Continued from Bringing Your Digital Portfolio to an Interview Part 1
3. Portable storage - So the interview is being held in a room without wireless access and you weren't allowed to bring in your Macbook Pro or your Google Nexus by the security guard who looks like he can arm wrestle Captain America. No sweat. Don't lug around your Seagate External Drive or Thunderbolt server just to show off your offline work (Due to security reasons, IT companies won't let it past their entrance anyway). Instead, bring a virus-free SD card or USB flash drive. I don't have to emphasis that your media needs to be formatted using FAT32 or else your interviewer's OSX or Windows might have problems accessing it. It may seem primitive bringing along an SD card or USB stick in this day or age but it's a great backup plan in case there's no other way to show off your work. Take note of file formats. Don't expect the interviewer to have the correct codec, Adobe software, or Flash version to run your document, program, or movie. Play it safe especially if you're applying for a job that involves proprietary Adobe formats.
Even if the interviewer doesn't pop in the SD card or browse through your flash drive, you've shown initiative and forward thinking by bringing storage along. It's better than saying "Hey, I can Bluetooth the files to you. . ." Final note: ask for the portable media back once the interview is over. They can easily forget about it and you'll end up losing your precious data.
4. DVDRW - Ok, so a lot of hardware have done away with disc drives and everyone views DVDRW or CDRW burners and discs as relics of the Middle Ages. However, like the SD card and USB flash drive, it's a great way to show that you came prepared to demonstrate or show your portfolio. Unlike the aforementioned portable storage, however, make sure that you're ready to lose the files you burn on to the disc. The HR guy expects that you're giving it to him for perusal. Later on, when he's ruffling through his list of interviewed applicants, it's a reminder of your incredible foresight. You don't have to create an autorun script (in fact, I don't recommend it) or even create an HTML landing page when he pops in the disc. Don't use non-branded scratched discs with Mickey Mouse or Naruto stickers on it though.
5. Secure your files - This suggestion is a no-brainer. Password protect your documents and make sure they are virus or malware free, particularly if you're using Microsoft Office formats. The interviewer doesn't need their system crashing midway through your story about how you manually removed malware from a dying Windows system.
6. Show AND tell - If you're allowed to bring your iPhone/iPad or Android device to the interview, show off your app, magazine, or web design using the device. Show first and only tell if the interviewer asks questions or you really want to highlight a specific feature (like how your design scales to different types of screens). Don't go overboard by bringing 4 types of smartphones, an ultraportable, and netbook to prove a point. Get ready to ask questions on how and why you designed your project in a certain way. Don't geek out or gush about Linux, Apple, Google, Microsoft, Raspberry Pi or a rival's product. Though CSS3 may not seem as complex as Java or Javascript, there is a certain style or approach to pulling it off too. Of course, if the interviewer isn't a tech guy, then it's somewhat pointless explaining to him why you chose Ruby over other languages.
Good luck to all those jobhunting this year! And if you ever become the next Mark Zuckerberg or Steve Jobs, shoot me an e-mail.
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