Description:
Given two strings S and T, return if they are equal when both are typed into empty text editors. # means a backspace character.
Note that after backspacing an empty text, the text will continue empty.
Example 1:
Input: S = "ab#c", T = "ad#c"
Output: true
Explanation: Both S and T become "ac".
Example 2:
Input: S = "ab##", T = "c#d#"
Output: true
Explanation: Both S and T become "".
Example 3:
Input: S = "a##c", T = "#a#c"
Output: true
Explanation: Both S and T become "c".
Example 4:
Input: S = "a#c", T = "b"
Output: false
Explanation: S becomes "c" while T becomes "b".
Solution:
Time complexity : O(n)
// In this solution we use an array like a stack
// to create 2 new strings from the inputs
// Then we check if they are equal
const backspaceCompare = (S, T) => buildString(S) === buildString(T);
// Helper function
function buildString(S) {
// Data structure that we will use to create the compare strings
const stack = [];
for (const c of S) {
// Add letter to the stack if it is not '#'
if (c != '#')
stack.push(c);
// Remove the most recently added letter if we encounter '#'
// and the stack is not empty
else if (stack.length!==0) {
stack.pop();
}
}
// Convert array to an string
return stack.join('');
}
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