ALGOL 60 Developer Hiring Guide

Hiring Guide for ALGOL 60 Engineers

Ask the right questions to secure the right ALGOL 60 talent among an increasingly shrinking pool of talent.

**ALGOL 60** is a computer programming language designed in 1958 by a team of international computer scientists led by John McCarthy. It was the first high-level programming language to be designed specifically for mathematical computing and became the standard language for research in theoretical computer science. ALGOL 60 was influential in the development of later programming languages, including C, C++, Java, and Python. * **Source:** [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ALGOL_60)

First 20 minutes

General ALGOL 60 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 logical operators in ALGOL 60?

The logical operators in ALGOL 60 are 'and', 'or', and 'not'.

How would you implement a loop in ALGOL 60?

You can implement a loop in ALGOL 60 using the 'for' keyword. For example: 'for i := 1 step 1 until 10 do begin ... end'

Describe the difference between 'begin' and 'end' in ALGOL 60.

'Begin' and 'end' are used to denote the start and end of a block of code or a compound statement in ALGOL 60.

What are the basic data types in ALGOL 60?

The basic data types in ALGOL 60 are integer, real, boolean, and arrays.

How would you declare an integer in ALGOL 60?

You would declare an integer in ALGOL 60 using the keyword 'integer'. For example: 'integer x;'

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What youre looking for early-on

Has the candidate shown an ability to learn quickly?

In the fast-paced world of development, being able to learn quickly is a valuable skill. The candidate should show that they can pick up new concepts and technologies quickly.

Does the candidate have experience with other programming languages?

While the position is for an ALGOL 60 developer, having experience with other languages can be beneficial. It can show that the candidate is adaptable and able to learn new languages quickly.

Has the candidate demonstrated good communication skills?

Communication is key in a development role. The candidate should be able to effectively communicate their ideas and understand the ideas of others.

Is the candidate able to work well in a team?

Most development work is done in teams. The candidate should be able to work well with others and contribute to a positive team environment.

Can the candidate solve problems using ALGOL 60?

Being able to solve problems is a key skill for any developer. The candidate should be able to use ALGOL 60 to solve a variety of problems.

Does the candidate have a solid understanding of ALGOL 60?

This is crucial as the job position is for an ALGOL 60 developer. The candidate should be able to demonstrate a deep understanding of the language.

Next 20 minutes

Specific ALGOL 60 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 handle exceptions in ALGOL 60?

ALGOL 60 does not have built-in support for exception handling. You would need to implement your own error checking and handling logic.

Describe the difference between pass by value and pass by name in ALGOL 60.

In pass by value, the actual value is passed. In pass by name, a reference to the variable is passed, allowing the procedure to modify the original variable.

What are the arithmetic operators in ALGOL 60?

The arithmetic operators in ALGOL 60 are '+', '-', '*', '/', and 'div'.

How would you write a function in ALGOL 60?

You can write a function in ALGOL 60 using the 'procedure' keyword. For example: 'procedure square(x); real x; begin real square; square := x * x; end'

Describe the difference between 'own' and 'local' variables in ALGOL 60.

'Own' variables retain their values between procedure calls, while 'local' variables do not. They are reinitialized each time the procedure is called.

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The ideal back-end app developer

What you’re looking to see on the ALGOL 60 engineer at this point.

A skilled ALGOL 60 engineer should possess strong problem-solving skills, deep understanding of ALGOL 60 and its applications, and good communication abilities. Red flags include lack of experience with the language or inability to explain complex concepts clearly.

Digging deeper

Code questions

These will help you see the candidate's real-world development capabilities with ALGOL 60.

What does this simple ALGOL 60 code do?

BEGIN INTEGER a; a := 5; PRINT(a); END

This code declares an integer variable 'a', assigns the value 5 to 'a', and then prints the value of 'a'. The output will be '5'.

What will be the output of this ALGOL 60 code?

BEGIN REAL x; x := 3.14; PRINT((x * 2) / 3); END

This code declares a real variable 'x', assigns the value 3.14 to 'x', and then prints the result of the expression '(x * 2) / 3'. The output will be '2.09333333333'.

What does this ALGOL 60 code do?

BEGIN INTEGER array[5]; FOR i := 1 STEP 1 UNTIL 5 DO array[i] := i * 2; PRINT(array); END

This code declares an integer array of size 5, assigns each element of the array with the value of its index multiplied by 2, and then prints the array. The output will be '2 4 6 8 10'.

What does this ALGOL 60 code do?

BEGIN BOOLEAN flag; flag := TRUE; IF flag THEN PRINT('True') ELSE PRINT('False'); END

This code declares a boolean variable 'flag', assigns the value TRUE to 'flag', and then prints 'True' if 'flag' is TRUE, otherwise it prints 'False'. The output will be 'True'.

What does this ALGOL 60 code do?

BEGIN INTEGER x, y; x := 5; y := 10; IF x < y THEN PRINT('x is less than y') ELSE PRINT('x is not less than y'); END

This code declares two integer variables 'x' and 'y', assigns the values 5 and 10 to 'x' and 'y' respectively, and then prints 'x is less than y' if 'x' is less than 'y', otherwise it prints 'x is not less than y'. The output will be 'x is less than y'.

What will be the output of this ALGOL 60 code?

BEGIN INTEGER x, y, z; x := 5; y := 10; z := 15; IF x < y AND y < z THEN PRINT('x is less than y and y is less than z') ELSE PRINT('x is not less than y or y is not less than z'); END

This code declares three integer variables 'x', 'y', and 'z', assigns the values 5, 10, and 15 to 'x', 'y', and 'z' respectively, and then prints 'x is less than y and y is less than z' if 'x' is less than 'y' and 'y' is less than 'z', otherwise it prints 'x is not less than y or y is not less than z'. The output will be 'x is less than y and y is less than z'.

Wrap-up questions

Final candidate for ALGOL 60 role questions

The final few interview questions for a ALGOL 60 candidate should typically focus on a combination of technical skills, personal goals, growth potential, team dynamics, and company culture.

Describe the difference between 'real' and 'integer' data types in ALGOL 60.

'Real' data type is used to represent floating point numbers, while 'integer' data type is used to represent whole numbers.

What are the string manipulation functions in ALGOL 60?

ALGOL 60 does not have built-in string manipulation functions. You would need to implement your own functions for string manipulation.

How would you implement recursion in ALGOL 60?

You can implement recursion in ALGOL 60 by writing a procedure that calls itself. For example, a recursive factorial function could be written as: 'procedure factorial(n); integer n; begin integer factorial; if n = 0 then factorial := 1 else factorial := n * factorial(n - 1); end'

Describe the difference between 'if' and 'case' statements in ALGOL 60.

'If' statements are used for conditional execution based on a single condition, while 'case' statements are used for conditional execution based on multiple conditions.

What are the control structures in ALGOL 60?

The control structures in ALGOL 60 are 'if' statements, 'for' loops, 'while' loops, and 'goto' statements.

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ALGOL 60 application related

Product Perfect's ALGOL 60 development capabilities

Beyond hiring for your ALGOL 60 engineering team, you may be in the market for additional help. Product Perfect provides seasoned expertise in ALGOL 60 projects, and can engage in multiple capacities.