If you don't know anything about programming, it can be difficult to tell whether someone is a real programmer or not. Fortunately, there is a very simple question that you can ask that any real programmer can answer.
Just ask: how much is 2 to the power of 8.
If they need to think about it, they aren't a real programmer.
The answer is 256, by the way.
How to Tell If Someone is an Exceptional Programmer
Just ask how much is 2 to the power of 16.
The answer is 6... uh... 65536! I always get this one wrong.
How to Tell If Someone is a 10x Programmer
Just ask how much is 2 to the power of 32.
The answer is 4 billion and something.