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Oz is a multi-paradigm programming language that supports declarative programming, object-oriented programming, constraint programming, and concurrent and distributed programming as part of a coherent whole. It was developed in the Programming Systems Lab at Université catholique de Louvain, for the purpose of teaching programming concepts and techniques that are critical in the context of modern applications such as web services, networked applications, multi-core software, etc. Oz also has a powerful module system which is comparable to ML's. It is used in the book "Concepts, Techniques, and Models of Computer Programming".

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

First 20 minutes

General Oz app knowledge and experience

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

What are the key features of the Oz programming language?

Oz supports multi-paradigm programming, concurrent and distributed programming, and constraint programming. It also has a powerful module system.

How would you define a procedure in Oz?

In Oz, a procedure is defined using the 'proc' keyword followed by the procedure name, parameters inside curly braces, and the procedure body. For example: proc {MyProcedure Param} Body end

What is the role of the Mozart Programming System in Oz?

The Mozart Programming System is a development platform for Oz. It provides an environment for writing, running, and debugging Oz applications.

Describe the difference between declarative and imperative programming in the context of Oz.

Declarative programming in Oz involves writing code that specifies what the program should accomplish, without specifying how. Imperative programming involves writing code that specifies how to accomplish a task, typically by changing program state.

How would you implement recursion in Oz?

Recursion in Oz is implemented by having a procedure call itself. This is typically done for tasks that can be broken down into smaller, similar tasks.

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What you’re looking for early on

Has the candidate demonstrated a deep understanding of Oz programming language?

Does the candidate show problem-solving skills?

Is the candidate able to communicate effectively?

Does the candidate have experience with similar projects or tasks?

Next 20 minutes

Specific Oz 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.

What is the concept of dataflow variables in Oz?

Dataflow variables in Oz are variables that can be read from any number of times but can only be assigned once. They are used to synchronize concurrent computations.

How would you handle exceptions in Oz?

Exceptions in Oz are handled using the 'try' 'catch' construct. The 'try' block contains the code that might raise an exception, and the 'catch' block contains the code to handle the exception.

What are the advantages of using Oz for concurrent programming?

Oz supports first-class procedures, higher-order programming, and has a powerful concurrency model. It also supports dataflow synchronization and message-passing communication, which are beneficial for concurrent programming.

Describe the difference between single-assignment variables and dataflow variables in Oz.

Single-assignment variables in Oz can be assigned once and then never changed. Dataflow variables, on the other hand, can be read from any number of times but can only be assigned once. They are used to synchronize concurrent computations.

How would you implement multi-threading in Oz?

Multi-threading in Oz is implemented using the 'thread' keyword followed by the thread body. Each thread runs concurrently with the others.

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

What does this simple Oz code do?
{Browse 'Hello, World!'}
This code prints the string 'Hello, World!' to the console.
What does this Oz code do?
fun {Double X} X * 2 end
This code defines a function named 'Double' that takes one argument 'X' and returns the result of 'X' multiplied by 2.
What will be the output of this Oz code?
local X in X = {List.number 1 5 1} {Browse X} end
This code creates a list of numbers from 1 to 5 with a step of 1 and prints the list. The output will be '[1,2,3,4,5]'.
What does this Oz code do?
thread {Browse 'Hello, World!'} end
This code creates a new thread that prints 'Hello, World!' to the console.

Wrap-up questions

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

What is the concept of 'promises' in Oz?

A 'promise' in Oz is a way to handle a value that may not yet be available. It's a placeholder for a value that is being computed by a concurrent thread and will be used when it's ready.

Describe the difference between 'and-parallelism' and 'or-parallelism' in Oz.

'And-parallelism' in Oz is when multiple computations are done in parallel and all results are needed. 'Or-parallelism' is when multiple computations are done in parallel and any one result is needed.

How would you implement constraint programming in Oz?

Constraint programming in Oz is implemented using constraint propagators, which are procedures that reduce the domains of variables based on constraints.

Oz application related

Product Perfect's Oz development capabilities

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

Oz Consultive assessments

Oz Application Conversion Assessment Oz Application Integration Assessment Oz Data & Database Integration Assessment

Custom Oz development projects

Custom Oz App Conversion Oz Custom App Development Process App UI Design for Oz Facelifts

Hiring guide for Oz Engineers

Oz Developer Hiring Guide

What you’re looking for early on

The ideal back-end app developer

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

Oz Consultive assessments

Custom Oz development projects