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15 Must Know Coding Patterns

This document discusses 12 common coding patterns and their applications in system design interviews. The patterns covered are sliding window, two heaps, topological sort, two pointers, merge intervals, backtracking, trie, flood fill, segment tree, breadth-first search, depth-first search, and union-find. For each pattern, the document provides a definition, examples of usage, and additional details.

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Ali Samir
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205 views14 pages

15 Must Know Coding Patterns

This document discusses 12 common coding patterns and their applications in system design interviews. The patterns covered are sliding window, two heaps, topological sort, two pointers, merge intervals, backtracking, trie, flood fill, segment tree, breadth-first search, depth-first search, and union-find. For each pattern, the document provides a definition, examples of usage, and additional details.

Uploaded by

Ali Samir
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
Download as pdf or txt
Download as pdf or txt
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12 Must Know

Coding Patterns
&
Their Applications in
System Design Interview

DesignGurus.io
1. Sliding Window
Maintains a "window" of elements in a data
structure (usually an array or a string) to
optimize the solution of a problem.

Usage:
Network congestion control algorithms (like
TCP)
Data compression algorithms (like LZ77)
DesignGurus.io
2. Two Heaps
Uses two heaps (min-heap and max-heap) to
maintain a specific order of elements to
efficiently solve problems

Usage:
Managing a priority queue in a schedule.
Implementing Dijkstra's shortest path
algorithm.
Maintaining the median of a dynamic data
set.
DesignGurus.io
3. Topological Sort
Used for linear ordering of the vertices of a
directed acyclic graph (DAG) such that for every
directed edge (u, v), vertex u comes before
vertex v in the ordering.

Usage:
Scheduling tasks with dependencies.
Determining the order of compilation for a
set of source files.

DesignGurus.io
4. Two Pointers
Uses two pointers that move through the data
structure (often an array) in a coordinated
manner to solve problems.

Usage:
Merge-sort algorithm.
Binary search.

DesignGurus.io
5. Merge Intervals
Involves merging of overlapping or continuous
intervals in a given data structure (usually an
array or a list) to optimize solutions for a
specific problem.

Usage:
Scheduling meeting rooms.
Managing calendar events.
Optimizing resource allocation.

DesignGurus.io
6. Backtracking
Tries out different possibilities, undoing them,
and then trying out new paths until a solution is
found.

Usage:
Solving Sudoku puzzles.
Generating permutations and combinations.

DesignGurus.io
7. Trie (Prefix Tree)
Uses a tree-like data structure to efficiently
store and retrieve strings based on their
prefixes.

Usage:
Implementing an autocomplete system.
Spell checkers.
IP routing (Longest Prefix Matching).

DesignGurus.io
8. Flood Fill
Traverses a 2D grid (matrix) and replacing
connected elements of a specific value with a
new value.

Usage:
Filling a bounded area in graphics editors
(like MS Paint).
Counting connected regions in a 2D grid.

DesignGurus.io
9. Segment Tree
Uses a tree-like data structure to efficiently
perform range queries and updates on an array
or a list.

Usage:
Range queries in databases.
Calculating range-based statistics (e.g.,
minimum, maximum, sum).

DesignGurus.io
10. Breadth-First Search (BFS)
Traverses a tree or a graph using a breadth-first
approach, visiting all nodes at the current level
before moving to the next level.

Usage:
Web crawlers.
Social network analysis (finding friends of
friends) Routing algorithms (like OSPF) in
networking.

DesignGurus.io
11. Depth-First Search (DFS)
Traverses a tree or a graph using a depth-first
approach, visiting a node and exploring as far as
possible along a branch before backtracking.

Usage:
Solving mazes.
Finding connected components in a graph.
Generating permutations or combinations.

DesignGurus.io
12. Union-Find (Disjoint Set)
Uses a data structure to keep track of disjoint
sets and efficiently perform union and find
operations on them.

Usage:
Network connectivity
Finding connected components in a graph

DesignGurus.io
➡ Follow these techniques to distinguish
yourself from others!

➡ Learn more about these patterns in


"Grokking the Coding Interview" and
"Grokking the System Design Interview"
from DesignGurus.io

DesignGurus.io

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