Shoutout to the freeCodeCamp curriculum for something I didn't expect

I tried their JavaScript algorithms and data structures course expecting it to be basic, but the challenges got hard fast around step 80. I spent 4 hours on one problem about palindrome checking and learned that I actually needed to slow down and read docs instead of just guessing.

2 comments

2 Comments

black.patricia1mo ago

Yeah the subtractive notation on Roman numerals is exactly the kind of thing that trips you up when you think you've got it figured. My advice is to write out the problem on paper first, draw little boxes for each case like 4, 9, 40, 90, 400, 900 and line them up. Then code the if statements to match those exact patterns. It sounds old school but mapping it visually before typing saved me hours of head scratching. Also don't be afraid to console.log everything ten times, even the stuff you think is working fine. That's how I caught myself returning "IXI" instead of "XIX" once - embarrassing but effective.

fiona_reed1mo ago

Oh man, "the challenges got hard fast around step 80" is so real. I hit that wall hard with their Roman numeral converter thing. Thought I was smart, then spent two hours debugging because I forgot to handle the 4s and 9s cases (you know, the tricky subtractive notation). It's humbling when you realize you can't just brute force your way through it. That's the point though, right? Forces you to actually read the MDN docs instead of just guessing until something works.