WEBVTT 00:00.620 --> 00:02.180 Hello all and welcome back. 00:02.180 --> 00:07.760 So in this video I would like to now talk about the process to solve a particular problem. 00:07.940 --> 00:13.910 Now as you will move forward in this particular course, you will find that we have created so many 00:13.910 --> 00:16.610 problems which you have to try out yourself. 00:16.640 --> 00:22.520 There are more than 100 plus coding exercises in which you have to write the code and solve a particular 00:22.520 --> 00:23.270 problem. 00:23.330 --> 00:29.090 Those have been very meticulously designed to make sure that you are able to revise each and every of 00:29.090 --> 00:29.990 your concept. 00:30.260 --> 00:36.110 Now, before you jump onto any coding exercise, I want to make sure that you understand what exactly 00:36.110 --> 00:42.740 is going to be the process to solve a particular problem, because the same is very helpful in writing 00:42.740 --> 00:43.460 the code. 00:43.910 --> 00:50.450 Plus, when you will be giving any interview, this is something which you have to always remember so 00:50.450 --> 00:55.190 that you are able to communicate the proper thought process to your interviewer. 00:55.220 --> 00:58.880 To showcase that you are able to think on all directions. 00:58.880 --> 01:02.240 When you are going to solve any particular problem. 01:02.510 --> 01:05.210 Now this advice is coming from a lot of experience. 01:05.210 --> 01:12.680 So I have been taking so many interviews, like I have actually conducted more than 100 plus interviews 01:12.680 --> 01:17.660 professionally, then have given so many interviews in major companies startups. 01:18.470 --> 01:23.360 Along with that, I of course am a mentor at different different platforms where I weekly interact with 01:23.360 --> 01:28.550 many students for taking their mock interview to understand what problem they are facing, and also 01:28.550 --> 01:31.400 to see why they failed in the interview which they have given. 01:31.490 --> 01:35.870 So this is going to be a lot important, so please make sure that you follow it properly. 01:35.900 --> 01:37.580 Okay, great. 01:37.580 --> 01:42.410 So now let us start everyone and see that if we are given a problem, what we have to do. 01:42.740 --> 01:48.980 The biggest mistake which most students do is that they directly jump into writing the code. 01:49.160 --> 01:51.200 And that is something which we should never do. 01:51.230 --> 01:57.830 Okay, so the very first thing is to always analyze our problem. 01:57.860 --> 01:58.550 Okay. 01:58.700 --> 02:03.040 So the very first thing is to analyze our problem. 02:04.210 --> 02:09.670 Now, what do I mean when I say that we have to analyze the problem which we are given? 02:09.760 --> 02:18.400 We have to see that what is the input we are given and what is the output which we have to. 02:20.410 --> 02:22.420 Print or return okay. 02:22.960 --> 02:29.620 Along with that, moving forward, you will understand that how we can also handle the constraints which 02:29.620 --> 02:30.910 are provided in our problem. 02:30.910 --> 02:31.870 So many problems. 02:31.870 --> 02:33.640 They have constraint on some variables right. 02:33.670 --> 02:38.110 The input size, the time or any particular variable. 02:38.110 --> 02:39.490 It has some constraint. 02:39.520 --> 02:45.610 All these are the things which we have to initially make sure that we are analyzing before jumping to 02:45.640 --> 02:46.690 write the solution. 02:46.990 --> 02:49.930 Second, we should make sure. 02:49.960 --> 02:54.880 Now again, before writing or jumping to the code, we should break down our problem. 02:57.670 --> 02:59.290 Break down problem. 03:03.070 --> 03:05.080 Into smaller sub parts. 03:09.850 --> 03:12.490 Now this is the reason we learned about flowchart and everything. 03:12.490 --> 03:16.300 The pseudocode many things will be there which is going to be very straightforward. 03:16.330 --> 03:17.620 You don't have to do anything. 03:17.620 --> 03:19.090 You can just take in the input. 03:19.090 --> 03:19.840 You have the input. 03:19.870 --> 03:22.930 Now you can maybe go through your list. 03:22.960 --> 03:24.040 Everything is fine. 03:24.040 --> 03:30.640 But we have to make sure that if any particular complex part is there and problem as a whole should 03:30.640 --> 03:34.750 be breaking down into the overall smallest subproblem. 03:34.750 --> 03:41.650 The reason is that as of now, also, we have a vague idea that what we have to do if we try to write 03:41.650 --> 03:46.180 the code right now, then it's surely going to happen that we are going to induce many errors into our 03:46.180 --> 03:46.690 code. 03:46.690 --> 03:50.350 And then we have to spend a lot of time debugging, right? 