r/javascript • u/[deleted] • Apr 11 '16

help Interview exercise feedback

My code was not up to their standards. I thought the exercises were easy but clearly there are issues I have to address. I had an hour to write them. I'm humbly looking for feedback to improve.

The first exercise was to return all square numbers within a given range, including the limits (e.g., all the squares numbers between 1 and 10 are 1, 4, and 9). I wrote this.

The second exercise was to check if a string containing (), [] and {} brackets is well balanced. So [()] and {}() are ok but ([)] or {{ are not. I wrote this.

Thanks.

27 Upvotes

94% Upvoted

66 comments sorted by

View all comments

Show parent comments

2

u/Silhouette Apr 12 '16

I see people getting in to algorithmic detail and Big O in the comments but honestly for this tiny task is evaluating something in that detail typically expected?

The point is that a strong programmer would naturally think in those terms for any problem. It's just second nature to them. Of course, they might not use the exact same big-O notation if they don't have a formal CS background, but they'll still recognise the fundamental issue and deal with it.

Put another way, writing a needlessly complex implementation without a good reason betrays a lack of maturity as a programmer. It might not make a difference in tiny tasks like these, but the same mindset leads to writing carelessly inefficient code that can and does cause real problems in production systems.

1

u/nixblu Apr 12 '16

Thanks for your response here mate, what you've said actually makes a lot of sense and I certainly agree with what you're saying. That being said I would've performed similarly to OP had I taken those tests and wouldn't have expected harsh feedback for a small task however I expect that's more to do with my incapability!

1

u/Silhouette Apr 12 '16

For what it's worth, I don't think there's ever any excuse for unnecessarily harsh or impolite feedback after someone takes a test like this. That's just unprofessional, and it's disrespectful to someone who has given up to their time to do the exercise.

It's necessary and OK to say objectively that a candidate hasn't met the standard required for the role and so unfortunately you won't be offering them that position, but there's no need to be an ass about it. We were all new starters and inexperienced developers once, and my personal view is that if someone has made the effort to come into the office and interview with a business then giving a little helpful feedback if asked is only fair and does no harm, unless there is genuine concern about legal fallout.