One month command line challenge
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One month command line challenge
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Re: One month command line challenge
#2I was asked a variant of this sorting question (with the same expected answer) a while back. I think it's utter horseshit, just on principle that in 99% of cases the interviewer will be pissed at the answer "call the standard library's implementation that solves this problem". Why is this some exception?
Re: One month command line challenge
#3but that isn't the command line, that's unix... windows has its own sort utility but the flags are different...
also contrast the submission with this post: http://pgbovine.net/command-line-bullshittery.htm
Re: One month command line challenge
#4I was asked a variant of this sorting question (with the same expected answer) a while back. I think it's utter horseshit, just on principle that in 99% of cases the interviewer will be pissed at the answer "call the standard library's implementation that solves this problem". Why is this some exception?
I agree, it's really important to set the context for the question correctly so they don't think you are trying to ask them a question to showcase their programming abilities.
Re: One month command line challenge
#5> After one month, you will be surprised at how inferior and cumbersome the graphical interface seems compared to the command line.
Maybe because one does not need to change the way he/she is interacting with machine?
Re: One month command line challenge
#6I'm not sure how I feel about the sort question being a super simple "fizzbuzz" type command line question in an interview. The problem with some of the CLI stuff is that its really a simple yes/no "do you remember that command name" type thing. For something like grep that makes sense. But as somebody who also lives in the terminal, I have mixed feelings about expecting things like wc, sort, xargs, etc out of a potential candidate.
Although, I do actually totally agree that the more a person knows about the CLI in general, the better they sometimes appear to be. I feel like learning to use command line tools also sort of inspires that general DRY attitude about software in general. Don't reinvent the wheel!
Re: One month command line challenge
#7>Many candidates will immediately start writing a program in Java or Python, if they get it right, then they will start optimizing the algorithm
> and in most cases programmers who are comfortable with the command line version are also the ones who are better at writing code
These two statements indicate to me that you are ineffective at communicating what skills you are looking for in a programmer.
The reason they are coding a sorting algorithm is that you're interviewing a programmer for a programming position. The assumption is that they are being tested on the knowledge in that domain, which includes sorting algorithms.
If I answered the exact same question by putting the file lines in a data structure and calling Sort() in someone else's interview, I might be thrown out for not giving them the actual algorithm that Sort() implements.
Or maybe you just want people calling system()/exec()/execvp() or whatever. I dunno.
Re: One month command line challenge
#8It is always a good exercise to try to accomplish more with less.
It stimulate creativity like nothing else.
Re: One month command line challenge
#9but that isn't the command line, that's unix... windows has its own sort utility but the flags are different... also contrast the submission with this post: http://pgbovine.net/command-line-bullshittery.htm
I read the post you linked and I disagree with it because familiarity with the *nix command line is very useful for a developer working in industry. This guy sees it as a roadblock because he believes that the complicated nature of it will turn students away who would otherwise be good computer science researchers. This could be true. In any event, the post linked here seems aimed at people who want quick vocational education.
This is the difference between being a craftsman or being an academic. If you're a craftsman, you'd better know how to use your tools well. They're not an "obstacle" in the way of interesting research. They're a means to an end in accomplishing a goal.
At some point one should realize not every programmer is a computer scientist. Many of us are so much of computer scientists as a carpenter is an architect. For those of us who like to build things rapidly, familiarity with the posix shell and variants is a huge asset.
Re: One month command line challenge
#10Reminds me a bit of "Learn X in 21 days" - but then, the way we learn might got more effective.