  Maybe better phrasing would be "what's the most satisfying bug you've fixed?" or "which bug after being fixed gave you the most satisfaction?"
fatnoah 2y ago
I definitely have a "favorite" but that's because it was my first user-facing race condition error in a picture messaging app where part of the resolution was an official letter to someone's spouse to explain that they image they received was not, in fact, the one that our user was trying to send to them.
Brian_K_White 2y ago
"favorite bug" is perfect. I don't know how any kind of problem solver in any field does not love it when they get really baffled and then solve it. My problem would just be remembering any particular example.
- wat10000 2y ago
  Yeah, “bugs are so painful that I suppress the memory” is not someone I want to hire. I want people who get excited when you bring them a weird bug, and who have a depth of experience to bring in when debugging gets hard.
josephg 2y ago
All questions like this are really saying “tell me about yourself as an engineer. Here’s a prompt.” “What’s the most elusive bug you’ve ever fixed?” is a worse question, because it tells me less about you as an engineer, and more about the specific problems you’ve worked on. It’s a worse question to get to the heart of who you are - which is the whole point. And, because the point is to get to know the person, you have way more breadth in your answer than you think. “Well, I don’t have a favorite bug. I hate all bugs. But I do remember a bug so horrible it took down our site at least once a day for a month…”. This is a fantastic answer - since it answers the real question underneath, of who you are.

eyelidlessness 2y ago

It’s great phrasing, if you’re filtering for people who enjoy solving problems. Many of my favorite parts of software development are the parts I curse while they’re challenging (if they’re challenging for good reason, or even just for amusing/absurd reasons).

UncleOxidant 2y ago
Maybe better phrasing would be "what's the most satisfying bug you've fixed?" or "which bug after being fixed gave you the most satisfaction?"

fatnoah 2y ago

I definitely have a "favorite" but that's because it was my first user-facing race condition error in a picture messaging app where part of the resolution was an official letter to someone's spouse to explain that they image they received was not, in fact, the one that our user was trying to send to them.

Brian_K_White 2y ago

"favorite bug" is perfect. I don't know how any kind of problem solver in any field does not love it when they get really baffled and then solve it. My problem would just be remembering any particular example.

wat10000 2y ago
Yeah, “bugs are so painful that I suppress the memory” is not someone I want to hire. I want people who get excited when you bring them a weird bug, and who have a depth of experience to bring in when debugging gets hard.

josephg 2y ago

All questions like this are really saying “tell me about yourself as an engineer. Here’s a prompt.” “What’s the most elusive bug you’ve ever fixed?” is a worse question, because it tells me less about you as an engineer, and more about the specific problems you’ve worked on. It’s a worse question to get to the heart of who you are - which is the whole point. And, because the point is to get to know the person, you have way more breadth in your answer than you think. “Well, I don’t have a favorite bug. I hate all bugs. But I do remember a bug so horrible it took down our site at least once a day for a month…”. This is a fantastic answer - since it answers the real question underneath, of who you are.