Product Perfect

PC Focus (FOCUS for PCs), a fourth-generation programming language, was developed by Information Builders (IB) in 1984 for the IBM PC. It was designed to be a user-friendly language for business applications, and was quickly adopted by many businesses. By 1991, PC Focus was the most popular 4GL in use. However, the rise of object-oriented programming languages in the 1990s led to a decline in PC Focus's popularity. Today, PC Focus is still used by some businesses, but it is no longer a mainstream programming language.

Ask the right questions secure the right PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) talent among an increasingly shrinking pool of talent.

First 20 minutes

General PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) app knowledge and experience

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

How would you describe the main functionality of PC FOCUS?

PC FOCUS is a fourth-generation programming language (4GL) that is used for reporting and data analysis. It allows users to manipulate data from databases in a variety of ways, including sorting, aggregating, and calculating.

What are the basic commands in PC FOCUS?

Some of the basic commands in PC FOCUS include SORT, MATCH, EXTRACT, MODIFY, and SUM. These commands allow users to manipulate and analyze data.

Describe the difference between the EXTRACT and MODIFY commands in PC FOCUS.

The EXTRACT command is used to select specific fields from a file and create a new file with that data. The MODIFY command, on the other hand, is used to change the data in an existing file.

How would you use the MATCH command in PC FOCUS?

The MATCH command in PC FOCUS is used to combine data from two or more files based on a common field. It's similar to the JOIN operation in SQL.

What are the different types of files that can be used with PC FOCUS?

PC FOCUS can work with a variety of file types, including sequential files, index-sequential files, and relative files.

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What you’re looking for early on

Does the candidate have a strong understanding of PC Focus?

Has the candidate demonstrated problem-solving skills?

Is the candidate able to communicate effectively?

Does the candidate have relevant experience in the field?

Next 20 minutes

Specific PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) 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 sequential file and an index-sequential file in PC FOCUS.

A sequential file in PC FOCUS is a file where records are arranged in a specific order, usually based on a key field. An index-sequential file, on the other hand, is a sequential file with an index that allows records to be retrieved in any order.

How would you use the SUM command in PC FOCUS?

The SUM command in PC FOCUS is used to calculate the sum of a numeric field for a group of records. It's often used in conjunction with the BY command to specify the grouping field.

What are the different data types in PC FOCUS?

PC FOCUS supports several data types, including alphanumeric, numeric, date, and time.

Describe the difference between the DATE and TIME data types in PC FOCUS.

The DATE data type in PC FOCUS is used to store date values, while the TIME data type is used to store time values. Both data types have specific formats that must be followed.

How would you use the DATE data type in PC FOCUS?

The DATE data type in PC FOCUS is used to store date values. It can be used in conjunction with various commands to manipulate and analyze date data.

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At this point, a skilled PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) engineer should demonstrate strong problem-solving abilities, proficiency in PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) 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 PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ).

What does the following FOCUS code do?
TABLE FILE CAR
PRINT COUNTRY CAR MODEL
BY COUNTRY
END
This code prints a table with columns COUNTRY, CAR, and MODEL from the file named CAR. The table is sorted by the COUNTRY column.
What will be the output of the following FOCUS code?
DEFINE FILE CAR
NEWPRICE/D12.2 = PRICE * 1.1;
END
TABLE FILE CAR
PRINT CAR MODEL NEWPRICE
END
This code first defines a new field NEWPRICE which is 10% more than the original PRICE. Then it prints a table with columns CAR, MODEL, and the newly calculated NEWPRICE.
What does the following FOCUS code do?
DEFINE FILE CAR
HIGHPRICE/A8 = IF PRICE GT 20000 THEN 'HIGH' ELSE 'LOW';
END
TABLE FILE CAR
PRINT CAR MODEL HIGHPRICE
END
This code first defines a new field HIGHPRICE which is set to 'HIGH' if the PRICE is greater than 20000, otherwise it's 'LOW'. Then it prints a table with columns CAR, MODEL, and the newly created HIGHPRICE.
What will be the output of the following FOCUS code?
-SET &MAXPRICE = MAX.PRICE (CAR);
-SET &MINPRICE = MIN.PRICE (CAR);
TABLE FILE CAR
PRINT CAR MODEL PRICE
WHERE PRICE EQ &MAXPRICE OR PRICE EQ &MINPRICE;
END
This code first sets two variables &MAXPRICE and &MINPRICE to the maximum and minimum PRICE from the CAR file respectively. Then it prints a table with columns CAR, MODEL, and PRICE where the PRICE is either the maximum or the minimum.

Wrap-up questions

Final candidate for PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) 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 PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) application deployments. Inquire about their experience in handling system failures and their approach to debugging and troubleshooting.

What are the different ways to handle errors in PC FOCUS?

PC FOCUS provides several ways to handle errors, including the ONERROR command, which allows you to specify what action to take when an error occurs, and the SET command, which allows you to control the level of error checking.

Describe the difference between the ONERROR command and the SET command in PC FOCUS.

The ONERROR command in PC FOCUS allows you to specify what action to take when an error occurs, such as stopping the program or continuing with the next command. The SET command, on the other hand, allows you to control the level of error checking, such as whether to ignore minor errors or stop the program for any error.

How would you use the ONERROR command in PC FOCUS?

The ONERROR command in PC FOCUS can be used to specify what action to take when an error occurs. For example, you could use ONERROR CONTINUE to ignore the error and continue with the next command, or ONERROR STOP to stop the program.

PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) application related

Product Perfect's PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) development capabilities

Beyond hiring for your PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) engineering team, you may be in the market for additional help. Product Perfect provides seasoned expertise in PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) projects, and can engage in multiple capacities.

PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) Consultive assessments

PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) Application Conversion Assessment PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) Application Integration Assessment PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) Data & Database Integration Assessment

Custom PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) development projects

Custom PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) App Conversion PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) Custom App Development Process App UI Design for PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) Facelifts

Hiring guide for PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) Engineers

PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) Developer Hiring Guide

What you’re looking for early on

The ideal back-end app developer

What you’re looking to see on the PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) engineer at this point.

PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) Consultive assessments

Custom PC Focus(FOCUS for PCs ) development projects