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Ada 83 is a high-level computer programming language developed in the late 1970s and early 1980s as part of the United States Department of Defense's (DoD) initiative to standardize its embedded systems software ("Ada (programming language)", Wikipedia). Named after Ada Lovelace, it was designed with an emphasis on software engineering principles, providing strong typing, run-time checking, parallel processing, exception handling and generics ("What is Ada?", Adacore). The first approved version of this language was known as Ada 83 because it was approved by ANSI in December 1983 ("History", Adacore). Despite being initially used primarily for defense projects due to its robustness and reliability features, its use has expanded into other areas such as avionics and transportation systems. Today, while newer versions like Ada 95 and Ada 2005 have been released with additional features, the foundational principles established in Ada 83 continue to influence modern programming paradigms.

Ask the right questions secure the right Ada 83 talent among an increasingly shrinking pool of talent.

First 20 minutes

General Ada 83 app knowledge and experience

The first 20 minutes of the interview should seek to understand the candidate's general background in Ada 83 application development, including their experience with various programming languages, databases, and their approach to designing scalable and maintainable systems.

How would you declare an array in Ada 83?

In Ada 83, you can declare an array using the type keyword followed by the array name, the range, and the type of elements the array will hold. For example: 'Type My_Array is array (1..10) of Integer;'.

What are some of the basic data types in Ada 83?

Ada 83 provides several basic data types including Integer, Float, Character, Boolean, and others. It also allows for the creation of user-defined types.

Describe the difference between a procedure and a function in Ada 83.

In Ada 83, a procedure is a subprogram that performs an action and does not return a value, while a function is a subprogram that returns a value. The main difference is that functions return values and procedures do not.

How would you handle exceptions in Ada 83?

In Ada 83, exceptions are handled using the keywords 'begin', 'exception' and 'when'. You can define your own exceptions, raise them using the 'raise' keyword, and handle them in the exception part of a block.

What are packages in Ada 83 and how would you use them?

Packages in Ada 83 are used to group related declarations which can be types, variables, constants, exceptions, subprograms, etc. They provide a way to encapsulate and organize code and data.

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What you’re looking for early on

Does the candidate have a solid understanding of Ada 83 syntax and semantics?

Has the candidate demonstrated experience with Ada 83 in previous roles or projects?

Can the candidate effectively debug Ada 83 code?

Does the candidate show a good understanding of software development principles and practices?

Next 20 minutes

Specific Ada 83 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.

Describe the difference between 'in', 'out', and 'in out' parameters in Ada 83.

'In' parameters allow data to be passed into a procedure or function. 'Out' parameters allow data to be returned from a procedure or function. 'In out' parameters allow data to be passed into and returned from a procedure or function.

How would you implement recursion in Ada 83?

Recursion in Ada 83 can be implemented by having a procedure or function call itself. The base case should be defined to prevent infinite recursion.

What are some of the control structures available in Ada 83?

Ada 83 provides several control structures including sequential, selection (if and case statements), repetition (loop, while, for), and exception handling.

Describe the difference between 'and then' and 'or else' in Ada 83.

'And then' is a short-circuit version of 'and' which does not evaluate the second operand if the first is false. 'Or else' is a short-circuit version of 'or' which does not evaluate the second operand if the first is true.

How would you define a record in Ada 83?

A record in Ada 83 can be defined using the 'type' and 'record' keywords. It is a composite data type that allows the grouping of data of different types.

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At this point, a skilled Ada 83 engineer should demonstrate strong problem-solving abilities, proficiency in Ada 83 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 Ada 83.

What does this simple Ada 83 code do?
with Text_IO; use Text_IO;
procedure Hello is
begin
  Put_Line ('Hello, world!');
end Hello;
This code prints 'Hello, world!' to the standard output.
What is the purpose of this Ada 83 code snippet?
with Ada.Text_IO;
procedure Main is
  X : Integer := 10;
begin
  Ada.Text_IO.Put_Line (Integer'Image (X));
end Main;
This code converts the integer X to a string and prints it to the standard output.
What will be the output of this Ada 83 code that manipulates an array?
with Ada.Text_IO;
procedure Main is
  type Array_Type is array (1 .. 5) of Integer;
  Array1 : Array_Type := (others => 0);
begin
  for I in Array1'Range loop
    Ada.Text_IO.Put_Line (Integer'Image (Array1 (I)));
  end loop;
end Main;
This code will print the number '0' five times, which are the default values of the elements in the array.
What does this Ada 83 code snippet do related to threading?
with Ada.Text_IO, Ada.Calendar;
procedure Main is
  task type Worker is
    entry Start;
  end Worker;
  task body Worker is
  begin
    accept Start;
    Ada.Text_IO.Put_Line ('Worker started');
  end Worker;
  W : Worker;
begin
  W.Start;
end Main;
This code defines a task type 'Worker' with an entry point 'Start'. When 'Start' is called, the task prints 'Worker started' to the standard output.

Wrap-up questions

Final candidate for Ada 83 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 Ada 83 application deployments. Inquire about their experience in handling system failures and their approach to debugging and troubleshooting.

What are discriminants in Ada 83?

Discriminants in Ada 83 are special components of a record type that can be used to parameterize the type. They allow the creation of variant records, where the components can vary depending on the value of the discriminant.

Describe the difference between a task and a protected object in Ada 83.

In Ada 83, a task is a type of module that encapsulates a thread of control and its associated data. A protected object is a type of module that encapsulates data and operations on that data, and provides mutual exclusion for those operations.

How would you implement a generic package in Ada 83?

A generic package in Ada 83 can be implemented using the 'generic' keyword followed by the package specification. The generic parameters can be types, subprograms, objects, or values.

Ada 83 application related

Product Perfect's Ada 83 development capabilities

Beyond hiring for your Ada 83 engineering team, you may be in the market for additional help. Product Perfect provides seasoned expertise in Ada 83 projects, and can engage in multiple capacities.

Ada 83 Consultive assessments

Ada 83 Application Conversion Assessment Ada 83 Application Integration Assessment Ada 83 Data & Database Integration Assessment

Custom Ada 83 development projects

Custom Ada 83 App Conversion Ada 83 Custom App Development Process App UI Design for Ada 83 Facelifts

Hiring guide for Ada 83 Engineers

Ada 83 Developer Hiring Guide

What you’re looking for early on

The ideal back-end app developer

What you’re looking to see on the Ada 83 engineer at this point.

Ada 83 Consultive assessments

Custom Ada 83 development projects