Count maximum path in string
Last updated: October 10, 2025
Quick Overview
Given a string consisting of lowercase letters, count the maximum number of distinct paths that can be formed by selecting characters in a way that each path must follow the order of characters in the string. The output should be a single integer representing the count of these maximum paths.
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October 10, 202516
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Given a string consisting of lowercase letters, count the maximum number of distinct paths that can be formed by selecting characters in a way that each path must follow the order of characters in the string. The output should be a single integer representing the count of these maximum paths.
Coding interviews at Zoom focus on problem-solving approach as much as the final solution. The interviewer wants to see you break down the problem, consider edge cases, and optimize iteratively. Communication throughout the process is key.
What the Interviewer Expects
- Recognize the underlying problem pattern (sliding window, two pointers, BFS/DFS, etc.)
- Discuss multiple approaches and trade-offs before coding
- Implement an optimal solution with clean, production-quality code
- Handle all edge cases including boundary conditions and invalid input
- Optimize both time and space complexity with clear justification
- Test your solution systematically with well-chosen examples
Key Topics to Cover
How to Approach This
- Clarify input constraints and edge cases before writing code.
- Walk through your approach verbally and confirm with the interviewer before coding.
- Start with a brute force solution, then optimize. Mention time and space complexity.
- Test your solution with examples, including edge cases like empty input or duplicates.
- Consider common patterns: sliding window, two pointers, hash map, BFS/DFS, dynamic programming.
Possible Follow-up Questions
- Can you solve this in a single pass?
- What is the worst-case input for your solution?
- How would you test this solution thoroughly?
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Practice DSA ProblemsSample Answer
Problem Analysis
The problem requires us to count the maximum number of distinct paths that can be formed by selecting characters from a given string while maintaining the original order. The key observation is that t...
Approach
- Initialization: Create a list
dpof the same length as the input string, initialized to 1, because each character can be a path by itself. Use a dictionarylast_seento track the last index...
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