Felt almost too easy and that made me second-guess myself.
Start by clarifying the problem: confirm whether the function should return a boolean, handle case sensitivity, and consider edge cases like empty strings. Then propose a straightforward solution using a built-in method like `str.find()` or `strstr()`, but also discuss implementing a more efficient algorithm such as KMP for large inputs. Finally, analyze time and space complexity and mention potential optimizations.
Pro tip: Demonstrate awareness of real-world constraints: mention that while built-in functions are often optimal, understanding the underlying algorithm (e.g., KMP) shows depth, especially for NVIDIA where performance matters. Also, proactively discuss handling Unicode or overlapping matches if relevant.
Ask about return type (boolean vs index), case sensitivity, and whether the substring can be empty. Confirm if the function should handle large strings efficiently.
Describe a simple solution using built-in methods like `str.find()` or a manual loop, and state its time complexity (O(n*m) worst-case).
Introduce KMP or Rabin-Karp for O(n+m) time, explaining how it avoids redundant comparisons. Mention when to use each.
Discuss time/space complexity of chosen approach and handle edge cases: empty string, substring longer than string, overlapping occurrences.
Write clean code with meaningful variable names, and walk through test cases including normal, boundary, and performance scenarios.
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