Ada 2012 Developer Hiring Guide

Hiring Guide for Ada 2012 Engineers

Ask the right questions to secure the right Ada 2012 talent among an increasingly shrinking pool of talent.

Ada 2012 is the latest iteration of the high-level computer programming language Ada, originally developed in the late 1970s by the U.S. Department of Defense (DoD). Named after Ada Lovelace, it was designed to supersede over 450 programming languages used for DoD projects at that time. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) endorsed its first version in 1983 and has since ratified updates including Ada 95, Ada 2005 and most recently, Ada 2012. Noted for its strong typing and design-by-contract features, it's widely used in critical systems like avionics and defense systems where safety is paramount. Its evolution continues under guidance from ISO/IEC JTC1/SC22/WG9 working group.

First 20 minutes

General Ada 2012 knowledge and experience

The next 20 minutes of the interview should attempt to focus more specifically on the development questions used, and the level of depth and skill the engineer possesses.

What are the different types of loops in Ada 2012?

Ada 2012 supports several types of loops including while loops, for loops, and loop ... until loops. Each type of loop is used for different scenarios based on the specific requirements of the program.

How would you define a procedure in Ada 2012?

A procedure in Ada 2012 is defined using the 'procedure' keyword followed by the procedure name, any parameters in parentheses, and 'is' keyword. The procedure body is enclosed in 'begin' and 'end' keywords.

What is the purpose of the 'with' clause in Ada 2012?

The 'with' clause in Ada 2012 is used to import a package or a single entity from a package. It makes the specified package or entity available for use in the current declarative part.

How would you declare a variable in Ada 2012?

In Ada 2012, a variable is declared by specifying its name, followed by a colon, the type of the variable, and a semicolon. For example, 'Var1: Integer;' declares a variable named Var1 of type Integer.

What are the basic data types in Ada 2012?

The basic data types in Ada 2012 include Integer, Float, Character, Boolean, Duration, and String.

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What youre looking for early-on

Have they shown a capacity for continuous learning and adapting to new technologies?

The field of software development is constantly evolving, so it's important for developers to be able to keep up with new technologies and techniques.

Are they familiar with the software development lifecycle?

Understanding the process of planning, creating, testing, and deploying software is crucial for a developer role.

Have they demonstrated the ability to work in a team?

Software development is often a collaborative effort, so it's important that they can work effectively as part of a team.

Do they have experience with real-time systems programming?

Ada is often used in real-time systems, so experience in this area could be beneficial.

Can they effectively debug and solve problems in Ada?

Problem-solving skills are essential for any developer position, and specifically being able to debug in Ada 2012 is important for this role.

Does the candidate have a strong understanding of Ada 2012's syntax and semantics?

This is crucial as it forms the basis of their ability to write and understand code in Ada 2012.

Next 20 minutes

Specific Ada 2012 development questions

The next 20 minutes of the interview should attempt to focus more specifically on the development questions used, and the level of depth and skill the engineer possesses.

How would you implement inheritance in Ada 2012?

Inheritance in Ada 2012 is implemented using tagged types. A new type can be derived from an existing tagged type, and it inherits all the operations of the parent type. New operations can also be added to the derived type.

Describe the difference between a record and an array in Ada 2012.

In Ada 2012, a record is a collection of related elements of different types, while an array is a collection of elements of the same type. Records are used to group related data items together, while arrays are used to store sequences of data items of the same type.

What are the different types of arrays in Ada 2012?

Ada 2012 supports two types of arrays: one-dimensional arrays and multi-dimensional arrays. One-dimensional arrays have a single index, while multi-dimensional arrays have multiple indices.

How would you handle exceptions in Ada 2012?

Exceptions in Ada 2012 are handled using the 'exception' keyword in a block or subprogram. The 'when' keyword is used to specify the type of exception, followed by a sequence of statements to be executed when that exception occurs.

Describe the difference between a function and a procedure in Ada 2012.

In Ada 2012, a function is a subprogram that returns a value, while a procedure is a subprogram that performs an action but does not return a value. Functions are typically used for computations, while procedures are used for tasks that require performing actions.

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The ideal back-end app developer

What you’re looking to see on the Ada 2012 engineer at this point.

