Sharpening Your Programming Skills!

The problem I have with looking for work is finding something to keep my programming skills sharp. Just like a knife can get dull if it is not sharpened, so can programming skills.

I was recently introduced to an interesting site as part of an interview process. Codility is a site recruiters and hiring managers use to see if you really have the coding skills you say you do,... But it is also so much more.  It's a place where you can learn and practice your skills.

Verifying Your Skills

My introduction to Codility was as part of an interview. It helps answer the questions of "Do I know what I say I do?" and "How do I approach solving problems?"

Unlike many of the sites I have taken coding tests, this tests not only your programming knowledge, but also your ability to take a problem, solve it, and deliver working code in a real language. There are no questions like

What is the value of y in this C++ code?

int x;

auto y = x + 2;

y /= 2;

 

A) 0   B) 1   C) 231  D) undefined

 

Instead, you are given a problem to solve with your own code in your choice of language (C++, C, Java, Basic, and a lot more). You have access to an online compiler so you can test your code, and you can even create your own test input. There is some pressure, as you are given a limited amount of time to do it. Once you submit your code, you are done, and automated testing evaluates it.

The problems are interesting and designed to test different parts of your programming talent. Based on the ones I have tried, a problem might be something like this: (I hope I don't guess a real one!)

Given a set of arbitrary positive integers, find all of the prime numbers in the set and then calculate the mean, medium and average of those primes. You have 30 minutes.

[Oh cr*p! having written that problem, I feel the need to try solving it myself.]

Sharpening Your Skills

After taking a couple of tests, I found out about Codility for Programmers. This is where you can sharpen your skills by going through lessons and completing challenges. Working through a few lessons helped me remembered things I hadn't used in a while, and learned how think through all of the possible ways my code might fail.  [I have been using Qt so extensively for the past few years that I sometimes forget how to use the C++ Std functions instead. Working through the lessons and exercises helped me refresh that knowledge.]

If you want to keep your coding sharp, you really should check out the Programmers section of Codility at https://app.codility.com/programmers/.

Another way to Learn (or blatant self promotion)

If you are interested in learning more about programming with Qt or doing Embedded Development with Qt, please consider checking out Hands-on Embedded Programming with Qt. In it I introduce you to almost every aspect of Qt programming and how you can use it for Embedded Software.  It's available digitally and in hard copy on Amazon and the Packt Publishing website.

Stay Safe!

-John

#Packt #Qt #Qt5 #EmbeddedSW #Codility #SharpenTheSaw #TestYourSkills #KeepLearning