Develop test plan and TDD for word search

Q: Develop test plan and TDD for word search

This question evaluates a candidate's competency in designing comprehensive test plans and test-driven development workflows for grid-based word search algorithms, covering edge-case identification, input normalization, path validity, and performance/stress considerations within software testing and algorithmic reasoning.

Q: How do I approach Software Engineering Fundamentals interview questions?

Software Engineering Fundamentals questions require understanding of core concepts and practice. PracHub provides solutions with explanations to help you master software engineering fundamentals interviews.

Q: What difficulty level is this interview question?

This is a medium difficulty Software Engineering Fundamentals question, commonly asked during Technical Screen rounds at Uber.

Q: What role is this question designed for?

This question is commonly asked for Software Engineer candidates at Uber during technical interviews.

Question

Design a Comprehensive Test Plan and TDD Workflow for Word-Search Functions

Context and Assumptions

We are testing two grid-based word search functions that operate on a 2D character grid. To make the task self-contained, assume the following interfaces and semantics:

Function A: existsFixedDirection(grid, word) -> bool
- Returns true if the word appears contiguously in a straight line along any of the 8 compass directions (N, NE, E, SE, S, SW, W, NW) without wrapping and without reusing cells beyond the contiguous straight-line traversal.
Function B: existsPathAnyDirection(grid, word) -> bool (or -> path if your design returns coordinates)
- Returns true if there exists a path spelling the word by moving step-by-step to any of the 8 neighboring cells per letter. Direction can change between steps. A cell cannot be reused within the same word instance (no revisits in one path). No wrapping beyond edges.
Inputs:
- grid: non-jagged 2D array/list of single-character strings.
- word: string (possibly empty or with repeated letters); normalization rules to be specified.

Task

Design a thorough test plan and a test-driven development workflow for both functions. Enumerate concrete test cases covering:

Empty grid
Empty word
Single-letter grid/word matches and mismatches
Straight-line matches in all eight directions
Attempts requiring direction changes (should fail under fixed-direction)
Diagonal-only matches
Boundary-crossing attempts
Words with repeated letters that tempt revisits
Multiple valid starting positions
Grids with no occurrence
Large inputs for performance and stack-depth concerns
Invalid/normalization inputs (if applicable)

Describe how you would structure unit, property-based, and stress tests, and define pass/fail criteria.

Develop test plan and TDD for word search

Quick Overview

Develop test plan and TDD for word search

Design a Comprehensive Test Plan and TDD Workflow for Word-Search Functions

Context and Assumptions

Task

Write your answer