03:50.350 --> 03:53.110 It is always said to think twice and code once. 03:53.110 --> 03:55.300 So this is from where this philosophy is coming. 03:55.480 --> 03:56.380 Third. 03:59.370 --> 04:00.480 Remember. 04:02.700 --> 04:04.770 Or enlist. 04:06.960 --> 04:09.300 The concept. 04:10.410 --> 04:12.330 Now again, this is coming from an experience. 04:12.330 --> 04:14.820 Let's say the problem is given for a list. 04:14.820 --> 04:19.020 Or it contains a dictionary, or it contains, let's say a set okay. 04:19.050 --> 04:22.920 So what are the different things which you are aware about that particular things? 04:23.160 --> 04:27.000 Quickly remember that in your mind we know that set doesn't allow duplicates. 04:27.030 --> 04:29.550 Dictionary keys and values are stored. 04:29.730 --> 04:36.210 List can store anything, whereas a tuple is something which is something not cannot be extended. 04:36.240 --> 04:36.840 Right. 04:36.840 --> 04:42.210 So all these things, all these understanding, you should remember depending on what is given to you 04:42.210 --> 04:43.230 in your question. 04:44.010 --> 04:50.100 Next part is take 2 to 3 examples. 04:51.300 --> 04:59.040 Normally what happens is that the example is given okay in a problem which is like asked to you be solved. 04:59.160 --> 05:00.090 Interviewer. 05:00.120 --> 05:04.770 Also, if he will be giving you any particular problem, ask him for some examples. 05:04.800 --> 05:05.490 Okay. 05:05.520 --> 05:10.410 If he has not given that, if he has just given a single example, ask him for another one to clear 05:10.410 --> 05:16.650 out your understanding that what you are thinking is exactly what the problem is asking as well. 05:16.680 --> 05:26.250 So take 2 or 3 examples, and the major reason for that is to clear out confusion or gap. 05:26.280 --> 05:27.630 Again, this is very, very important. 05:27.660 --> 05:34.290 Many students I have seen that they are just assume many things and that is where they miss out on a 05:34.290 --> 05:35.370 lot of opportunities. 05:35.400 --> 05:35.610 Okay. 05:35.640 --> 05:37.440 So this is not something which you have to do. 05:37.470 --> 05:39.630 If I personally take any interview. 05:39.660 --> 05:42.060 Something which I have done in companies. 05:42.150 --> 05:47.760 If I give a problem and the student doesn't ask for any example, that's a huge red flag for me. 05:47.790 --> 05:51.720 Even if the problem is as straightforward as finding the maximum in a list. 05:51.750 --> 05:53.550 Okay, great. 05:53.580 --> 05:54.720 So let us move forward. 05:54.720 --> 06:00.140 Then once this is done, then we can think of the problem of the solution. 06:00.140 --> 06:02.390 And now we can write. 06:05.330 --> 06:06.620 A pseudo code. 06:10.730 --> 06:13.550 On a paper or a scratch code. 06:13.550 --> 06:14.360 On a paper. 06:14.540 --> 06:17.750 Now, I am a huge proponent of writing the pseudo code. 06:17.780 --> 06:23.330 Code, or at least the basic idea of something complex on a paper, because that is a lot helpful, 06:23.360 --> 06:23.600 right? 06:23.630 --> 06:26.540 I am not asking you to write the full code with all the syntax and everything. 06:26.540 --> 06:28.250 No, just the basic code. 06:28.280 --> 06:28.520 Okay. 06:28.550 --> 06:36.680 So instead of writing the full for loop, maybe you can say that for I to n okay, something like this. 06:36.680 --> 06:39.500 But you should have an idea that okay, what exactly you want to do. 06:39.560 --> 06:42.200 This is something which is required initially a lot. 06:42.200 --> 06:47.510 But as you move forward, once you have solved 100 problems, then it will become automatically and 06:47.510 --> 06:50.270 you will just be writing the complex, logical part. 06:50.450 --> 06:53.060 Okay, can we now jump to our solution? 06:53.090 --> 06:54.410 Well, not as of now as well. 06:54.440 --> 06:58.820 Now what I want you to do, everyone sixth is to dry run it once. 06:58.850 --> 07:05.030 Okay, so what I mean by dry run, you will be seeing me doing this a lot in your future problems. 07:05.030 --> 07:10.730 But dry running basically means that whatever logic or solution you have written, whatever examples 07:10.730 --> 07:16.760 you have chosen, just try to run it through those, run those examples through the solution or the 07:16.760 --> 07:21.230 pseudocode to understand if it is happening exactly the way you would like. 07:21.260 --> 07:27.350 Okay, there are something which you have not assumed, okay, that thing is going to help catch more 07:27.560 --> 07:30.740 errors or bugs in our code or in our understanding. 