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This is so true.

I remember one of my interviews that went well in the end. In the middle of the interview, they mentioned using Java and building web apps. At the time, I was a C++ developer with no web development experience.

I said: "I never did web development," and their response was, "You do know how to write source code, don't you?"

I said: "Of course I do, but..."

They cut me off with: "You will pick it up, don't worry about it."

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Maybe they figured knowing C++ was a sign of your general programming aptitude?

Also, how right were they?

I have seen a C++ dev. almost brought to tears when trying to fix a CSS issue at a previous job. Then he broke into tears of laughter when I showed him `yarn build:dev` and the tailwind config. and package.json files :D.

Better to laugh about it than cry about it, eh :].

I recall interviews from that era too, where the interviewers didn't fully comprehend the jobs they were hiring for.

"You know how to write source code, don't you?"

Answer: "yes, but I mostly prefer to write fully compiled code directly to disk. Much more efficient".

Real programmers use a magnetized needle and a steady hand...

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