My interview in 2003 was mostly legit, though one senior manager's 30-minute segment was all BS of exactly this nature. (His initials were GJ and in the four an

My interview in 2003 was mostly legit, though one senior manager's 30-minute segment was all BS of exactly this nature. (His initials were GJ and in the four and a half years I worked there, I discovered he was the closest real-world embodiment of the Dilbert pointy-haired boss I've ever encountered) The most memorable part was: GJ: Name three examples of defensive programming. Me: I'm sorry, I'm not familiar with the term; could you define it? GJ: You know, defensive programming. Me: I've not heard the term, but maybe I know it by a different name; could you describe it? GJ: No, let's move on. Later, I looked it up. He just meant things like `if (p == NULL) return False;`. I knew the concept well, and could've spoken about it intelligently and effortlessly, except I had never heard that particular name for it. Oh, I just remembered another exchange between us: GJ: What's the difference between a segmentation fault and a bus error? Me: [perfect explanation] GJ, seeming disappointed that he hadn't stumped me: Oh, someone already asked you this, huh? Me: No, I know this, because once when I was in college-- GJ: Come on, you looked this up before, didn't you? I wasn't sure how to respond -- I mean, yes, technically I did look it up, once upon a time. How the hell else would I know, derivation from basic axioms? Anyway, I got the job, but I wouldn't be surprised if this other person was interviewed by the same guy and it left a bad taste in their mouth, too. As a senior manager, he probably interviewed 500 candidates a year.