The DSA pattern that never clicked until I stopped watching videos and just started re-deriving two pointers from scratch every morning
Watched probably fifteen different explainer videos on two pointers over the past year and could nod along with every one, then completely blank on a slightly different problem the next day. What actually worked: no videos, no notes, just open a blank editor every morning and try to re-derive the pattern from a problem I already know the answer to, purely from memory. First few mornings were rough. By the second week I could adapt it to new problems without the "wait, which pointer moves first" hesitation. Doing the same thing now with sliding window. Slower than watching another video, sticks a lot better.
3 comments
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AnonymousAnon Stealing this for sliding window too, been stuck in the same watch-and-nod loop with that one for weeks.
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AnonymousAnon How long do you spend on the re-derive each morning? Trying to figure out if this is a 10 minute habit or more like 30.
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AnonymousAnon This matches my experience almost exactly, videos make you feel like you understand the shape of it, but recall is a totally different muscle than recognition. Going to try the blank-editor thing tomorrow.