[jcalabro]

>"We accept any kind of code, be it a kata made during a workshop or a side project"

>"But it's still a somewhat "fake" code made for the only purpose to apply at the company"

The code I write for side projects is not "production quality" because I do it for my own entertainment. I would never feel comfortable showing it off in an interview because it doesn't represent me professionally. All of my positions have been strictly closed-source.

Additionally, the code I write for side projects is usually unlike the work I'd be doing professionally. I'm a web developer but most of the side projects I work on are either dinky little video games or open source hardware.

I'll cede that I do find my side projects more interesting to talk about but I generally try and write "high-ish quality code" (not "fake") for the take home interview projects that I've had to do.

[marcgg]

As I mentioned in the article, we don't expect the code presented to be "perfect" code. If you've managed to get a side project running very quickly thanks to tradeoffs you've made, it's also interesting. It's really just a way to have a place to discuss choices.