How to Solve Change Minimum Characters to Satisfy One of Three Conditions Leetcode Problem - Interview Coder Guide
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How to Solve Change Minimum Characters to Satisfy One of Three Conditions Problem

Master the Change Minimum Characters to Satisfy One of Three Conditions LeetCode problem with undetectable real-time assistance. Get instant solutions and explanations during your coding interviews.

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Medium#1859
LeetCode Problem

Change Minimum Characters to Satisfy One of Three Conditions

You are given two strings a and b that consist of lowercase letters. In one operation, you can change any character in a or b to any lowercase letter. Your goal is to satisfy one of the following thre...

Hash TableStringCounting+1 more

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Problem Breakdown

Understanding the Change Minimum Characters to Satisfy One of Three Conditions Problem

Let's break down this LeetCode problem and understand what makes it challenging in interview settings.

Problem Statement

You are given two strings a and b that consist of lowercase letters. In one operation, you can change any character in a or b to any lowercase letter. Your goal is to satisfy one of the following three conditions: Every letter in a is strictly less than every letter in b in the alphabet. Every letter in b is strictly less than every letter in a in the alphabet. Both a and b consist of only one distinct letter. Return the minimum number of operations needed to achieve your goal.

MediumProblem #1859
LeetCode

Change Minimum Characters to Satisfy One of Three Conditions

Related Topics
Hash TableStringCountingPrefix Sum
How Interview Coder Helps

Get real-time assistance for Change Minimum Characters to Satisfy One of Three Conditions problems during coding interviews. Interview Coder provides instant solutions and explanations.

Examples

Example 1
INPUT
a = "aba", b = "caa"
OUTPUT
2
EXPLANATION

Consider the best way to make each condition true: 1) Change b to "ccc" in 2 operations, then every letter in a is less than every letter in b. 2) Change a to "bbb" and b to "aaa" in 3 operations, then every letter in b is less than every letter in a. 3) Change a to "aaa" and b to "aaa" in 2 operations, then a and b consist of one distinct letter. The best way was done in 2 operations (either condition 1 or condition 3).

Example 2
INPUT
a = "dabadd", b = "cda"
OUTPUT
3
EXPLANATION

The best way is to make condition 1 true by changing b to "eee".

Constraints

1 <= a.length, b.length <= 105
a and b consist only of lowercase letters.

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