You go for an interview and are handed this question.

[Xithras]

50. Yep. Questions like that are routine for a lot of employers hiring tech positions.

Programmers, web developers, helpdesk workers, technologists...they all get questions like that. I've never seen the IPv4/v6 question, but I've personally seen "What year was the World Wide Web invented?", and "What does the 'http' in a web url stand for?" One of my former employers once asked the question, "What is the maximum connection speed of a 14,400 baud modem?" and more than half of the applicants got it wrong (hint: the easy answer is "14,400 baud", though they were very flexible in what they accepted).

Of course, I also once got the question: "In 250 words or less, please tell us your thoughts on 'Purple'?" How the heck do you answer THAT? The point of the question, of course, was to guage the applicants creativity.

Questions like these help to weed out the people who know "just enough" to do the job from the people who actually "get" technology and learn it for its own sake. Many employers won't hire a technology person if their technical comprehension is limited only to the skills needed for the job, instead favoring employees with a broader understanding and passion for technology.

The key to avoiding this? Never let yourself get into a rut. If you aren't willing to spend the rest of your life learning new technologies and geeking out on the small stuff, then technology jobs probably aren't for you. There's nothing new about this.