Arcadia Software Development Engineer Interview Questions and Answers

Round duration - 90 minutes
Round difficulty - Medium

Q1. 
Longest Increasing Subsequence Problem Statement
Given 'N' students standing in a row with specific heights, your task is to find the length of the longest strictly increasing subsequence of their heights...read more
Ans. 
Find the length of the longest strictly increasing subsequence of heights of students in a row.
• Iterate through the heights array and for each element, find the length of the longest increasing subsequence ending at that element.

• Use dynamic programming to keep track of the longest increasing subsequence length for each element.

• Return the maximum length found as the result.
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Q2. 
Overlapping Intervals Problem Statement
You are given the start and end times of 'N' intervals. Write a function to determine if any two intervals overlap.
Note:
If an interval ends at time T and anothe...read more
Ans. 
Given start and end times of intervals, determine if any two intervals overlap.
• Iterate through intervals and check if any two intervals overlap by comparing their start and end times

• Sort intervals based on start times for efficient comparison

• Consider edge cases where intervals end and start at the same time
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Q3. What SQL queries were asked during your interview?
Ans. 
Various SQL queries related to data manipulation and retrieval were asked during the interview.
• Basic SELECT queries to retrieve data from a single table

• JOIN queries to retrieve data from multiple tables based on a common column

• Aggregate functions like COUNT, SUM, AVG, etc. to perform calculations on data

• Subqueries to retrieve data based on the result of another query

• UPDATE queries to modify existing data in a table

• DELE...read more
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Round duration - 60 Minutes
Round difficulty - Medium

Q1. 
Zig-Zag String Problem Statement
Given a string STR of size N and an integer M representing the number of rows in the zig-zag pattern, return the string formed by concatenating all rows when the string ST...read more
Ans. 
Arrange a string in zig-zag pattern with given number of rows and concatenate the rows.
• Iterate through the string and distribute characters to rows based on zig-zag pattern

• Concatenate the characters in each row to get the final result

• Handle edge cases like when number of rows is 1 or equal to the length of the string
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Q2. 
Next Permutation Problem Statement
You are given a permutation of 'N' integers. A sequence of 'N' integers is considered a permutation if it includes all integers from 1 to 'N' exactly once. Your task is ...read more
Ans. 
The task is to rearrange a given permutation of 'N' integers to form the lexicographically next greater permutation.
• Iterate from right to left to find the first element that is smaller than the element to its right.

• Swap this element with the smallest element to its right that is greater than it.

• Reverse the elements to the right of the swapped element to get the lexicographically next greater permutation.
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Round duration - 60 Minutes
Round difficulty - Medium

Q1. 
Remove Consecutive Duplicates Problem Statement
Given a string S, your task is to recursively remove all consecutive duplicate characters from the string.
Input:
String S
Output:
Output string
Constr...read more
Ans. 
Recursively remove consecutive duplicate characters from a string.
• Use recursion to check if the current character is the same as the next character, if so skip the next character

• Base case: if the string is empty or has only one character, return the string

• Example: Input: 'aaabcc', Output: 'abc'
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Q2. 
Print Permutations - String Problem Statement
Given an input string 'S', you are tasked with finding and returning all possible permutations of the input string.
Input:
The first and only line of input ...read more
Ans. 
Return all possible permutations of a given input string.
• Use recursion to generate all possible permutations of the input string.

• Swap characters at different positions to generate permutations.

• Handle duplicate characters in the input string by using a set to store unique permutations.
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Round duration - 60 Minutes
Round difficulty - Medium

Q1. Design an e-commerce website similar to Flipkart or Amazon.
Ans. 
Design an e-commerce website similar to Flipkart or Amazon.
• Implement user-friendly interface for easy navigation

• Include search functionality with filters for products

• Incorporate secure payment gateway for transactions

• Provide personalized recommendations based on user behavior

• Include customer reviews and ratings for products

• Implement order tracking and delivery status updates

• Offer various payment options like credit/deb
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Aptitude test will a hackerrank test where it might have technical MCQ and/or coding test.

