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ALGOL W is a historical computer programming language, developed in 1966 as a successor to ALGOL 60. It was designed by Niklaus Wirth and Tony Hoare at the International Federation for Information Processing (IFIP) Working Group 2.1. The language introduced several innovative features, including record structures and dynamic arrays, which influenced later languages such as Pascal and C++. Despite its influence, ALGOL W was not widely adopted due to the concurrent rise of FORTRAN and COBOL. Its importance lies primarily in its role as a stepping stone in the evolution of programming languages.

Ask the right questions secure the right ALGOL W talent among an increasingly shrinking pool of talent.

First 20 minutes

General ALGOL W app knowledge and experience

The first 20 minutes of the interview should seek to understand the candidate's general background in ALGOL W application development, including their experience with various programming languages, databases, and their approach to designing scalable and maintainable systems.

How would you declare and initialize a variable in ALGOL W?

You can declare and initialize a variable in ALGOL W using the following syntax: 'real x := 5.0;' Here, 'real' is the data type, 'x' is the variable name, ':=' is the assignment operator and '5.0' is the value being assigned.

What are the basic data types in ALGOL W?

The basic data types in ALGOL W are integer, real, boolean, char, and bit. These are used to define the type of values that can be stored in variables.

Describe the difference between 'if' and 'case' statements in ALGOL W.

In ALGOL W, 'if' is used when you want to check a condition and execute a block of code if the condition is true. 'Case' is used when you want to check multiple conditions and execute different blocks of code depending on which condition is true.

How would you define a procedure in ALGOL W?

In ALGOL W, you define a procedure using the 'procedure' keyword, followed by the procedure name, a list of parameters in parentheses, and a block of code. For example: 'procedure add(x, y); begin return x + y; end;'

What is the purpose of the 'begin' and 'end' keywords in ALGOL W?

The 'begin' and 'end' keywords in ALGOL W are used to define a block of code. This could be the body of a procedure, a loop, or a conditional statement. The code between 'begin' and 'end' is executed as a single unit.

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What you’re looking for early on

Does the candidate have a strong understanding of ALGOL W syntax and semantics?

Has the candidate demonstrated problem-solving skills?

Can the candidate effectively communicate their thought process and solutions?

Does the candidate have experience with code optimization in ALGOL W?

Next 20 minutes

Specific ALGOL W development questions

The next 20 minutes of the interview should focus on the candidate's expertise with specific backend frameworks, their understanding of RESTful APIs, and their experience in handling data storage and retrieval efficiently.

How would you implement a loop in ALGOL W?

You can implement a loop in ALGOL W using the 'for' keyword. For example: 'for i := 1 until 10 do begin ... end;' This will execute the block of code 10 times, with the variable 'i' taking values from 1 to 10.

What are the different types of operators in ALGOL W?

ALGOL W supports various types of operators including arithmetic operators (+, -, *, /, mod, rem), relational operators (=, <>, <, <=, >, >=), logical operators (and, or, not), and assignment operators (:=).

Describe the difference between 'and' and 'or' operators in ALGOL W.

'And' is a logical operator that returns true if both operands are true. 'Or' is a logical operator that returns true if either or both operands are true.

How would you handle errors in ALGOL W?

ALGOL W does not have built-in exception handling. Errors must be handled manually by checking for potential error conditions and taking appropriate action. For example, before dividing two numbers, you might check if the denominator is zero and if so, handle the error by not performing the division and displaying an error message.

What is the purpose of the 'own' keyword in ALGOL W?

The 'own' keyword in ALGOL W is used to declare a static variable. A static variable retains its value between calls to the procedure in which it is declared. This is different from a regular variable, which loses its value once the procedure finishes executing.

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At this point, a skilled ALGOL W engineer should demonstrate strong problem-solving abilities, proficiency in ALGOL W programming language, and knowledge of software development methodologies. Red flags include lack of hands-on experience, inability to articulate complex concepts, or unfamiliarity with standard coding practices.

Digging deeper

Code questions

These will help you see the candidate's real-world development capabilities with ALGOL W.

What does this simple ALGOL W code do?
BEGIN INTEGER x; x := 5; PRINT(x); END
This code declares an integer variable 'x', assigns the value 5 to 'x', and then prints the value of 'x' which will be 5.
What will be the output of this ALGOL W code snippet?
BEGIN REAL r1, r2; r1 := 3.14; r2 := 2.0 * r1; PRINT((r2)); END
This code declares two real number variables 'r1' and 'r2'. 'r1' is assigned the value 3.14. 'r2' is assigned the value of 'r1' multiplied by 2. The value of 'r2' is then printed, which will be 6.28.
What does this ALGOL W code do with an array?
BEGIN INTEGER ARRAY a[1:5]; INTEGER i; FOR i := 1 STEP 1 UNTIL 5 DO a[i] := i * i; FOR i := 1 STEP 1 UNTIL 5 DO PRINT((a[i])); END
This code declares an integer array 'a' with 5 elements. It then assigns the square of each index to the corresponding element in the array. It then prints each element in the array. The output will be the squares of the numbers from 1 to 5.
What does this ALGOL W code do with threading?
BEGIN PROCEDURE p; BEGIN INTEGER i; FOR i := 1 STEP 1 UNTIL 10 DO PRINT(i); END; PARBEGIN CALL p; CALL p; PAREND; END
This code defines a procedure 'p' that prints numbers from 1 to 10. It then calls this procedure twice concurrently using the PARBEGIN and PAREND keywords. The output will be the numbers from 1 to 10 printed twice, but the exact order cannot be determined because the two procedure calls are executed concurrently.

Wrap-up questions

Final candidate for ALGOL W Developer role questions

The final few questions should evaluate the candidate's teamwork, communication, and problem-solving skills. Additionally, assess their knowledge of microservices architecture, serverless computing, and how they handle ALGOL W application deployments. Inquire about their experience in handling system failures and their approach to debugging and troubleshooting.

Describe the difference between a 'procedure' and a 'function' in ALGOL W.

In ALGOL W, a 'procedure' is a block of code that performs a specific task and does not return a value. A 'function' is similar to a procedure but it returns a value.

How would you implement recursion in ALGOL W?

You can implement recursion in ALGOL W by defining a procedure that calls itself. For example, a recursive procedure to calculate the factorial of a number would look like this: 'procedure factorial(n); begin if n = 0 then return 1; else return n * factorial(n - 1); end;'

What are the different ways to pass parameters to a procedure in ALGOL W?

In ALGOL W, you can pass parameters to a procedure by value or by name. Passing by value means that a copy of the argument is passed to the procedure. Any changes to the parameter inside the procedure do not affect the original argument. Passing by name means that the argument is passed as a reference. Any changes to the parameter inside the procedure do affect the original argument.

ALGOL W application related

Product Perfect's ALGOL W development capabilities

Beyond hiring for your ALGOL W engineering team, you may be in the market for additional help. Product Perfect provides seasoned expertise in ALGOL W projects, and can engage in multiple capacities.

ALGOL W Consultive assessments

ALGOL W Application Conversion Assessment ALGOL W Application Integration Assessment ALGOL W Data & Database Integration Assessment

Custom ALGOL W development projects

Custom ALGOL W App Conversion ALGOL W Custom App Development Process App UI Design for ALGOL W Facelifts

Hiring guide for ALGOL W Engineers

ALGOL W Developer Hiring Guide

What you’re looking for early on

The ideal back-end app developer

What you’re looking to see on the ALGOL W engineer at this point.

ALGOL W Consultive assessments

Custom ALGOL W development projects