At this point, a skilled Ada 2012 engineer should demonstrate a deep understanding of Ada syntax and semantics, proficiency in real-time and embedded systems, and strong problem-solving skills. Red flags include lack of experience with safety-critical systems, poor debugging skills, and inability to explain complex concepts clearly.

Digging deeper

Code questions

These will help you see the candidate's real-world development capabilities with Ada 2012.

What does the following Ada code do?

with Ada.Text_IO; use Ada.Text_IO;
procedure Hello is
begin
   Put_Line ("Hello, world!");
end Hello;

This code prints 'Hello, world!' to the console.

What will be the output of the following Ada code?

with Ada.Text_IO; use Ada.Text_IO;
procedure Main is
   X : Integer := 10;
   Y : Integer := 20;
begin
   Put_Line (Integer'Image(X + Y));
end Main;

The output of this code will be '30'. The code adds two integers X and Y and prints the result.

What does the following Ada code do?

with Ada.Text_IO; use Ada.Text_IO;
procedure Main is
   type Array_Type is array (1 .. 5) of Integer;
   Array_Var : Array_Type := (others => 0);
begin
   for I in Array_Var'Range loop
      Put_Line (Integer'Image(Array_Var(I)));
   end loop;
end Main;

This code declares an array of 5 integers, initializes all elements to 0, and then prints each element of the array.

What does the following Ada code do?

with Ada.Text_IO; use Ada.Text_IO;
with Ada.Real_Time; use Ada.Real_Time;
procedure Main is
   Task_Delay : Time_Span := Milliseconds (500);
begin
   delay until Clock + Task_Delay;
   Put_Line ("Task completed");
end Main;

This code introduces a delay of 500 milliseconds using Ada's real-time capabilities, and then prints 'Task completed' to the console.

What does the following Ada code do?

with Ada.Text_IO; use Ada.Text_IO;
procedure Main is
   type Object is
      record
         Name : String (1 .. 20);
         Age  : Integer;
      end record;
   My_Object : Object;
begin
   My_Object.Name := "John";
   My_Object.Age := 30;
   Put_Line (My_Object.Name & " " & Integer'Image(My_Object.Age));
end Main;

This code defines a record type 'Object' with two fields 'Name' and 'Age'. It then creates an instance of 'Object', assigns values to its fields, and prints these values.

What will be the output of the following Ada code?

with Ada.Text_IO; use Ada.Text_IO;
procedure Main is
   X : Integer := 10;
   Y : Integer := 0;
begin
   if Y /= 0 then
      Put_Line (Integer'Image(X / Y));
   else
      Put_Line ("Division by zero");
   end if;
end Main;

The output of this code will be 'Division by zero'. The code checks if Y is not zero before performing division to prevent a division by zero error.

Wrap-up questions

Final candidate for Ada 2012 role questions

The final few interview questions for a Ada 2012 candidate should typically focus on a combination of technical skills, personal goals, growth potential, team dynamics, and company culture.

How would you implement a private type in Ada 2012?

A private type in Ada 2012 is implemented by declaring the type in the private part of a package. The full definition of the type is hidden from the clients of the package, and can only be accessed through the operations provided by the package.

What are the different types of contracts in Ada 2012?

Ada 2012 supports two types of contracts: preconditions and postconditions. Preconditions specify the conditions that must be true before a subprogram is called, while postconditions specify the conditions that must be true after a subprogram has completed execution.

How would you implement a generic package in Ada 2012?

A generic package in Ada 2012 is implemented using the 'generic' keyword followed by the generic formal parameters, and the 'package' keyword followed by the package name. The package body contains the definitions of the operations that are parameterized by the generic formal parameters.

Describe the difference between a task and a protected object in Ada 2012.

In Ada 2012, a task is a concurrent unit of execution, while a protected object is a module that encapsulates shared data with safe concurrent access. Tasks are used for concurrent programming, while protected objects are used for synchronization and mutual exclusion.

What are the different types of access types in Ada 2012?

Ada 2012 supports two types of access types: access-to-object types and access-to-subprogram types. Access-to-object types provide a way to dynamically allocate objects, while access-to-subprogram types provide a way to refer to subprograms.

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Ada 2012 application related

Product Perfect's Ada 2012 development capabilities

Beyond hiring for your Ada 2012 engineering team, you may be in the market for additional help. Product Perfect provides seasoned expertise in Ada 2012 projects, and can engage in multiple capacities.