Forem: Seenivasan A

CRACKING CODING INTERVIEW

Seenivasan A — Sun, 24 May 2026 17:59:51 +0000

Technical interviews at top companies like Google, Amazon, and Meta are often centered around coding and algorithm-based problem-solving. Many students feel nervous about these interviews because they are very different from regular academic exams. However, understanding the interview process can make preparation easier and more effective.
In most software engineering interviews, candidates are given one or two coding problems and are expected to explain their thought process while solving them. Interviewers are not only checking whether the final answer is correct, but also evaluating how candidates think, communicate, and approach difficult problems.

What Interviewers Evaluate

Interviewers generally focus on five important areas:

1. Analytical Skills

- This is one of the most important aspects of coding interviews. Interviewers observe how candidates analyze a problem, identify patterns, and choose efficient solutions.
- For example, if a candidate is asked to find duplicate elements in an array, a brute-force solution may work, but an optimized approach using a hash set demonstrates stronger problem-solving ability.

Example

nums = [1, 2, 3, 2, 4, 5, 1]
seen = set()

for num in nums:
    if num in seen:
        print("Duplicate:", num)
    else:
        seen.add(num)

Output

Duplicate: 2
Duplicate: 1

2. Coding Skills

Writing clean and readable code is very important. Interviewers expect proper variable names, structured logic, and fewer syntax mistakes.

Good coding style includes:

Meaningful variable names
Proper indentation
Error handling
Optimized logic

Even small mistakes are acceptable if the candidate explains their logic clearly.

3. Computer Science Fundamentals

Strong knowledge of data structures and algorithms is extremely useful in interviews. Concepts like arrays, linked lists, stacks, queues, trees, graphs, sorting, and searching are commonly asked.

For example, Binary Search is a popular interview topic because it demonstrates understanding of efficient searching techniques.

f(n)=log2n

Binary Search reduces the search space repeatedly, making it much faster than linear search.

Important Data Structures and Algorithms Topics for Coding Interviews

4. Experience and Projects

Interviewers also evaluate the projects candidates have worked on. Real-world projects demonstrate practical knowledge and problem-solving ability.

For example, developing a Doctor Appointment Booking System with features like:

Appointment scheduling
Patient management
Database handling
Authentication systems

shows strong practical exposure to development concepts.

5. Communication Skills and Culture Fit

Candidates who explain their ideas clearly usually perform better. Interviewers prefer people who can collaborate well with teams and communicate effectively.

During interviews:

Think aloud
Explain your approach
Discuss alternative solutions
Ask clarifying questions when necessary

Good communication often creates a positive impression.

Why Do Companies Use Coding Interviews?

Many candidates question why companies focus heavily on algorithms and whiteboard coding. There are several reasons behind this approach.

Problem-Solving Ability

Companies believe that candidates who solve difficult algorithmic problems are usually strong logical thinkers. Smart problem solvers often adapt quickly to new technologies and challenges.

Understanding Fundamentals

Basic knowledge of computer science concepts helps developers choose better solutions in real-world applications. For example, knowing when to use a hash map or binary search tree can improve software performance significantly.

Whiteboard Coding Encourages Discussion

Although whiteboard coding feels artificial, it helps interviewers understand how candidates think. It also encourages communication and explanation rather than relying completely on syntax or IDE suggestions.

Important Reality About Interviews

One important thing to understand is that interview evaluation is relative. Interviewers compare your performance with other candidates who solved the same question.

Getting a difficult question does not mean failure. If a problem is hard for you, it is likely difficult for everyone else too.

Interviewers mainly observe:

Your thinking process
Problem-solving approach
Optimization ability
Communication skills
Confidence under pressure

Coding interviews are not perfect, but they remain one of the most common methods companies use to evaluate software engineers. Success in these interviews depends not only on technical knowledge but also on communication, confidence, and structured thinking.
Consistent practice, strong fundamentals, and real project experience can greatly improve interview performance. Instead of fearing coding interviews, candidates should treat them as opportunities to demonstrate their problem-solving abilities and technical skills.

*Reference *

Strings and Loops in Python

Seenivasan A — Fri, 22 May 2026 12:58:30 +0000

String

Strings are sequence of characters written inside quotes. It can include letters, numbers, symbols and spaces. Python does not have a separate character type.
Strings are immutable, meaning their values cannot be changed after creation. Any modification to a string creates a new string instead of altering the original one.

Common String Methods

Python string methods is a collection of in-built Python functions that operates on strings.

upper()
lower()
find()
split()
strip()
format()
join()

Discussed problems

Reverse a String
Password Authentication
Parse csv "java","1","2","3".."6"
Convert uppercase to lowercase

Examples

Parse csv "java","1","2","3".."6"

data = input("Enter CSV data: ")
values = data.split(",")
total = 0
for i in values:
    i = i.strip('"')
    if i.isdigit():
        total += int(i)

print("Total =", total)

Input-"java","1","2","3","4","5","6"

Output-Total = 21

Loop

Loops are used to execute a block of code repeatedly until a condition is met or all items in a sequence are processed. The main types are For loops (iterating over sequences) and While loops (executing code based on a condition).
break is used to exit a for loop or a while loop, whereas continue is used to skip the current block, and return to the "for" or "while" statement.

While Loop Syntax

while condition:
statement

For Loop Syntax

for variable in range(start, stop, step):
statement

Discussed problems

Sum of (N) numbers
Multiplication table
Print even numbers

Examples
Sum of (N) numbers

def sum_of_numbers(n):
    i=1
    sum=0
    while i<=n:
        sum+=i
        i+=1
    print("The sum of first",n,"numbers is:",sum)

n=int(input("Enter the number of terms: "))
sum_of_numbers(n)

Input-> N=10

Output-> Sum=55

Algorithms Discussed

Merge Sort

Binary Search And Linear Search

References
https://www.geeksforgeeks.org/dsa/merge-sort/

https://tutorialhorizon.com/algorithms/linear-search-vs-binary-search/

GitLab

Seenivasan A — Fri, 15 May 2026 17:38:57 +0000

GitLab was found by Dmitriy Zaporozhets and Valery Sizov in October 2011. It was distributed under MIT license and the stable version of GitLab is 10.4 released in January 22, 2018.

Gitlab is a service that provides remote access to Git repositories.

These additional features include managing the sharing of code between different people, bug tracking, wiki space and other tools for 'social coding'.

Git: A local tool installed on your computer to track code changes.

GitHub / Bitbucket: Remote websites used to host and share your Git code.

GitLab: A complete, all-in-one platform that hosts your code and automates your entire development process.

Why GitLab?
GitLab is a github like service that organizations can use to provide internal management of git repositories. It is a self hosted Git-repository management system that keeps the user code private and can easily deploy the changes of the code.

GitLab is a user friendly web interface layer on top of Git, which increases the speed of working with Git.

GitLab - Git Commands

$ git --version
$ git status
$ git add *
$ git push origin branch-name
$ git pull origin NAME-OF-BRANCH -u
$git checkout branch-name
$ git merge master

Authentication
Id-(@username) in the profile.
Create personal access tokens. When you use 2FA, you can use these tokens to access the GitLab API.

To Be Discuss?

GitLab provides its own Continuous Integration (CI) system for managing the projects and provides user interface along with other features of GitLab.
GitLab - SSH Key Setup

References
https://www.tutorialspoint.com/gitlab/gitlab_introduction.htm
https://suresoft.dev/knowledge-hub/continuous-integration/gitlab-ci/
https://docs.gitlab.com/administration/get_started/