Question

I am trying to solve this CodingBat problem:

(This is a slightly harder version of the fix34 problem.) Return an array that contains exactly the same numbers as the given array, but rearranged so that every 4 is immediately followed by a 5. Do not move the 4’s, but every other number may move. The array contains the same number of 4’s and 5’s, and every 4 has a number after it that is not a 4. In this version, 5’s may appear anywhere in the original array.

fix45({5, 4, 9, 4, 9, 5}) → {9, 4, 5, 4, 5, 9}
fix45({1, 4, 1, 5}) → {1, 4, 5, 1}
fix45({1, 4, 1, 5, 5, 4, 1}) → {1, 4, 5, 1, 1, 4, 5}

I initially used a method which passed all of the sites tests, but I don’t think it would work for longer arrays. The initial method used 2 loops and did not use a new array. I have created a solution which introduces a new array and a 3rd nested loop and I believe will work for all instances of the problem. However, the site states that the problems in this section can be solved with 2 loops, so I am wondering if there actually is a 2 loop solution that will work for anyinstance of the problem. Here is the question and my 3 loop solution:

public int[] fix45(int[] nums) {

    int[] locations = {-1};

    for (int i = 0; i < nums.length - 1; ++i) {

        if (nums[i] == 4) {

            JLoop:
            for (int j = nums.length-1; j >= 0; --j) {
                if (nums[j] == 5) {
                    for (int k = locations.length-1; k>=0 ; --k) {
                        if (locations[k] == j) {
                            continue JLoop;
                        } 
                    }
                    nums[j] = nums[i + 1];
                    nums[i + 1] = 5;
                    locations[locations.length - 1] = i+1;
                    locations = java.util.Arrays.copyOf(locations,
                            locations.length + 1);
                    locations[locations.length-1] = -1;
                    break;
                }
            }
        }
    }
    return nums;

}

Answer 1

Restarting the search for a suitable 5 from one end of the array every time a 4 is found seems wasteful. Part of the array has already been scanned and is known not to contain a 5 that can be moved. This is O(n) time and O(1) space.

    public static int[] fix45(int[] nums) {

      int j = 0;
      for (int i = 0; i < nums.length - 1; ++i) {
        if (nums[i] == 4 && nums[i + 1] != 5) {
          /*
           * Need to find the next movable 5 That means an element that is 5 and
           * either is the first element or is preceded by anything other than 4
           */
          while (nums[j] != 5 || (j != 0 && nums[j - 1] == 4)) {
            j++;
          }
          nums[j] = nums[i + 1];
          nums[i + 1] = 5;
        }
      }
      return nums;
    }