[srean]

Well, of course one can be a dick about it, but nothing in the parent post indicated that he was. May be you had a bad experience in the past and projecting it on the author of the comment. I tend to / try to assume good faith.

Picking up loosely specified directions and filling up the gaps is indeed an important skill to have. If I had the time to describe the solution in the minutest detail to a co-worker, I would have the time to write it myself. Often, its a luxury that I dont have. In such situations I would certainly appreciate the skill that a co-worker can fill in the necessary detail from pointers and rough directions.

[pavlov]

A whiteboard DP puzzle is totally different from any real-world engineering situation of “picking up loosely specified directions and filling up the gaps.”

No point in arguing this further. These tests are fundamentally just a performative power trip masquerading as objective measurement — the perfect storm of software engineer bias.

[srean]

I think you are projecting your own biases here. OP said "DP question", there is no mention of a 'puzzle' anywhere. As I said in another comment of mine on this page, I have had to use DP in each of my last three years in real projects. If i were to hire someone for help with these, I would definitely be looking for comfort with DP styled thinking in a candidate. In order to do so I do have to simplify and abstract out the problem statement.