Io Developer Hiring Guide

Hiring Guide for Io Engineers

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

Io is a dynamic prototype-based programming language, first created by Steve Dekorte in 2002 for software development. It is purely object-oriented, inspired by Smalltalk, Self, Lua, Lisp, and Act1. Io’s unique feature is its consistency and simplicity, having a minimalistic syntax with less than a dozen different types of syntax, and only one data structure, the message. It supports actor-based concurrency, making it popular for high performance computing. References for this information can be found on the official Io language website (iolanguage.org) and Dekorte's personal blog.

First 20 minutes

General Io 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 control flow structures in Io?

Io has several control flow structures including 'if', 'for', 'while', and 'switch'.

How would you define a method in Io?

In Io, methods are defined by assigning a function to a slot. For example, 'Person greet := method("Hello" println)'.

What is the purpose of the 'slot' in Io?

In Io, a slot is a named location in an object where a value can be stored. Slots can contain any Io value such as a number, string, list, or another object.

How would you create a new object in Io?

In Io, you can create a new object using the clone method. For example, 'Person := Object clone'.

What are the basic data types in Io?

The basic data types in Io are Number, Boolean, List, String, and Object.

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What youre looking for early-on

Does the candidate show a willingness to learn and adapt?

The tech industry is constantly evolving. A candidate's willingness to learn and adapt to new technologies and methodologies is important for their long-term success in the role.

How does the candidate work in a team?

Software development often requires teamwork. A candidate's ability to work effectively in a team can impact the overall productivity and success of projects.

Does the candidate have experience with other programming languages?

Having experience with other languages can be beneficial as it shows the candidate's ability to learn and adapt to different programming paradigms.

Is the candidate able to solve problems and debug code effectively?

Problem-solving skills are key in any programming role. Their ability to debug code will be crucial in maintaining and improving existing Io applications.

Has the candidate shown experience with concurrent programming?

Io is a concurrent language. Understanding and experience with concurrent programming is essential for developing efficient and effective Io applications.

Does the candidate demonstrate a strong understanding of Io programming language?

This is crucial as the job role requires expertise in Io programming. Their ability to explain concepts and solve problems in Io will determine their efficiency in the role.

Next 20 minutes

Specific Io 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 perform file I/O in Io?

In Io, file I/O is performed using the 'File' object. For example, 'file := File with("filename.txt")'.

What is the role of the 'lobby' in Io?

The 'lobby' in Io is the global namespace. All objects are created in the lobby unless specified otherwise.

How would you implement inheritance in Io?

In Io, inheritance is implemented through the 'clone' method. When an object is cloned, it inherits the slots of the original object.

Describe the difference between 'clone' and 'proto' in Io.

'Clone' creates a new object that shares the same slots as the original object. 'Proto' returns the prototype of an object, which is the object it was cloned from.

How would you handle exceptions in Io?

In Io, exceptions can be handled using the 'catch' method. For example, 'try(message) catch(Exception)'.

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The ideal back-end app developer

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

At this point, a skilled Io engineer should demonstrate strong technical knowledge, problem-solving abilities, and excellent communication skills. Red flags include lack of practical experience, inability to articulate complex ideas simply, or lack of enthusiasm for the role or the industry.

Digging deeper

Code questions

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

What does the following JSON code represent?

{
  'name': 'John',
  'age': 30,
  'city': 'New York'
}

The code represents a simple JSON object that contains three key-value pairs. The keys are 'name', 'age', and 'city', and their respective values are 'John', 30, and 'New York'.

What will be the output of the following JavaScript code that handles JSON?

let text = '{"name":"John", "age":30, "city":"New York"}';
let obj = JSON.parse(text);
console.log(obj.name);

The output of the code will be 'John'. The code first declares a JSON string, then it uses the JSON.parse() function to convert the string into a JavaScript object. Finally, it logs the 'name' property of the object to the console.

What does the following JavaScript code that handles JSON do?

let arr = '["Ford", "BMW", "Fiat"]';
let obj = JSON.parse(arr);
console.log(obj[1]);

The code first declares a JSON array of strings. It then uses JSON.parse() to convert the string into a JavaScript array. Finally, it logs the second element of the array (index 1) to the console. The output will be 'BMW'.

What does the following JavaScript code do with the JSON?

let text = '{"employees":[{"firstName":"John", "lastName":"Doe"},{"firstName":"Anna", "lastName":"Smith"},{"firstName":"Peter", "lastName":"Jones"}]}'
let obj = JSON.parse(text);
console.log(obj.employees[1].firstName);

The code first declares a JSON string that contains an array of objects. Each object represents an employee with a 'firstName' and 'lastName'. Then, it uses JSON.parse() to convert the string into a JavaScript object. Finally, it logs the 'firstName' of the second employee in the array to the console. The output will be 'Anna'.

What will be the output of the following JavaScript code that handles JSON?

let obj = {name: 'John', age: 30, city: 'New York'};
let myJSON = JSON.stringify(obj);
console.log(myJSON);

The output of the code will be a JSON string representation of the object: '{"name":"John","age":30,"city":"New York"}'. The JSON.stringify() function converts a JavaScript object into a JSON string.

What does the following JavaScript code that handles JSON do?

let arr = ['Ford', 'BMW', 'Fiat'];
let myJSON = JSON.stringify(arr);
console.log(myJSON);

The code first declares a JavaScript array of strings. It then uses JSON.stringify() to convert the array into a JSON string. Finally, it logs the JSON string to the console. The output will be '["Ford","BMW","Fiat"]'.

Wrap-up questions

Final candidate for Io role questions

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

Describe the difference between 'call' and 'perform' in Io.

'Call' and 'perform' are both used to invoke methods in Io. The difference is that 'call' invokes a method on an object without changing the current scope, while 'perform' changes the scope to the object the method is invoked on.

How would you create a custom operator in Io?

In Io, a custom operator can be created by defining a method on the OperatorTable object. For example, 'OperatorTable addOperator("myOperator", 10, "left")'.

What are coroutines in Io and how would you use them?

Coroutines in Io are a way to perform non-blocking operations. They are created using the 'Coroutine' object and executed with the 'resume' method.

How would you create a list in Io and add elements to it?

In Io, a list is created using the 'list' method and elements are added using the 'append' method. For example, 'myList := List clone; myList append(1)'.

Describe the difference between ':=', '=', and '::=' in Io.

':=' is used to create a new slot and assign a value to it. '=' is used to assign a value to an existing slot. '::=' is used to create a slot and assign a value to it, but also updates the slot in the object's prototype if it exists.

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Io application related

Product Perfect's Io development capabilities

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