My first instinct was to just scan left to right and accumulate, which obviously breaks the moment you hit a * or /.
Clarify constraints and edge cases first, then propose a two-pass or stack-based solution that respects operator precedence. Walk through a small example to validate the logic, and discuss time/space complexity before coding.
Pro tip: Mention that you'd handle integer division truncation carefully (e.g., using trunc() or adjusting for negative results) and that you'd test with expressions like '14-3/2' to catch precedence bugs.
Ask about input format, whitespace, negative numbers, division by zero, and overflow. Confirm that division truncates toward zero and that no parentheses exist.
Decide between a two-pass approach (first handle * and /, then + and -) or a stack-based single pass. Explain why operator precedence matters.
Trace a sample expression like '3+2*2' to demonstrate how the algorithm processes tokens and maintains intermediate results.
State O(n) time and O(n) space for the stack approach, or O(1) space for the two-pass if modifying input is allowed. Discuss pros and cons.
Write clean code with clear variable names, then test with edge cases like single number, division truncation, and mixed operators.
AI-generated suggestions, not part of the candidate's original notes. May be inaccurate — verify before relying on them.