Software Alternatives, Accelerators & Startups

CloudShell VS Interview Cake

Compare CloudShell VS Interview Cake and see what are their differences

CloudShell logo CloudShell

Cloud Shell is a free admin machine with browser-based command-line access for managing your infrastructure and applications on Google Cloud Platform.

Interview Cake logo Interview Cake

Free practice programming interview questions. Interview Cake helps you prep for interviews to land offers at companies like Google and Facebook.
  • CloudShell Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-07-12
  • Interview Cake Landing page
    Landing page //
    2023-01-25

CloudShell features and specs

  • Integrated Environment
    CloudShell provides a fully integrated development environment directly within your browser, including access to Google Cloud resources, pre-installed Google Cloud SDK, and other useful tools.
  • Convenience
    Because it's browser-based, there is no need to install or configure anything locally, which can save considerable setup time and eliminate environment inconsistencies.
  • Security
    Operating within Google's infrastructure can add layers of security, including secure connection to cloud resources and less risk of exposing local machines to vulnerabilities.
  • Access to Project Resources
    Directly connects to Google Cloud resources associated with your account, making it easy to manage and deploy applications within your cloud environment.
  • Scalability
    Seamlessly scalable environment that can handle different workloads without performance degradation.
  • Persistent Storage
    CloudShell offers persistent storage, allowing users to save their work and configurations, which are available in future sessions.
  • Pre-installed Tools
    Includes a range of pre-installed tools, such as git, gcloud SDK, and language libraries, enabling efficient development and deployment workflows.

Possible disadvantages of CloudShell

  • Resource Limits
    CloudShell has usage limits, including limited disk space and CPU, which may not be sufficient for all types of workloads, particularly resource-intensive tasks.
  • Inactive Use Timeouts
    Sessions that are inactive for a period of time may be automatically terminated, which can disrupt ongoing work.
  • Dependency on Internet Connection
    Being a cloud-based solution, a stable internet connection is required. Any disruption in connectivity can hamper development and deployment processes.
  • Latency Issues
    Depending on your geographical location, there may be latency issues which can affect performance and response times.
  • Limited Customization
    While CloudShell provides many pre-installed tools, users have limited control over the environment compared to a locally managed development setup.
  • Paid Subscription Needed for Extensive Use
    Beyond the free tier, extensive usage of CloudShell resources may incur additional costs, which can add up depending on the scale and nature of the tasks.
  • Learning Curve
    New users who are not familiar with Google Cloud's ecosystem may face an initial learning curve to fully leverage CloudShell's capabilities.

Interview Cake features and specs

  • Comprehensive Coverage
    Interview Cake covers a wide range of topics and problems, making it a valuable resource for preparing for coding interviews across various domains.
  • Focus on Understanding
    Emphasizes understanding over memorization by breaking down problems into understandable concepts and providing thorough explanations.
  • Step-by-Step Solutions
    Offers step-by-step guides and solutions to problems, which can help users learn the reasoning behind different approaches.
  • Practice Problems
    Provides numerous practice problems that simulate real interview questions, helping users to test their interview skills.
  • Adaptive Strategy
    Helps users identify weaknesses and provides targeted practice based on their performance, aiding efficient study planning.

Possible disadvantages of Interview Cake

  • Price
    Interview Cake is a paid service, which might be a barrier for individuals on a tight budget seeking affordable or free resources.
  • Limited Interaction
    Lacks interactive coding environments or challenges, which might be less engaging compared to platforms that offer interactive learning.
  • Not a Comprehensive Learning Tool
    While great for interview preparation, it may not cover foundational programming concepts in-depth for complete beginners.
  • Update Frequency
    The content updates might not be as frequent as other platforms, potentially leading to outdated problem-solving techniques or questions.

Analysis of CloudShell

Overall verdict

  • Yes, CloudShell is a good tool, especially for those who are actively using Google Cloud Platform. It provides a user-friendly interface and a comprehensive set of tools to manage cloud resources effectively. Its convenience, combined with the power of GCP, makes it a valuable asset for cloud-based development and operations.

Why this product is good

  • CloudShell is a versatile tool offered by Google Cloud Platform (GCP) that provides a command-line environment directly in your web browser. It is particularly beneficial for developers and system administrators because it allows them to manage GCP resources easily without needing to install additional software on their local machines. CloudShell includes the Google Cloud SDK, along with other essential tools, making it a convenient and efficient option for cloud management tasks. Additionally, it offers persistent storage, allowing users to save their scripts and data between sessions. The integration with other GCP services enhances productivity by providing seamless access and control.

