Re:The rise of never-ending job interviews
by dspillett on Monday August 02, 2021 @06:49AM
(#28035035)
Done right there will be a lot more in there than syntax errors. A good example of this sort of test will separate those who have revised syntax without really thinking (they'll get the syntax errors but little or nothing else, great if you want to employ a human linter) from those who actually think about what they are looking at will spot much more (a logical error that would cause an infinite loop, a point where a comment and the code disagree, an incorrectly validated input, an injection flaw, a heavy expression inside a loop that could be done first and result-cached for efficiency (your compiler cannot always identify such situations), hard-coded credentials, bad naming, ...). The best may identify some but also state why in the grand scheme of things is might not matter (efficiency in code that runs once so 10μs and 100μs is statistical noise) or where other priorities might take precedence (for example readability and therefore ease of maintenance).
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Re:The rise of never-ending job interviews
by read_if_gay_ on Monday August 02, 2021 @07:11AM
(#28035170)
Does this kind of trick question work well in practice? If they explicitly ask for syntax errors it would be a waste of time to also check the code for other errors. I can’t imagine many people opting to do that unless they know it’s a trick question.
Re:The rise of never-ending job interviews
by dspillett on Monday August 02, 2021 @09:51AM
(#28036485)
It shouldn't be a trick question, but an open one. “What can you see wrong in this code?, there are a few things, we don't expect you to see them all”. For non-junior starters it is effectively a simulated code review — can this candidate spot problems before they get committed further into the pipeline (and hopefully avoid them in their own code).
I don’t see what information people can glean from those trick questions.
Any time I’ve interviewed people I’ve made it a point to emphasize that none of my questions are trick questions and if anything is unclear, they should ask clarifying questions. The result? Interviewees are more comfortable and are far more honest about what they know, what they don’t know, and you get to see a glimpse of what they’re really like.
Re:The rise of never-ending job interviews
by randomswede on Tuesday August 03, 2021 @06:57AM
(#28047747)
"Basically, I will ask you questions, and hopefully you will give me answers.
It is fine to say 'I do not know'. It is fine to guess, but if you do, I would prefer that you tell me it is a guess.
If you want any clarification, I will try to provide it. If you don't recall the exact signature of a library function, ask me. I will note down what I said and not hold incorrect nformation I give against you.
Any questions before we start?"