I went with the greedy approach, tracking the farthest reachable index as I walked through the array.
Start by clarifying the problem and edge cases, then explain a greedy algorithm that tracks the farthest reachable index. Walk through the algorithm with a small example, analyze time and space complexity, and discuss potential optimizations or alternative approaches.
Pro tip: Emphasize the greedy choice: at each step, update the farthest reachable index and check if it covers the current position. This demonstrates you can identify optimal substructure and avoid unnecessary computation.
Restate the problem in your own words and confirm assumptions: non-negative integers, empty array, single element, etc. Ask clarifying questions if needed.
Propose a greedy algorithm: iterate through the array, maintaining the farthest index reachable so far. If the current index exceeds the farthest, return false; otherwise update farthest with max(farthest, i + nums[i]).
Trace the algorithm on a small example (e.g., [2,3,1,1,4]) to show how it works and builds confidence.
State that the algorithm runs in O(n) time and O(1) space, which is optimal for this problem.
Mention dynamic programming or BFS as alternatives, but highlight that greedy is most efficient. Cover edge cases like empty array, single element, and zeros.
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