Software Engineer, Product

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Given a string containing alphanumeric and special characters, determine if it's a palindrome, ignoring special characters and case. Can you do this in-place (without using extra space)? For example, 12@#.Race@#car is a palindrome. How would you approach this?

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Let's design a stories feature, similar to Instagram or WhatsApp. These stories should disappear after a friend views them and only be available for 24 hours after publishing. Consider the following aspects: Functionality: How would users create and upload stories (photos and videos)? How would users view stories from their friends? How would you implement the 24-hour expiration? How would you handle the disappearing aspect after viewing? Scalability: How would you handle a large number of users uploading and viewing stories simultaneously? How would you efficiently store and retrieve stories? How would you manage the storage as stories expire? Data Model: What database schema would you use to store story information (user, timestamp, media URL, view status)? How would you track which users have viewed a story? Technical Challenges: What are the potential challenges in implementing this feature? How would you address issues like latency, storage limitations, and data consistency? Edge Cases: How would you handle users with slow internet connections? What happens if a user uploads a story right before the 24-hour mark? How would you handle deleted user accounts and their associated stories?

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Describe a time you had to work in an ambiguous environment. What was the situation, what actions did you take, and what was the result? Be specific and provide details about the ambiguity you faced. For example: Lack of Clear Requirements: Describe a project where the initial requirements were poorly defined or constantly changing. How did you navigate the uncertainty and ensure the project moved forward? Conflicting Information: Share an experience where you received conflicting information from different stakeholders. How did you reconcile these discrepancies and make informed decisions? Unclear Goals: Tell me about a time when the overall goals of a project or task were not well-defined. How did you work to clarify the objectives and achieve a successful outcome? Limited Resources: Describe a situation where you had to work with limited resources (time, budget, personnel). How did you prioritize your efforts and make the most of what you had available? New Technology or Domain: Share an experience where you had to work with a new technology or in a domain where you had limited prior experience. How did you quickly learn and adapt to the unfamiliar environment?