Detect a K-in-a-Row Win on a Rectangular Board
Last updated: July 30, 2026
Quick Overview
The question asks the candidate to implement a function that detects if there is a K-in-a-row win on a rectangular board, typically used in games like Connect Four.
Databricks
July 30, 20267
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The question asks the candidate to implement a function that detects if there is a K-in-a-row win on a rectangular board, typically used in games like Connect Four.
This question is commonly asked during onsite interviews for software engineering roles, particularly at companies like Databricks that value problem-solving skills and algorithmic thinking. The interviewer is evaluating the candidate's ability to devise an efficient solution, understand the problem requirements, and implement a clean and correct algorithm. It also tests the candidate's ability to think critically about edge cases and performance considerations.
What the Interviewer Expects
- Clearly define the problem and constraints.
- Design an efficient algorithm to check for K-in-a-row.
- Implement the solution in a clean and readable manner.
- Discuss time and space complexity of the solution.
- Consider edge cases and explain how they are handled.
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
- How would you optimize your solution for larger boards?
- Can you explain how you would handle invalid inputs?
- What changes would you make if the board size were dynamic?
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Practice DSA ProblemsSample Answer
Approach
To solve the K-in-a-row problem, we need to check for K consecutive markers in any direction: horizontally, vertically, and diagonally. We will iterate through each cell of the board and check in all ...
Algorithm
We can implement the solution using a nested loop to traverse the board. For each cell, we will check for K consecutive markers in all four directions. Here's a Python implementation:
def c...
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