Q1. Interviewer will test your logic building capability with puzzel/coding and technical questions and experience discussion.
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Q1. Its a normal discussion with HR about CTC and all.
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Round duration - 75 minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

This was the coding round which consisted of three coding questions and the time limit was of 75 minutes. The platform used was Co-Cubes. 3 questions were asked of 2, 3 and 5 marks respectively with varying difficulty.

Q1. 
Nearest Multiple of 10 Problem Statement
Given an integer N, find the nearest multiple of 10. If there are multiple nearest multiples, return the smallest one.
Input:
The first line contains an integer ...read more
Ans. 
Given an integer, find the nearest multiple of 10. If multiple nearest multiples, return the smallest one.
• Iterate through each test case

• Calculate the remainder when dividing N by 10

• If remainder is less than or equal to 5, nearest multiple is N - remainder

• If remainder is greater than 5, nearest multiple is N + (10 - remainder)
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Q2. 
Day of the Week Calculation
Your task is to create a function that determines the day of the week for any given date, whether in the past or the future.
Input:
The first line consists of an integer 'T',...read more
Ans. 
Create a function to determine the day of the week for any given date.
• Parse the input integers to create a date object

• Use a library or algorithm to calculate the day of the week for the given date

• Return the corresponding day of the week as a string
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Q3. 
Delete N Nodes After M Nodes in a Linked List
Given a singly linked list and two integers 'N' and 'M', traverse the linked list to retain 'M' nodes and then delete the next 'N' nodes. Continue this proces...read more
Ans. 
Traverse a linked list to retain 'M' nodes and then delete the next 'N' nodes, repeating until the end of the list.
• Create a function that takes the head of the linked list, 'N', and 'M' as input parameters.

• Traverse the linked list, retaining 'M' nodes and deleting the next 'N' nodes in each iteration.

• Continue this process until the end of the linked list is reached.

• Update the next pointers accordingly to skip 'N' nodes...read more
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Round duration - 30 minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

This was a written round and we were expected to write fully functional code, without any bugs and errors. Library functions used if any, had to be explained and if possible, code for that too (not that rigorous). Pseudocode and algorithms were also allowed. All the assumptions made had to be explained as well.

Q1. 
Look-And-Say Sequence Problem Statement
The Look-And-Say sequence is a series of positive integers generated in a specific pattern:
1, 11, 21, 1211, 111221, 312211, 13112221,...
To construct this sequen...read more
Ans. 
The Look-And-Say sequence is a series of positive integers generated in a specific pattern based on the count of digits in the previous number.
• Implement a function to generate the Nth term of the Look-And-Say sequence efficiently.

• Use a loop to iterate through the sequence generation process.

• Keep track of the count of consecutive digits in each number to generate the next number.

• Handle the constraints of the number of t...read more
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Q2. 
Rearrange Array to Form Largest Number
Given an array ARR consisting of non-negative integers, rearrange the numbers to form the largest possible number. The digits within each number cannot be changed.
...read more
Ans. 
Rearrange the array elements to form the largest possible number by concatenating them.
• Sort the array elements in a custom way to form the largest number.

• Convert integers to strings for comparison while sorting.

• Handle edge cases like leading zeros in the final number.

• Example: For input [12, 5, 34], the output should be '53412'.
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Round duration - 50 minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

The interviewer was very friendly and started asking me questions by making me comfortable.

Q1. 
Simplify Directory Path Problem Statement
You are provided with a directory path in Unix-style notation, and your task is to simplify it according to given rules.
In a Unix-style file system:
• A dot (...read more
Ans. 
The task is to simplify a directory path in Unix-style notation according to given rules.
• Use a stack to keep track of directories while iterating through the input path.

• Handle cases for '.', '..', and multiple slashes to simplify the path.

