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Data Structures for Coding Interviews

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Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#101

Post by sgt101 »

FlyingSnake wrote: post #99
daliwali wrote: post #87

I got an impression who their target audience is, based on the examples used, drinking kombucha and listening to Spotify. All the young, beautiful people who wouldn't have ever taken a computer science course if it weren't such a lucrative industry to be in right now. Maybe with this guide they can pass an interview at a big company where they just twiddle with bits all day. I won't be holding my breath until they ca…

This is what you get when you commoditise Computer Science. The article is about coding interviews and then goes on to deliver a lecture about "Computer science in plain English". Isn't it common knowledge that Computer Science and coding are like chalk and cheese? People used to study DataStructures for a whole semester to get a deep understanding of how these work, and the time/space complexities affect system desi…

It isn't science, or engineering, because many of the things that count in computing defy measurement :

- code quality - software productivity - expected time between failure - tolerance to error - expected life in field - usefulness to users

Because the science and engineering cultures of computing have failed to address these effectively, or even create cultural norms that support their development, a craft culture has evolved instead. Coders are artizans rather like clock makers in the 16th century.

Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#102

Post by jaredsohn »

thaumasiotes wrote: post #70
leeny wrote: post #54

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Hey, I'm the founder of interviewing.io. We're coming out of private beta soon, which means we'll be sending out invites to folks on the waiting list shortly. A year is a long time though, and I'm sorry you had to wait that long, so I figured least I could do was kick you an invite (check your email). Thanks for being patient with us while we figured things out.

I guess it's a nice gesture, but this does nothing to address my point that, as far as I can tell, recommending interviewing.io to anyone is wildly inappropriate, and I can't see how it happens at all. (Not that you're the proper person to address that; it's more of a question for gameguy43 et al.) Are the people giving interviewing advice not actually even attempting to do the things they're recommending?

In the past, interviewing.io was free for anybody to try (it was when I looked at it three years ago) and if somebody hasn't looked at it recently they might not know when the situation has changed.

Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#103

Post by rzzzwilson »

I read this

  What happens if we have the number 256 in an 8-bit unsigned
  integer (1111 1111 in binary) and we add 1? The answer 
  (257) needs a 9th bit (1 0000 0000).
and I didn't read any further. I don't think many interviewers would be eager to continue after hearing that, either.

Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#104

Post by sheldor »

sgt101 wrote: post #101
FlyingSnake wrote: post #99

Earlier quoted context omitted.

This is what you get when you commoditise Computer Science. The article is about coding interviews and then goes on to deliver a lecture about "Computer science in plain English". Isn't it common knowledge that Computer Science and coding are like chalk and cheese? People used to study DataStructures for a whole semester to get a deep understanding of how these work, and the time/space complexities affect system desi…

It isn't science, or engineering, because many of the things that count in computing defy measurement : - code quality - software productivity - expected time between failure - tolerance to error - expected life in field - usefulness to users Because the science and engineering cultures of computing have failed to address these effectively, or even create cultural norms that support their development, a craft culture…

Nailed it. I have a very hard time explaining to my youngster colleagues that they're neither "engineers" nor "scientists'. Now I can use your words.

Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#105

Post by watwut »

daliwali wrote: post #87

I got an impression who their target audience is, based on the examples used, drinking kombucha and listening to Spotify. All the young, beautiful people who wouldn't have ever taken a computer science course if it weren't such a lucrative industry to be in right now. Maybe with this guide they can pass an interview at a big company where they just twiddle with bits all day. I won't be holding my breath until they ca…

Are we now blaming young people for looking at employment perspective before picking up major? Or are we blaming them for trying to learn?

Because last time students were mentioned, they were blamed for picking up unpractical major unlike everyone older in STEM who was supposed to make more rational choices (as supposedly proven by them not picking humanities by passion).

Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#106

Post by ahjones »

rzzzwilson wrote: post #103

I read this What happens if we have the number 256 in an 8-bit unsigned integer (1111 1111 in binary) and we add 1? The answer (257) needs a 9th bit (1 0000 0000). and I didn't read any further. I don't think many interviewers would be eager to continue after hearing that, either.

I think you're being a little bit unfair. The same block then continues:

  This is called an integer overflow. At best, we might just get an error. At worst, our computer might compute the correct answer but then just throw out the 9th bit, giving us zero (0000 0000) instead of 257 (1 0000 0000)! (Python actually notices that the result won't fit and automatically allocates more bits to store the larger number.)
The article is introducing the concept of integer overflow.

Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#107

Post by watwut »

sheldor wrote: post #104
sgt101 wrote: post #101

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It isn't science, or engineering, because many of the things that count in computing defy measurement : - code quality - software productivity - expected time between failure - tolerance to error - expected life in field - usefulness to users Because the science and engineering cultures of computing have failed to address these effectively, or even create cultural norms that support their development, a craft culture…

Nailed it. I have a very hard time explaining to my youngster colleagues that they're neither "engineers" nor "scientists'. Now I can use your words.

Job offerings look for "engineers" while they mean coders. Young person who think he/she does not count as engineer will pass over that job, despite being fully able to get it and work there. "You are not actually engineer" is bad advice in current job market.

(I used to be that young person and used to pass on opportunities because of superficial reasons like that.)

Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#108

Post by ldite »

ahjones wrote: post #106
rzzzwilson wrote: post #103

I read this What happens if we have the number 256 in an 8-bit unsigned integer (1111 1111 in binary) and we add 1? The answer (257) needs a 9th bit (1 0000 0000). and I didn't read any further. I don't think many interviewers would be eager to continue after hearing that, either.

I think you're being a little bit unfair. The same block then continues: This is called an integer overflow. At best, we might just get an error. At worst, our computer might compute the correct answer but then just throw out the 9th bit, giving us zero (0000 0000) instead of 257 (1 0000 0000)! (Python actually notices that the result won't fit and automatically allocates more bits to store the larger number.) The ar…

1111 1111 = 255

1 0000 0000 = 256

Anyone who claims to understand integer overflow from actual experience, rather than memorizing textbooks, should know that by inspection.

I'd forgive that in a CS grad (possibly) but if someone claimed to have been working in C or other unsafe languages for more than a trivial amount of time I'd be very suspicious.

Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#109

Post by rootlocus »

bsamuels wrote: post #63
dcw303 wrote: post #32

This is a good cheat sheet for those who don't have (or have forgotten) the knowledge but want to game an algorithm heavy interview. The problem I got with this is exactly the same as when I tried reading the "Cracking the Coding Interview" book: I got through a few chapters and then the author mentions something off the cuff with an assumption that the reader will know what they mean. But of course, I don't, because…

i have the same feelings about "cracking the coding interview" the day someone unironically asks me to "Write an algorithm to print all ways of arranging eight queens on a chess board so that none of them share the same row, column or diagonal" - I will jump off a bridge

I went to a CS high-school (not university) and we studied backtracking in the first or second year. Everyone was supposed to know how to solve this and similar problems for tests.

Re: Data Structures for Coding Interviews

#110

Post by pertymcpert »

rdtsc wrote: post #37
nichochar wrote: post #7

> Don't worry—we'll skip the convoluted academic jargon and proofs. Aaaaand this is why I hate using this as a method for interviewing. I actually care a great deal about people that care about that stuff. I would rather you know all the principles and can reason your way back up, however slowly, than repeat something you've practiced enough for an interview. I understand the author really only wants to help people,…

I interviewed at some of these companies that liked the puzzles and so on. Then got to a company that actually seemed interested in stuff I've done before and asked enough details to know that I knew the stuff. I learned about what they did and seemed interested and got the job. Puzzles and tricks are like that are a crutch, because people don't know how to talk and find out about what the other person knows. Usually…

> I would usually think they became successful in spite of it.

What...

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