[EricRiese]

Something bothers me about these questions. In the real world, when you're solving a problem, you have so much context. These questions are like waking up from a coma and you're in a video game and you don't even know the rules.

Obviously in the real world you need to ask follow up questions sometimes, but you have at least some context for orientation.

[muzani]

Part of the test is whether you try to know the rules. People are going to be dropped into a complex codebase with outdated documentation. For more senior roles, you want people who bring in expertise instead of just doing what they're told.

There's a certain kind of personality that will grind Leetcode for months but never develop a skill for questioning the question.

What kind of file am I transferring? How many machines and how frequently? Does it need to be encrypted? Who needs access? In a video game, you move the mouse around and mash buttons.

[paulcole]

It seems like you’re indirectly making a lot of dangerous assumptions.

Why would it be wrong to ask about the rules?

Why would a good answer start with anything other than getting at least some context for orientation?

[jdsnape]

I don’t know, I have definitely been approached by someone with that exact statement before. Then I have to figure out what they’re actually trying to achieve to avoid an x-y problem, and figure out the right solution.

I would totally expect a good interview candidate to be able to ask questions to establish the context