Recommended for

  • Developers who frequently work with Google Cloud Platform
  • System administrators managing GCP resources
  • New users of Google Cloud who need an easy introduction to command-line tools
  • Teams collaborating on GCP projects, as it supports session sharing

CloudShell videos

No CloudShell videos yet. You could help us improve this page by suggesting one.

Add video

Interview Cake videos

My Definitive Interview Cake Review

More videos:

  • Review - Interview Cake Review

Category Popularity

0-100% (relative to CloudShell and Interview Cake)
Text Editors
100 100%
0% 0
Online Learning
0 0%
100% 100
IDE
100 100%
0% 0
Education & Reference
0 0%
100% 100

User comments

Share your experience with using CloudShell and Interview Cake. For example, how are they different and which one is better?
Log in or Post with

Reviews

These are some of the external sources and on-site user reviews we've used to compare CloudShell and Interview Cake

CloudShell Reviews

We have no reviews of CloudShell yet.
Be the first one to post

Interview Cake Reviews

The Best Code Interview Prep Platforms in 2020
Frequently considered the best source for interview articles, tips, and content, Interview Cake is a crash course in getting a software development job.

Social recommendations and mentions

Based on our record, CloudShell should be more popular than Interview Cake. It has been mentiond 12 times since March 2021. We are tracking product recommendations and mentions on various public social media platforms and blogs. They can help you identify which product is more popular and what people think of it.

CloudShell mentions (12)

  • Intro to the YouTube APIs: searching for videos
    Command-line (gcloud) -- Those who prefer working in a terminal can enable APIs with a single command in the Cloud Shell or locally on your computer if you installed the Cloud SDK which includes the gcloud command-line tool (CLI) and initialized its use. If this is you, issue this command to enable the API: gcloud services enable youtube.googleapis.com Confirm all the APIs you've enabled with this command:... - Source: dev.to / 10 months ago
  • Explore the world with Google Maps APIs
    Gcloud/command-line - Finally, for those more inclined to using the command-line, you can enable APIs with a single command in the Cloud Shell or locally on your computer if you installed the Cloud SDK (which includes the gcloud command-line tool [CLI]) and initialized its use. If this is you, issue the following command to enable all three APIs: gcloud services enable geocoding-backend.googleapis.com... - Source: dev.to / about 1 year ago
  • Getting started with the Google Cloud CLI interactive shell for serverless developers
    While you might find that using the Google Cloud online console or Cloud Shell environment meets your occasional needs, for maximum developer efficiency you will want to install the Google Cloud CLI (gcloud) on your own system where you already have your favorite editor or IDE and git set up. - Source: dev.to / over 2 years ago
  • Cloud desktops aren't as good as you'd think
    Here is the product https://cloud.google.com/shell It has a quick start guide and docs. - Source: Hacker News / over 2 years ago
  • I do not have a personal laptop. Should I use my school's library computers to start learning or just wait until I get a laptop?
    If you are worried about creating other accounts etc - you can just use your gmail account with https://cloud.google.com/shell and that gives you a very small vm and a coding environment (replit or colab are way better than this though). Source: over 3 years ago
View more

Interview Cake mentions (3)

  • Just started Leetcode and I'm so lost...
    Here's another site that helped me when I was starting out: interviewcake.com (I think I had a free trial or something). Source: about 3 years ago
  • Getting a full time job before graduation
    Interviewcake.com has some great explanations and practice problems for leetcode style problems. I got the year subscription on sale. Source: almost 4 years ago
  • How to remove mental fatigue during interview
    I also used to do the exact same thing during a technical interview. Seems like an obvious answer, but I've always noticed the more prior practice I have, the less nervous I get. I think a good part of the mental fatigue comes from nerves. And those nerves were amplified when I encountered a problem for which I didn't immediately have a general grasp of the solution. But as soon as I got more consistent with my... Source: almost 4 years ago

What are some alternatives?

When comparing CloudShell and Interview Cake, you can also consider the following products

GitHub Codespaces - GItHub Codespaces is a hosted remote coding environment by GitHub based on Visual Studio Codespaces integrated directly for GitHub.

AlgoExpert.io - A better way to prep for tech interviews

CodeTasty - CodeTasty is a programming platform for developers in the cloud.

interviewing.io - Free, anonymous technical interview practice

Dirigible - Dirigible is a cloud development toolkit providing both development tools and runtime environment.

CodingInterview - CodingInterview offers essential information to help you conquer programming interviews.