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Oberon-2X is a variant of the Oberon programming language, originally developed in the late 1980s by Niklaus Wirth and Jürg Gutknecht at ETH Zurich. It is an extension of Modula-2, another Wirth language, designed with safety and readability as its primary goals. The "X" in Oberon-2X refers to extensions added to improve upon its predecessor's capabilities and performance. This statically-typed procedural language supports data abstraction through type extension features while maintaining simplicity for ease-of-use. Its development was guided by principles such as clarity over cleverness, making it a valuable tool for teaching structured programming concepts.

Ask the right questions secure the right Oberon-2X talent among an increasingly shrinking pool of talent.

First 20 minutes

General Oberon-2X app knowledge and experience

The first 20 minutes of the interview should seek to understand the candidate's general background in Oberon-2X application development, including their experience with various programming languages, databases, and their approach to designing scalable and maintainable systems.

How would you declare a variable in Oberon-2X?

You can declare a variable in Oberon-2X using the VAR keyword, followed by the variable name and its type. For example, VAR x: INTEGER;

What are the basic data types in Oberon-2X?

The basic data types in Oberon-2X include INTEGER, REAL, BOOLEAN, CHAR, and SET.

Describe the difference between a procedure and a function in Oberon-2X.

In Oberon-2X, a procedure is a subroutine that can be invoked but does not return a value, while a function is a subroutine that returns a value.

How would you implement exception handling in Oberon-2X?

Oberon-2X uses a TRY...EXCEPT...END construct for exception handling. The code within the TRY block is executed first. If an exception occurs, the code within the EXCEPT block is executed.

What is the purpose of the IMPORT statement in Oberon-2X?

The IMPORT statement in Oberon-2X is used to import modules or specific identifiers from other modules into the current module.

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What you’re looking for early on

Does the candidate have a solid understanding of the Oberon-2X language?

Has the candidate demonstrated problem-solving skills?

What is the candidate's experience with similar programming languages?

Has the candidate shown an ability to work in a team?

Next 20 minutes

Specific Oberon-2X 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 a record and an array in Oberon-2X.

In Oberon-2X, a record is a composite data type that groups related data of different types, while an array is a collection of elements of the same type.

How would you define a constant in Oberon-2X?

You can define a constant in Oberon-2X using the CONST keyword, followed by the constant name, the assignment operator :=, and the constant value. For example, CONST x := 10;

What are the control structures available in Oberon-2X?

Oberon-2X provides several control structures, including IF...ELSE...END, CASE...OF...ELSE...END, WHILE...DO...END, REPEAT...UNTIL, and FOR...DO...END.

Describe the difference between the WHILE and REPEAT loops in Oberon-2X.

In Oberon-2X, a WHILE loop continues to execute as long as the condition is true, while a REPEAT loop executes at least once and continues to execute as long as the condition is false.

How would you define a module in Oberon-2X?

You can define a module in Oberon-2X using the MODULE keyword, followed by the module name, and ended with the END keyword. For example, MODULE MyModule; END MyModule.

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At this point, a skilled Oberon-2X engineer should demonstrate strong problem-solving abilities, proficiency in Oberon-2X 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 Oberon-2X.

What does this simple Oberon-2X code do?
MODULE Hello;
BEGIN
  WriteLn('Hello, World!');
END Hello.
This code prints 'Hello, World!' to the console.
What will be the output of this Oberon-2X code?
MODULE VarDemo;
VAR
  x: INTEGER;
BEGIN
  x := 5;
  WriteInt(x, 0);
END VarDemo.
This code will output '5' to the console. It declares a variable 'x' of type INTEGER and assigns it the value 5, then it prints the value of 'x'.
What does this Oberon-2X code do?
MODULE ArrayDemo;
VAR
  arr: ARRAY 5 OF INTEGER;
  i: INTEGER;
BEGIN
  FOR i := 0 TO 4 DO
    arr[i] := i * 2;
  END;
END ArrayDemo.
This code initializes an array 'arr' of size 5 and populates it with the double of the index value. For example, arr[0] will be 0, arr[1] will be 2, arr[2] will be 4, and so on.
What does this Oberon-2X code do?
MODULE ThreadDemo;
VAR
  t: Thread;
BEGIN
  t := NewThread(MyThreadProc, NIL);
  StartThread(t);
END ThreadDemo.
This code creates a new thread 't' and starts it. The thread will execute the procedure 'MyThreadProc'.

Wrap-up questions

Final candidate for Oberon-2X 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 Oberon-2X application deployments. Inquire about their experience in handling system failures and their approach to debugging and troubleshooting.

What is the purpose of the EXPORT statement in Oberon-2X?

The EXPORT statement in Oberon-2X is used to make identifiers available to other modules. The identifiers can be variables, constants, types, procedures, etc.

Describe the difference between public and private identifiers in Oberon-2X.

In Oberon-2X, public identifiers are visible to other modules and can be accessed using the module name, while private identifiers are only visible within the module where they are declared.

How would you implement polymorphism in Oberon-2X?

In Oberon-2X, polymorphism can be implemented using type-bound procedures. A type-bound procedure is a procedure that is associated with a specific type and can be overridden in derived types.

Oberon-2X application related

Product Perfect's Oberon-2X development capabilities

Beyond hiring for your Oberon-2X engineering team, you may be in the market for additional help. Product Perfect provides seasoned expertise in Oberon-2X projects, and can engage in multiple capacities.

Oberon-2X Consultive assessments

Oberon-2X Application Conversion Assessment Oberon-2X Application Integration Assessment Oberon-2X Data & Database Integration Assessment

Custom Oberon-2X development projects

Custom Oberon-2X App Conversion Oberon-2X Custom App Development Process App UI Design for Oberon-2X Facelifts

Hiring guide for Oberon-2X Engineers

Oberon-2X Developer Hiring Guide

What you’re looking for early on

The ideal back-end app developer

What you’re looking to see on the Oberon-2X engineer at this point.

Oberon-2X Consultive assessments

Custom Oberon-2X development projects