Product Perfect

Turbo Pascal is a software development system that includes a compiler and an integrated development environment (IDE) for the Pascal programming language. It was originally developed by Anders Hejlsberg at Borland and first released in 1983. Turbo Pascal is known for its fast compile times, comprehensive built-in libraries, strong type checking capabilities, and user-friendly IDE with syntax highlighting and debugging features. The language supports structured programming techniques such as procedures, functions, loops etc., making it suitable for beginners to learn about program design. Turbo Pascal also introduced Object Oriented Programming before many other languages did so. Despite being discontinued in late 1990s after the release of Delphi - another Borland product which used an extended version of Object-Pascal -, Turbo Pascal had a significant impact on teaching computer science principles during the '80s-'90s period due to its simplicity yet powerful features.

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

First 20 minutes

General Turbo Pascal app knowledge and experience

The first 20 minutes of the interview should seek to understand the candidate's general background in Turbo Pascal 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 Turbo Pascal?

To declare a variable in Turbo Pascal, you use the 'var' keyword followed by the variable name and its type. For example, 'var x: integer;' declares a variable named x of type integer.

What are the basic data types in Turbo Pascal?

The basic data types in Turbo Pascal include integer, real, char, string, boolean, and pointer.

Describe the difference between 'var' and 'const' in Turbo Pascal.

'var' is used to declare a variable that can change its value, while 'const' is used to declare a constant whose value cannot be changed once it is assigned.

How would you implement a loop in Turbo Pascal?

You can implement a loop in Turbo Pascal using the 'for', 'while', or 'repeat' keywords. For example, 'for i:=1 to 10 do writeln(i);' will print the numbers 1 through 10.

What is the purpose of the 'begin' and 'end' keywords in Turbo Pascal?

The 'begin' and 'end' keywords are used to denote the start and end of a block of code, respectively. They are equivalent to the curly braces '{}' in languages like C and Java.

The hiring guide has been successfully sent to your email address.

Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

What you’re looking for early on

Does the candidate have a solid understanding of Turbo Pascal?

Has the candidate demonstrated problem-solving skills?

Is the candidate familiar with the software development life cycle?

Can the candidate work well in a team?

Next 20 minutes

Specific Turbo Pascal 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.

How would you define a function in Turbo Pascal?

To define a function in Turbo Pascal, you use the 'function' keyword followed by the function name, parameters, and return type. The function body is enclosed between 'begin' and 'end'. For example, 'function add(x, y: integer): integer; begin result:=x+y; end;' defines a function that adds two integers.

What are the differences between a procedure and a function in Turbo Pascal?

The main difference is that a function returns a value, while a procedure does not. Also, a function can be used in expressions, while a procedure cannot.

How would you handle exceptions in Turbo Pascal?

Turbo Pascal does not have built-in support for exception handling like try-catch blocks in other languages. However, you can simulate it using 'goto' statements and labels, although this is generally considered bad practice.

What is the purpose of the 'writeln' procedure in Turbo Pascal?

The 'writeln' procedure is used to write a line of text to the console. It automatically adds a newline character at the end.

How would you read input from the user in Turbo Pascal?

You can read input from the user using the 'read' or 'readln' procedures. For example, 'readln(x);' reads a line of input from the user and stores it in the variable x.

The hiring guide has been successfully sent to your email address.

Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

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

What does the following Turbo Pascal code do?
var x, y: integer;
begin
  x := 10;
  y := 20;
  x := x + y;
  writeln(x);
end.
This code declares two integer variables x and y, assigns them the values 10 and 20 respectively, adds y to x, and then prints the new value of x, which is 30.
What will be the output of the following Turbo Pascal code?
var s: string;
begin
  s := 'Hello, World!';
  writeln(length(s));
end.
This code will output the length of the string 'Hello, World!', which is 13.
What does the following Turbo Pascal code do?
var numbers: array[1..5] of integer;
i: integer;
begin
  for i := 1 to 5 do
    numbers[i] := i * i;
  for i := 1 to 5 do
    writeln(numbers[i]);
end.
This code declares an array of 5 integers, assigns the square of each index to the corresponding array element, and then prints each element of the array.
What does the following Turbo Pascal code do?
var i: integer;
begin
  i := 0;
  while i < 10 do
  begin
    writeln(i);
    i := i + 1;
  end;
end.
This code initializes a variable i to 0, then enters a loop that continues until i is no longer less than 10. Inside the loop, it prints the current value of i and then increments i by 1.

Wrap-up questions

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

What are the differences between 'read' and 'readln' in Turbo Pascal?

'read' reads input from the user until it encounters a space, while 'readln' reads input until it encounters a newline character.

How would you sort an array in Turbo Pascal?

Turbo Pascal does not have a built-in function for sorting arrays. You would have to implement a sorting algorithm manually, such as bubble sort or quicksort.

What are the differences between static and dynamic arrays in Turbo Pascal?

Static arrays have a fixed size that is determined at compile time, while dynamic arrays can change their size at runtime using the 'setlength' procedure.

Turbo Pascal application related

Product Perfect's Turbo Pascal development capabilities

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

Turbo Pascal Consultive assessments

Turbo Pascal Application Conversion Assessment Turbo Pascal Application Integration Assessment Turbo Pascal Data & Database Integration Assessment

Custom Turbo Pascal development projects

Custom Turbo Pascal App Conversion Turbo Pascal Custom App Development Process App UI Design for Turbo Pascal Facelifts

Hiring guide for Turbo Pascal Engineers

Turbo Pascal Developer Hiring Guide

What you’re looking for early on

The ideal back-end app developer

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

Turbo Pascal Consultive assessments

Custom Turbo Pascal development projects