Delphi Developer Hiring Guide

Hiring Guide for Delphi Engineers

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

Delphi is a high-level, compiled, strongly typed language that supports structured and object-oriented design. Developed by Borland in 1995, it was originally based on the Pascal programming language and designed for rapid application development. Delphi's integrated development environment (IDE) provides a visual approach to creating Windows applications, combining the ease of visual component-oriented development with the precision of the Pascal programming language. Today, Delphi is managed by Embarcadero Technologies and used worldwide for creating a wide range of applications across multiple platforms. Notably, Delphi was instrumental in developing Skype before it was acquired by Microsoft.

First 20 minutes

General Delphi 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 is the use of the 'with' statement in Delphi?

The 'with' statement in Delphi is used to simplify the code when you need to reference the same object or record multiple times. It allows you to write the object or record name once instead of repeating it for every property or method you want to access.

How would you handle exceptions in Delphi?

In Delphi, you can handle exceptions using the try-except block. Any code that may raise an exception is placed within the 'try' block, and the code to handle the exception is placed within the 'except' block.

Describe the difference between a procedure and a function in Delphi.

In Delphi, both procedures and functions are used to encapsulate a series of commands. The main difference is that a function returns a value while a procedure does not.

What are the basic data types in Delphi?

The basic data types in Delphi include Integer, Real, Char, String, Boolean, Byte, and Variant.

How would you declare a variable in Delphi?

You can declare a variable in Delphi using the 'var' keyword followed by the variable name and its type. For example, 'var x: Integer;' declares an integer variable named x.

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What youre looking for early-on

How well does the candidate communicate and work within a team?

Communication and teamwork skills are important in any job. A candidate who communicates well and can work effectively within a team will be a valuable addition to the company.

Does the candidate have experience with database programming in Delphi?

Database programming is a common requirement for Delphi developers. Experience in this area is a strong indicator of a qualified candidate.

Is the candidate familiar with the latest versions of Delphi?

Being familiar with the latest versions of Delphi indicates that the candidate is up-to-date with the latest tools and technologies.

How well does the candidate understand and apply object-oriented programming concepts?

Delphi is an object-oriented programming language. A good understanding and application of OOP concepts is key to being a successful Delphi developer.

Can the candidate solve complex problems using Delphi?

Problem-solving skills are essential for any developer. The candidate should be able to use Delphi to solve complex problems.

Does the candidate have a strong understanding of Delphi language?

This is crucial as the job position is for a Delphi developer. The candidate should be proficient in Delphi language.

Next 20 minutes

Specific Delphi 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.

What are the uses of Interfaces in Delphi?

Interfaces in Delphi are used to define a set of methods and properties that a class must implement. They provide a way to ensure that a class adheres to a certain contract, and they can also be used to achieve multiple inheritance.

How would you use pointers in Delphi?

In Delphi, you can declare a pointer using the '^' symbol. You can then use the 'new' procedure to allocate memory for the pointer, and the 'dispose' procedure to free the memory when you're done.

Describe the difference between public, private, and protected visibility in Delphi classes.

In Delphi classes, 'public' members can be accessed from anywhere, 'private' members can only be accessed from within the same class, and 'protected' members can be accessed from the same class and its descendants.

What are the principles of Object-Oriented Programming (OOP) in Delphi?

The principles of OOP in Delphi are encapsulation, inheritance, and polymorphism. Encapsulation is the bundling of data and methods that manipulate the data. Inheritance is the ability of a class to inherit properties and methods from another class. Polymorphism is the ability of an object to take on many forms.

How would you create a class in Delphi?

In Delphi, you can create a class using the 'type' keyword followed by the class name and the keyword 'class'. The properties and methods of the class are then declared within the class declaration.

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The ideal back-end app developer

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

At this stage, a skilled Delphi engineer should demonstrate in-depth knowledge of Object Pascal language, proficiency in Delphi IDE and familiarity with database systems. They should also show their problem-solving skills and ability to work on complex projects. Red flags include lack of real-world experience or trouble explaining technical concepts.

Digging deeper

Code questions

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

What does the following Delphi code do?

var
  s: string;
begin
  s := 'Hello, World!';
  ShowMessage(s);
end.

This code declares a string variable 's', assigns the value 'Hello, World!' to it, and then displays a message box with the value of 's'.

What will be the output of the following Delphi code?

var
  x, y, z: integer;
begin
  x := 5;
  y := 10;
  z := x + y;
  WriteLn(z);
end.

This code declares three integer variables 'x', 'y', and 'z'. It assigns the values 5 and 10 to 'x' and 'y' respectively. Then it adds 'x' and 'y' and assigns the result to 'z'. Finally, it prints the value of 'z'. The output will be 15.

What does the following Delphi code do?

var
  numbers: array[1..5] of integer;
begin
  numbers[1] := 1;
  numbers[2] := 2;
  numbers[3] := 3;
  numbers[4] := 4;
  numbers[5] := 5;
end.

This code declares an array 'numbers' of size 5. It then assigns the values 1 to 5 to the respective indices of the array.

What does the following Delphi code do?

var
  thread: TThread;
begin
  thread := TThread.CreateAnonymousThread(
    procedure
    begin
      WriteLn('Hello, World!');
    end
  );
  thread.Start;
end.

This code creates an anonymous thread that prints 'Hello, World!' to the console when started.

What does the following Delphi code do?

type
  TPerson = class
  private
    FName: string;
  public
    property Name: string read FName write FName;
  end;
var
  person: TPerson;
begin
  person := TPerson.Create;
  person.Name := 'John Doe';
  WriteLn(person.Name);
  person.Free;
end.

This code declares a class 'TPerson' with a private field 'FName' and a public property 'Name'. It then creates an instance of 'TPerson', assigns the value 'John Doe' to the 'Name' property, prints the 'Name' property to the console, and finally frees the instance.

What will be the output of the following Delphi code?

var
  x, y: integer;
begin
  x := 5;
  y := 0;
  try
    WriteLn(x div y);
  except
    on E: EDivByZero do
      WriteLn('Division by zero.');
  end;
end.

This code tries to divide 'x' by 'y'. Since 'y' is zero, a 'EDivByZero' exception is raised. The exception is caught and 'Division by zero.' is printed to the console.

Wrap-up questions

Final candidate for Delphi role questions

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

How would you optimize performance in a Delphi application?

There are many ways to optimize performance in a Delphi application, such as using appropriate data structures, avoiding unnecessary memory allocations, using efficient algorithms, minimizing disk and network I/O, and taking advantage of Delphi's built-in performance profiling tools.

Describe the difference between early binding and late binding in Delphi.

In Delphi, early binding is when the method to call is determined at compile time. This is faster but less flexible. Late binding is when the method to call is determined at runtime. This is slower but more flexible, as it allows you to call methods on objects that were not known at compile time.

What are the uses of attributes in Delphi?

Attributes in Delphi are used to add metadata to classes, methods, properties, and other elements. They can be used for a variety of purposes, such as controlling how elements are serialized, specifying design-time behavior, or providing hints for code analysis tools.

How would you use generics in Delphi?

In Delphi, you can use generics to create classes, methods, or procedures that can work with different data types. You declare a generic using the '<>' syntax, and then use the generic type as a placeholder for the actual type.

Describe the difference between overloading and overriding in Delphi.

In Delphi, overloading is when you have multiple procedures or functions with the same name but different parameters. Overriding is when a descendant class provides a new implementation for a method inherited from an ancestor class.

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Delphi application related

Product Perfect's Delphi development capabilities

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