Timeline for How can I ask a potential employer to show production code?
Current License: CC BY-SA 4.0
20 events
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| Dec 1, 2020 at 13:23 | comment | added | tddmonkey | "Also to this list I'd add the question How long is your code freeze before a release?". IMO the need to have a code freeze at all is a red flag. They're not necessary if your code is well tested and deployments are all fully automated | |
| Nov 18, 2020 at 15:32 | history | edited | David K | CC BY-SA 4.0 |
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| Sep 29, 2014 at 13:11 | history | edited | David K | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| Sep 28, 2014 at 17:57 | comment | added | dotancohen | In addition to these questions, don't forget to ask at what point in development did they start implementing good coding practices. I've seen a lot of developers and companies mention coding practices, but when the code is a mess they answer, "Oh, that! That was written before blah blah blah". Of course, that consists of 90% of the code base. | |
| Sep 27, 2014 at 6:47 | comment | added | TMOTTM | I was at an interview once where they showed me the live code without even asking. Was no big deal. | |
| Sep 27, 2014 at 3:28 | comment | added | jpmc26 | "Do you have any automated processes, such as building and running tests?" Essentially, ask about continuous integration practices. | |
| Sep 26, 2014 at 22:00 | comment | added | kevin cline | I think you missed one key question: What are the steps in the build - test cycle and how long does it take? | |
| Sep 26, 2014 at 20:56 | comment | added | m24p | On thing I asked when interviewing with potential employers was "what is your test framework"? If I didn't hear about automated unit tests etc, it was not a good sign. Another good generic question is ones that force the interviewer to say something negative about the company. Usually you'll find a pattern that tells you something useful. If code health is an issue, someone might mention it. | |
| Sep 26, 2014 at 13:20 | history | edited | David K | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
Added a question, changed format, responded to comments
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| Sep 25, 2014 at 23:04 | comment | added | Marco A. | They could be doing all of those, and afterwards you can find a page full of gotos in the core of the C++ application. There's really no certain way to assess the team skills (or company's for smaller scenarios) without working on them. | |
| Sep 25, 2014 at 15:55 | comment | added | SWalters | Also to this list I'd add the question How long is your code freeze before a release? If the answer is none or a very short one, then it may be a shop that is practicing protoduction... and the ensuing hilarity of fixing bugs with the recently-released product. | |
| Sep 25, 2014 at 8:31 | comment | added | Fiora the Ferret | +1. A small sample of code won't tell you much out of context. Whether the codebase as a whole is good or not will be heavily influenced by whether the whole development process is conducive to producing good code. | |
| Sep 25, 2014 at 7:02 | review | Suggested edits | |||
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| Sep 25, 2014 at 6:17 | comment | added | David Mulder | Hmm, during an actual interview I have asked to see some code of non essential parts of the application and been shown it. I simply saw it as part of 'getting to know the company'. This was already at the point though that the company knew they wanted me, and I was likely to accept. | |
| Sep 24, 2014 at 16:41 | history | edited | David K | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| Sep 24, 2014 at 16:35 | comment | added | Shaz |
To add on to the list of questions to ask, I would ask about any static analysis tools or any tools that automate the process of enforcing a coding standard. I know Java has Checkstyle.
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| Sep 24, 2014 at 14:59 | vote | accept | kostja | ||
| Sep 24, 2014 at 13:39 | comment | added | kostja | +1 Makes perfect sense. I think I will start by asking the questions you have proposed and only ask for code if the reaction is evasive/startled/mumbling. | |
| Sep 24, 2014 at 12:49 | history | edited | David K | CC BY-SA 3.0 |
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| Sep 24, 2014 at 12:39 | history | answered | David K | CC BY-SA 3.0 |