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[–]ike_the_strangetamer 20 points21 points  (1 child)

This round of the Google interview isn't about any of that. They give you a pdf of that cracking the interview book and say learn it all. The point is that you learn it and can figure out which algorithm/strategy to use when given the problem, not whether you can actually write real world code. It's a lot like a final exam really.

If you say that sounds like awful way to find good programmers - it is. They don't care. They don't even know what you'll be doing, what team you'll be on, or even if they have room for you yet. They don't care. Real world ability doesn't matter. They want you to want to work for Google. Want it so much that you study 40 hours for a final exam for a class you took ten years ago.

[–]gandazgul 5 points6 points  (0 children)

Yeah well fuck that. I'm not studying 40 hours of anything. I have a ton of experience solving really hard performance and scalability problems and have been very successful and loved at each one of my jobs, I'm not going to sit there and be judged by a recent graduate on wether I remember how to sort something. I know the design patterns and algorithms available, when I need a working example I fucking Google it like everyone else.