
How to Tell If a Programmer Is Competent or Not - tuckerconnelly
https://medium.com/@TuckerConnelly/how-to-tell-if-a-programmer-is-competent-or-not-86b6431cab13
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justaaron
I don't agree with most of these points, nor do I find the tone of the author
to be particularly productive, as they are effectively swinging bladed weapons
around while blindfolded.

They propose a number of personal beliefs about what constitutes competency,
whereas I will contend that there is no "silver bullet" by which a non-
programmer (or XYZ profession) may assess the competency of the potential
hire.

I could write a different article on programmers who seek to undermine
existing code in order to get a green field project out of it. While I can
completely comprehend what may lie behind a total rewrite (and have plowed
through some rather thick ones) I would be wary of hiring such a rigidly
ideological person who suggested "throwing it all away and doing it over" as
this person is likely somewhat obtuse in their own way.

Human factors also matter.

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tuckerconnelly
Hey, appreciate you reading the article and taking time to write this.

Unsure how I am, as you say, "swinging bladed weapons around while
blindfolded." Very colorful terminology, but I'm a little confused by what you
mean.

The "silver bullet" term you're using I'm guessing is borrowed from Mythical
Man Month, where Brooks suggests that no single advance in tech within a
decade provides an order of magnitude improvement in productivity. I don't
think that necessarily applies to helping non-technical people vet out
programmers. I think I'm more giving these people a lamp in complete darkness.

I don't think brownfield projects created by great programmers are a bad
thing. In fact, I've learned a lot working in brownfield projects. I do think
though, a newbie programmer that, in a microcosm, creates a their own unique
masterpiece loosely inspired by MVC, gets crushed by complexity and bugs, and
then quits for supposed personal reasons, is a very real potential disaster
for tech projects.

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ohiovr
Why not just take some code and ask the applicant if he can read it and
describe its function? Sure that won't tell you everything... but just saying
you read "mechanics and thermodynamics of propulsion" doesn't make you a
rocket scientist.

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tuckerconnelly
I think that would only confuse a non-technical person even more.

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londons_explore
Sounds like this author might like professional certifications with training
courses and exams...

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tuckerconnelly
A lot of languages and libraries simply don't have certifications. Maybe
there's a business there.

