Prepin
Log in

Identify the Variations Between Two Strings.

Approach / Explanation

This question essentially prompts you to explore a technique for identifying the differences between two string values based on their characters or their positions. It is commonly posed in the realm of algorithmic problem-solving within computer programming, and you would likely be expected to tackle the issue programmatically. Here are some important aspects to consider in your answer: What does 'string' refer to in the context of computer science and programming? How are strings indexed, and what is the method for accessing characters within a string? Formulate, or even draft, a simple algorithm that can compare two strings and identify their differences.

Suggested Answer

In programming, a string is a data type that consists of a sequence of characters. These characters can include letters, numbers, special symbols, or spaces, with each character occupying a specific position, beginning at position zero. For example, in Python, you could create a function to compare two strings and identify their differences like this: def diff_strings ( str1 , str2 ) : diff = [ i for i in range ( min ( len ( str1 ) , len ( str2 ) ) ) if str1 [ i ] != str2 [ i ] ] diff += list ( range ( min ( len ( str1 ) , len ( str2 ) ) , max ( len ( str1 ) , len ( str2 ) ) ) ) return diff This function goes through each character in the two strings, comparing them at every index. If the characters are different, it appends the index to a list of differences. Additionally, it includes any remaining indices from the longer string. Finally, the function returns a list of indices where the two strings differ.

Alternative Answer

The approach in JavaScript is quite comparable. Here's an illustration: function diffStrings ( str1 , str2 ) { var diffs = [ ] ; var longestLength = Math . max ( str1 . length , str2 . length ) ; for ( var i = 0 ; i < longestLength ; i ++ ) { if ( str1 [ i ] !== str2 [ i ] ) { diffs . push ( i ) ; } } return diffs ; } This JavaScript function operates in a comparable way. It begins by identifying the length of the longer string. Subsequently, it iterates through each index up to the length of the longer string, adding each index where the characters of the two strings differ to the 'diffs' array. The final outcome is this array, which contains the indices of the differences.

Question Details

Difficulty & Category

Medium
algorithms

Product

For CandidatesFor RecruitersCompaniesBrowse JobsInterview QuestionsDeep ProfileSkill AssessmentOpportunity Matching
Prepin.ai

© 2026 Prepin LLC · Philadelphia, PA · All rights reserved.