"Luis" <an****@webmail.co.za> wrote in message
news:69**************************@posting.google.c om...
Should I "know" how to do almost everything, or do the pro's still
have to refer to their "sources" when they need to do something that
they haven't done very often before?
When I interviewed for my job 3+ years ago, they barely asked me about what
I know. That was all on the resume anyway. Rather they asked me about past
problems and how I resolved them.
I told them that I would typically read manuals or reference books, ask
questions on Usenet, search on Google or Deja, ask peers that may have done
something similar, experiment in a non-production environment, etc..
They didn't ask me what TCP meant or to write code (although this might
happen for a position that is purely programming).
Employers know that the tech field is changing constantly and they really
want someone who can adapt, not necessarily someone who can memorize an ASP
reference book.
You might even get questions like "would you jump out of a plane if I asked
you" or "how would you move mount fiji". There is no right answer, the way
to answer the question is to demonstrate your outside-the-box thinking.
Would you jump out of a plane? It depends...
* what's the altitude
* what's the speed
* what's the geographic location
* why are you jumping
* would you have a parachute
* what's the consequence of not jumping
If the plane were sitting on a tarmac and you could jump down without
injuring yourself, then sure. But you wouldn't know this without knowing
the problem better.
How would you move mount fuji?
* impossible question, you can't really move a mountain using existing
technology
* why move it? can you move something else relative to the mountain?
* is there even a mount fuji (i don't know)
* can you just tunnel into it?
* etc.
Anyway, the point is it's not really what you know, but how you learn and
how you approach problems.
--
Mike