07:30.740 --> 07:36.470 So run it once, then the next one is going to be. 07:36.680 --> 07:38.990 Finally, write down your code, okay? 07:38.990 --> 07:40.340 Write down your solution. 07:41.750 --> 07:46.040 Once you write down the solution at this step, you will see that your overall solution is going to 07:46.040 --> 07:46.670 have less. 07:46.700 --> 07:54.290 Lots of less errors like it will have so many less errors than what you it could have been if you would 07:54.320 --> 07:55.940 have directly start to write the code. 07:55.940 --> 07:59.300 So it's going to be a lot bug free, right? 07:59.330 --> 08:03.980 It is not that you will be inducing some errors here, because you have focused on lots of things in 08:03.980 --> 08:05.720 the first 4 or 5 steps. 08:05.750 --> 08:10.010 Now again, these are not the steps which you have to write down and do before each problem. 08:10.010 --> 08:13.010 Initially for the first 2025 problem. 08:13.040 --> 08:14.990 Be very focused on these things. 08:14.990 --> 08:16.250 As you move forward. 08:16.250 --> 08:20.990 They will start happening, uh, internally without your proper thought. 08:20.990 --> 08:23.900 So you will just get habitual to all these steps. 08:24.530 --> 08:27.320 Then there is a last one, which is again very important. 08:27.320 --> 08:29.000 And I will write it in green. 08:29.540 --> 08:31.910 And this again is coming from an experience. 08:31.940 --> 08:35.240 Look out for. 08:37.460 --> 08:38.810 Edge cases. 08:41.720 --> 08:44.000 Or boundary condition. 08:46.280 --> 08:50.060 If you are asked to get the length of an array okay. 08:50.090 --> 08:51.110 Or a list. 08:51.140 --> 08:52.700 What if the list is empty? 08:53.780 --> 08:58.990 What will you do if you have to get the last or the first number in a list. 08:59.020 --> 08:59.650 Okay. 08:59.680 --> 09:07.030 All these are the boundary or the edge condition on which majorly we see our code failing in the overall 09:07.030 --> 09:07.510 course. 09:07.510 --> 09:11.560 I will also be keep on reminding you that this is some edge case. 09:11.560 --> 09:15.490 This is some boundary case which we have to handle because they are very important. 09:15.490 --> 09:19.900 They are actually the reason your code is going to fail even after thinking about each and everything. 09:20.320 --> 09:25.750 And once you have now followed this process each and every step, I can assure you that your code is 09:25.750 --> 09:29.710 going to be proper without any error and it is going to run as well. 09:29.740 --> 09:30.370 Okay, everyone. 09:30.370 --> 09:36.220 So this is the proper overall structure which you should follow to solve your problem. 09:36.430 --> 09:39.820 These steps are something which I have created based on my experience okay. 09:39.850 --> 09:41.770 Not like you will find them somewhere. 09:41.800 --> 09:46.600 The boundary condition, edge cases, the dry running it once, then writing the pseudo code on a paper 09:46.600 --> 09:49.870 as opposed to people suggesting that don't write anything on paper. 09:49.870 --> 09:53.290 No, you should write the pseudo code on a paper or on the IDE as well. 09:53.320 --> 09:58.800 Okay, just like in the last class, we saw how we wrote this kind of a pseudo Pseudocode, right? 09:58.860 --> 10:04.890 The same will also get you into a habit that tomorrow, if you are giving an interview, you are able 10:04.890 --> 10:09.540 to first communicate with your interviewer that hey, this is the approach I'm working on, right? 10:09.570 --> 10:11.370 So that is again very, very important. 10:11.400 --> 10:14.310 Directly jumping into the solution will not take you anywhere. 10:14.340 --> 10:16.950 We have to make sure to write the solution. 10:17.670 --> 10:20.190 It is not that we have to quickly write it. 10:20.190 --> 10:23.190 If you are not understood things, then it's going to be a problem anyway. 10:23.220 --> 10:27.960 Once you follow this overall process, you are going to write the solution quickly. 10:27.960 --> 10:34.020 Then someone who does not do it, and I can assure you, after 5070 problems it is going to be natural. 10:34.020 --> 10:38.580 You don't have to actually worry about them and internally you will be doing each and every of those 10:38.580 --> 10:39.210 steps. 10:39.240 --> 10:41.280 Okay, so cool everyone. 10:41.370 --> 10:44.280 Moving forward, I will also be solving some questions for you. 10:44.310 --> 10:49.890 You will have lots of coding exercise, so please make sure that you are following this framework and 10:49.890 --> 10:55.650 you will see a change in the way your code gets passed or overall in your coding journey. 10:55.680 --> 10:58.710 Okay, so great everyone, let's meet in the next video.