Frequently Asked Questions

Isn't there already a Discuss community at discuss.leetcode.com?

Yes, but the old Discuss is retired in favor of the new Discuss here. After much contemplation, I have decided to shutdown the old Discuss for good.

What topics can I ask about here?

LeetCode Discuss is for you to ask questions strictly related to OJ problems. If you are stuck on a problem, then you're in the right place to ask your question!

Please check to make sure that your question was not asked before. Questions which are too broad, unclear, or contains only code with minimal description may be deleted by the moderator unless they are improved.

Questions asking for code/solution must demonstrate a minimal understanding for the problem being solved. Include attempted solutions, why they didn't work, and the expected results.
Questions about code you've written must describe the specific problem clearly, and include your code — in the question itself.

I found a bug in my code but it was accepted by the judge. Could I ask a question here?

Yes, absolutely! Please mention at least few test cases that should be added to the judge, and remember to include your full buggy code in the question itself. Your contribution will be greatly appreciated by all users of the LeetCode community.

Why are some answers deleted?

We are proud of the LeetCode community and would like to keep the standards high.

Answers that do not fundamentally answer the question may be deleted, such as:

Barely any explanation to the provided code
Asking another, different question
"Thanks!", "me too!" or "+1" responses
Barely more than a link to an external site
Commentary on the question or other answers (This should be added as a comment instead of an answer)

How do I write a good answer?

Thanks for contributing an answer! It's because of helpful LeetCoders like yourself that we're able to learn together as a community. Here are some guidelines to a great answer:

Explain your thoughts

Your thought process is the essence of a brilliant answer – whether it is about a key insight to a problem, or an improvement to the time/space complexity of an algorithm. Provide code snippets when appropriate to help connect your thought process with the real implementation. Including a full working code as a supplement to your answer is acceptable, but fuller explanations are better.

Giving back

If you found answers that were helpful to you, instead of saying "thanks", please consider expressing your gratitude in a more constructive way – by contributing your own answers to questions others have asked.

Provide context for links

Links to external resources are encouraged, but please add context around the link so your fellow LeetCoders will know what it is and why it’s there. Always quote the most relevant part of an important link, in case the target site goes offline.