Learning Plan for Beginners
Who Are "Algorithm Beginners"?
Practicing algorithms is a skill that needs special training. It is not directly related to your project or work experience. So, we judge if you are a beginner by your experience in solving algorithm problems.
If you just started learning programming, you are an algorithm beginner. If you have a lot of development experience but never solved algorithm problems before, you are also an algorithm beginner.
If you are a beginner and have enough time, just follow the Main Menu and learn in order. You will master all tips for data structures and solving algorithm problems.
Each chapter has a guide at the beginning. It explains how different readers should read this section. Please read it carefully.
Beginner Problem List
The VSCode plugin and Jetbrains plugin have the problem list mentioned in this menu. This is helpful for your revision:
How to Use the Problem List
It is not recommended to start practicing from the problem list directly. The main use of the list is for revision. I suggest you learn the website articles first, and then use the problem list to check your learning results.
More Than Just Solving Problems
I think algorithms are great, especially for beginners. It is easy to get positive feedback: every time you master a new algorithm framework, you can solve many problems at once. This gives a strong sense of achievement.
I hope beginners can take advantage of this momentum to fully learn data structures and algorithms. In the future, this will save you a lot of trouble at work. For example, when you change jobs, you won't need to spend extra time preparing for algorithm interviews, because your problem-solving thinking is already built and won't fade away.
After starting work, it is hard to find large blocks of time to learn and think. So for readers who are already working, I have another Quick Mastery solution.
In fact, besides solving problems, you can also think more about the algorithms you learn. Can this way of solving algorithm problems be used in real life? Can you turn some situations in life into algorithm problems? If you face a real problem, can you use algorithm thinking and programming to solve it?
Readers who like my tutorials must like thinking. Otherwise, you would not have the patience to read a long algorithm tutorial. But in the end, thinking must be put into practice.
Now, you may feel happy when you solve a few algorithm problems. But after you fully master all the thinking methods on this site, you will find algorithm problems are too easy. This small sense of achievement will not give you much feedback anymore.
So, I hope that during this learning journey, you can build the habit of thinking and doing by yourself. In the end, you can use these skills in more areas, always keep your curiosity for new things, and keep moving forward.