Verifying if every item in an array exists within multiple arrays

Question

Verifying if every item in an array exists within multiple arrays

I am struggling to find a solution to this problem.

Imagine there are 6 sets of colors with varying amounts of colors in each, and colors may be repeated:

['white', 'blue']
['green', 'yellow']
['black']
['yellow', 'blue', 'pink']
['orange', 'red']
['brown', 'white']

If a user enters 6 colors, such as white, blue, pink, black, orange, and yellow, how can I verify that all those colors are included in the sets and that each color can be chosen only once, assuming one color is selected from each set.

Hopefully, my query is clear.

EDIT: rephrasing the question

There are 6 sets of colors listed above, and the user must choose one color from each set. How do I confirm that the user's selection is accurate, considering that the order in which they submit the colors may not match the order of the sets.

javascript arrays

Answer 1

Answer №1

If you're faced with a challenge like this, recursion might just save the day. While it may not be the most efficient method, it's definitely the simplest solution. And for small data sets like this, efficiency shouldn't be a major concern:

var checkColors = function(input, colors) {
    if (!input.length) {
        return true;
    }
    var inputColor = input.pop();
    var isColorMatch = false;
    for (var i = 0; i < colors.length; i++) {
        var color = colors[i];
        if (!color) {
            break;
        }
        if (color.indexOf(inputColor) !== -1) {
            colors.splice(i, 1);
            isColorMatch = checkColors(input, colors);
            if (!isColorMatch) {
                colors.splice(i, 0, color);
            } else {
                break;
            }
        }
    }
    if (!isColorMatch) {
        input.push(inputColor);
    }
    return isColorMatch;
};

Here's how you can use it:

var colors = [
  ['white', 'blue'],
  ['green', 'yellow'],
  ['black'],
  ['yellow', 'blue', 'pink'],
  ['orange', 'red'],
  ['brown', 'white']
];
checkColors(['white', 'blue', 'pink', 'black', 'orange', 'yellow'], colors);

Keep in mind that this function will modify both the colors and input arrays. It's important to create a copy of them each time you call checkColors.

This problem is reminiscent of pathfinding problems and the solution provided here is a brute force approach.

Answer 2

If you're faced with a challenge like this, recursion might just save the day. While it may not be the most efficient method, it's definitely the simplest solution. And for small data sets like this, efficiency shouldn't be a major concern:

var checkColors = function(input, colors) {
    if (!input.length) {
        return true;
    }
    var inputColor = input.pop();
    var isColorMatch = false;
    for (var i = 0; i < colors.length; i++) {
        var color = colors[i];
        if (!color) {
            break;
        }
        if (color.indexOf(inputColor) !== -1) {
            colors.splice(i, 1);
            isColorMatch = checkColors(input, colors);
            if (!isColorMatch) {
                colors.splice(i, 0, color);
            } else {
                break;
            }
        }
    }
    if (!isColorMatch) {
        input.push(inputColor);
    }
    return isColorMatch;
};

Here's how you can use it:

var colors = [
  ['white', 'blue'],
  ['green', 'yellow'],
  ['black'],
  ['yellow', 'blue', 'pink'],
  ['orange', 'red'],
  ['brown', 'white']
];
checkColors(['white', 'blue', 'pink', 'black', 'orange', 'yellow'], colors);

Keep in mind that this function will modify both the colors and input arrays. It's important to create a copy of them each time you call checkColors.

This problem is reminiscent of pathfinding problems and the solution provided here is a brute force approach.

Verifying if every item in an array exists within multiple arrays

Answer №1

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