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Two Pointers Technique Explained

The Two Pointers Pattern is a technique that uses two indices to efficiently iterate over data structures, particularly arrays or strings, to solve problems without nested loops. It is useful for finding pairs, triplets, or subarrays under certain conditions, especially when the data is sorted. The typical approach involves initializing two pointers, checking conditions, and moving the pointers based on whether the conditions are met.

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17 views2 pages

Two Pointers Technique Explained

The Two Pointers Pattern is a technique that uses two indices to efficiently iterate over data structures, particularly arrays or strings, to solve problems without nested loops. It is useful for finding pairs, triplets, or subarrays under certain conditions, especially when the data is sorted. The typical approach involves initializing two pointers, checking conditions, and moving the pointers based on whether the conditions are met.

Uploaded by

Lulli Gaming YT
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

What is the Two Pointers Pattern?

The Two Pointers technique involves using two indices (pointers) to iterate over a data structure
(usually an array or a string) to solve problems efficiently by avoiding nested loops.

When to Use Two Pointers?


● When you need to find pairs, triplets, or subarrays meeting certain conditions.
● When the data is sorted or can be sorted.
● When you want to optimize brute force solutions that use nested loops (O(n²)) to linear or
near-linear time (O(n)).

How It Works?
You maintain two pointers that move through the data structure according to certain rules:
● One pointer starts at the beginning, the other at the end (common in problems like
finding pairs with a sum).
● Or, both pointers start at the beginning, with one moving faster than the other (useful for
sliding window problems).
● Move pointers towards each other or forward depending on the problem condition.

Typical Approach:
. Initialize two pointers, left and right.
. Check condition based on the current pointers.
. Move pointers accordingly:
○ If condition not met, move left or right pointer to try to satisfy the condition.
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○ If condition met, record the answer or move pointers to find more solutions.
. Repeat until pointers cross or reach the end.
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2
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# Problem Name Platform Link
1 Remove Duplicates LeetCode 26
from Sorted Array
2 Two Sum II - Input LeetCode 167
Array Is Sorted
3 Move Zeroes LeetCode 283
4 Reverse String LeetCode 344
5 Container With Most LeetCode 11
Water
6 Valid Palindrome LeetCode 125
7 Squares of a Sorted LeetCode 977
Array
LeetCode 977
Array
8 Subarray Product LeetCode 713
Less Than K
9 Remove Element LeetCode 27
10 3Sum LeetCode 15
11 Sort Colors (Dutch LeetCode 75
National Flag
Problem)
12 Longest Substring LeetCode 3
Without Repeating
Characters
13 Minimum Size LeetCode 209
Subarray Sum
14 Trapping Rain Water LeetCode 42
15 Longest Mountain in LeetCode 845
Array

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