It is clearer how to interview someone experienced in Java / C++ or other languages closer to C#. In these cases the language and specific technologies are less important; what matters are the OOP principles.But how to do it with someone that comes from Progress to .NET and also, me as an interviewer, not knowing Progress at all?How much does Progress experience count for .NET/C# or OOP?Are there programming principles in common between the two worlds?Are these realy two different worlds?
How to interview for .NET/C# job a guy with experience on Progress?
c#;interview
I personally don't think the interview should change based on the persons background.I don't think interviews should focus on a specific language/tech but rather fundamentals of programming. If the person can't understand basic OOP/database/whatever you need - then that is the problem.Asking questions about specific tech - be it what he has used, or what you wish to use - doesn't work very well in my opinion.Ask him about good experiences and bad experiences, ask him to bring some code he is proud of and explain it to you (his ability to communicate is more important than you understanding the code), ask him generic problems that are not tech specific e.g. algorithms/design approaches.Experience depends on the person, good people will adapt with some time/help, and those who can't are the problem. A good grasp of fundamentals rather than being tied into one specific tech is what you need - after all, you'll want to move to .net 3,4,5,6 etc - you need someone who can handle those changes too.It bugs the life out of me when people ask questions like what a method/function signature is in a specific language. WHY?!?! Won't you give me a nice powerful IDE if I got the job who remembers this stuff for me? Won't I have access to books/Google/api docs?Work out if the person has fundamentals and good problem solving - just because another candidate has 'worked with' your tech for 2 years, won't tell you if they have a clue.