• Return the simplified path starting with a slash and without a trailing slash.
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Q2. 
Polynomial Simplification Problem Statement
You are provided with two arrays representing the coefficients and degrees of a polynomial expression. Your task is to simplify this polynomial into its general...read more
Ans. 
Simplify a polynomial expression by combining like terms and arranging them in descending order of degrees.
• Iterate through the coefficients and degrees arrays to combine like terms

• Create a map to store coefficients based on degrees

• Sort the map keys in descending order to get the simplified polynomial
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Round duration - 40 minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

This round was focused on resume and projects

Round duration - 30 minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

This round was basically a mix of HR and creative design round. The interviewer wanted to check whether the candidate can think out-of-the-box with regard to any given problem and come up with unique, optimized solutions.

Round duration - 60 Minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

It was a hangout video call. The interviewer asked me these questions. Tell me about yourself and 1 coding question.

Q1. 
Special Numbers Problem Statement
Your task is to find the total count of special numbers within a range from 1 to a given integer, 'MAXVAL'. A special number is defined as a number whose digits, when rot...read more
Ans. 
Count the total number of special numbers within a given range by rotating digits 180 degrees.
• Create a function to check if a number is a special number by rotating its digits.

• Iterate through the range from 1 to MAXVAL and count the special numbers.

• Handle the digit rotation mapping for 0, 1, 6, 8, 9.

• Return the count of special numbers for each test case.
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Round duration - 60 Minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

This was an On-site (Behavioural Round) interview. He asked me these questions.

Round duration - 60 Minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

This was another On-site ( DS & Algo) algorithm.

Q1. 
Covid Vaccination Distribution Problem
As the Government ramps up vaccination drives to combat the second wave of Covid-19, you are tasked with helping plan an effective vaccination schedule. Your goal is...read more
Ans. 
Given constraints, find max vaccines administered on a specific day during a vaccination drive.
• Iterate through each test case and calculate the maximum number of vaccines distributed on the specified day.

• Distribute vaccines evenly across days while maximizing the number on the specified day.

• Ensure that the sum of vaccines administered does not exceed the maximum allowed.

• Consider edge cases like when the number of days ...read more
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Round duration - 60 Minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

Another On-site ( DS & Algo) interview.

Q1. 
Painter's Partition Problem Statement
Given an array/list representing boards, where each element denotes the length of a board, and a number ‘K’ of available painters, determine the minimum time required...read more
Ans. 
Determine the minimum time required to paint all boards with given constraints.
• Use binary search to find the minimum and maximum possible time to paint all boards.

• Iterate through the boards and assign them to painters based on the time constraints.

• Calculate the total time taken to paint all boards with the assigned painters.
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Q2. 
Chocolate Distribution Problem
You are given an array/list CHOCOLATES of size 'N', where each element represents the number of chocolates in a packet. Your task is to distribute these chocolates among 'M'...read more
Ans. 
Distribute chocolates among students to minimize the difference between the largest and smallest number of chocolates.
• Sort the array of chocolates.

• Use sliding window technique to find the minimum difference between the largest and smallest number of chocolates.

• Return the minimum difference as the output.
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Round duration - 60 Minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

Another On-site ( DS & Algo) interview.

Q1. 
Problem Statement: Minimize the Maximum
You are given an array of integers and an integer K. For each array element, you can adjust it by increasing or decreasing it by a value of K. Your goal is to minim...read more
Ans. 
Given an array of integers and an integer K, minimize the difference between the maximum and minimum elements after adjusting each element by +/- K.
• Sort the array in non-decreasing order.

• For each element, calculate the difference between the current element and the next element.

• Adjust the element by adding or subtracting K to minimize the difference.

• Return the minimum possible difference between the maximum and minimum
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Round duration - 60 minutes
Round difficulty - Easy

On-site ( DS & Algo) interview.
Google mainly focuses on logic and how you are coming with a solution. It notes down each and every small mistake. Interviewers are really very helpful. They expect clear code with an optimal approach.

Q1. 
Farthest Distance From Lands Problem Statement
Given a binary square matrix 'ARR' with 'N' rows and 'N' columns, where '0' represents water and '1' represents land.
Determine the water cell whose distanc...read more
Ans. 
Find the water cell farthest from land in a binary matrix using Manhattan distance.
• Iterate through the matrix to find all land cells and water cells

• Calculate the Manhattan distance of each water cell to the nearest land cell

• Return the maximum distance found
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