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by nkcpiytdhauwuhc 4311 days ago
Fizzbuzz isn't supposed to be a test of your knowledge of the modulo operator. It's supposed to be a very low bar that can filter out a large percentage of candidates who have no business being there.

If you spend 20 minutes on Fizzbuzz, you're doing it wrong. It should take 10 tops, and be limited by how quickly the candidate can write.
2 comments
chrisbennet 4309 days ago
It isn't supposed to be a test of whether you know the modulo operator but in practice it works out that way.

True story; my wife was going over her (correct) answers to a coding test with the interviewer and he asked her "What's this?" in reference to the modulus operator. The interviewer didn't recognize it.

I use the modulus operator almost daily so it seems obvious to me but I realize that everyone has different experiences or things they are ignorant about. IMO, fizzbuzz is a test of whether you know the modulus operator "trick".

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lutusp 4309 days ago
> It isn't supposed to be a test of whether you know the modulo operator but in practice it works out that way.

Yep. And at HN, actually knowing this or anything else assures that you will be downvoted with a probability of 1.

> I use the modulus operator almost daily so it seems obvious to me but I realize that everyone has different experiences or things they are ignorant about.

I see the modulo operator applied to a common undergraduate math question -- if a given date lands on a Tuesday, and if you add 500 days, what day of the week does the result land on?

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squeaky-clean 4311 days ago
I think FizzBuzz is so popular that if you even needed me to describe the question, I'd be a little confused. I don't think I know any programmers with more than a year or two of experience/schooling that have never seen FizzBuzz before.

Now don't get me wrong, I wouldn't think poorly of someone or of their programming skills because of that. But not knowing about FizzBuzz is like not knowing the name of the current president. Have you been living under a rock for the past 5 years? It seems to be mentioned at least once a week on any sort of newsfeed, forum or blog related to programming.

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danielweber 4310 days ago
People have different social circles. I mentioned FizzBuzz at my current position and none had heard of it, but they all banged it out in 3 minutes.
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