Test Assignments

In recent years I have applied to numerous development jobs driven by my will to develop my career and find better pay. It’s common nowadays for companies to give test assignments supposed to verify the candidate’s coding skills, as well as his/her ability to organize work. There is no test assignment I have failed to fulfil, but there are many times when I failed to explain it properly in a technical interview discussing my solution. I am a self-taught developer and have no formal technical education (excluding the high school where I specialized in microprocessors – a more hardware-oriented field of study). So, when the technical interviewer says “Nice solution, but can you describe the cyclomatic complexity of it?” I am done.

Honestly, I am aware of my skills, strengths and weaknesses. I haven’t gained experience with a lot of modern and trendy technologies that well-paying companies require. What kept me in the game for 15 years is mostly my ability to troubleshoot complex problems and provide simple solutions to them. Additionally, I have excellent communication skills, and I can explain complex technical issues to non-technical stakeholders in a way that is easy to understand. This has proven valuable in many situations, where I have been able to build strong relationships with clients and stakeholders and ensure that everyone is on the same page. That’s why my recent employers trust me to mentor and onboard others, not because of my top-notch up-to-date experience with all the fancy new technologies that popped up recently.

Anyway. This post is a short review of what I’ve done as coding challenges in recent years. I hope it’s a pretty comprehensive code base proving my ability to solve problems with code. Honestly, if I have to write yet another code assignment, I feel better working on something else and fuck development.

  • Popover demo
    • Used technologies: Bootstrap 4, jQuery, Webpack
    • Status: This was a test assignment for a part-time full-stack development position. The requirement was to stick to Bootstrap 4, jQuery and Webpack because it was a Laravel project with a legacy front. The client did not like my solution.
    • Github: https://github.com/stz184/popover-demo
  • Dummy web gallery
    • Used technologies: React, bootstrap
    • Status: It was supposed to verify my ability to work with React. The client was a worldwide famous delivery company.
    • Github: https://github.com/stz184/dummy-gallery
  • A news portal with a login
    • Used technologies: TypeScript/React.js/Tailwind CSS framework/Node.js backend
    • Status: The project was successfully finished but I got a rejection because of a “changed situation in the company”. It was my very first experience working with TypeScript so it may not be the best example for excellent coding practices with it.
    • GitHub: https://github.com/stz184/pfg-test/tree/news-project
  • Battleships game
    • Used technologies: React, Laravel
    • Status: Obviously, I did not get the job. The project was my very first experience working with Laravel.
    • Github: https://github.com/stz184/battleships
  • Gopher translator
    • Used technologies: Golang
    • Status: Yet another missed opportunity. The company was looking for PHP developers willing to switch to Go. I do enjoy coding with Go but I have limited experience working with it on the open-source project Photoview, so I decided it was a great opportunity to get into system programming and more trendy technology while getting paid for it. I failed to explain my solution to the CTO.
    • Github: https://github.com/stz184/gopher-translate
  • Writing automation tests for websocket notifications
    • Used technologies: node.js, chai, sinon, mocha
    • Status: I did this to help a friend of mine apply for an Automation QA job but having no experience with Web sockets. She got the job with my code 🙂
    • Github: https://github.com/stz184/bell
  • Photoview – self-hosted Google Photos alternative
    • Used technologies: Golang, React, TypeScript
    • Status: I have been a top contributor to this open-source project a few years ago. Currently, I do not have the time and motivation to keep working on it because I am spending my entire time working on commercial projects – a 9-to5 job, freelance projects and teaching. Sadly, paying the bills is much more critical than Open-source initiatives. It was my first Go project and my first experience with a system programing language.
    • Github: https://github.com/stz184/photoview
  • PHP Phonebook
    • Used technologies: PHP (flight PHP microframework), bootstrap, jQuery
    • Status: This project won me a job as a Senior PHP developer back in 2015. Good old times when the web was much simpler.
    • Github: https://github.com/stz184/php-phonebook
  • Phonebook in Go
    • Used technologies: Golang
    • Status: Yet another project that failed to win me a job. I was applying for a senior developer position with the option to switch from another language to Go.
    • Github: https://github.com/stz184/go-phonebook