Advent of Code
| Advent of Code | |
|---|---|
 Screenshot of the 2020 event page | |
| Status | Active |
| Begins | December 1 |
| Ends | December 25 |
| Frequency | Annually |
| Inaugurated | December 1, 2015 |
| Founder | Eric Wastl |
| Most recent | December 2021 |
| Website | adventofcode.com |
Advent of Code is an annual set of Christmas-themed computer programming challenges that follow an Advent calendar.[1][2] It has been running since 2015.[3]
The programming puzzles cover a variety of skill sets and skill levels and can be solved using any programming language. Participants also compete based on speed on both global and private leaderboards.[1]
History
Advent of Code was launched on December 1, 2015. By midnight EST (UTC−05:00), 81 people had signed up for the event, going slightly over Eric Wastl's planned 70-participant capacity. Within 12 hours, about 4,000 people had joined, nearly causing a system crash. After 48 hours, there were about 15,000 people, and by the end of the 2015 event, the total had risen to 52,000.[4]
In 2020, perhaps due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the event saw a 50% growth in traffic, with over 180,000 participants worldwide.[4]
Puzzle design
Each year, 25 puzzles are created and tested in advance by Eric Wastl, the founder of Advent of Code. They are released on a daily schedule from December 1 to December 25 at midnight EST.[1]
Puzzles consist of two parts that must be solved in order,[5][6] with the second part not revealed to the user until the first part is solved correctly.[7] Participants earn one golden star for each part they finish, giving a possible total of two stars per day and fifty stars per year.[7]
Each puzzle contains a fictional backstory that is the same for all participants, but each person receives a different piece of input data and should generate a different correct result.[7]
There is no time limit to complete the puzzles, and puzzles from past years' events remain available to solve.
References
- ^ a b c Wastl, Eric (2021). "About". Advent of Code. Retrieved May 11, 2021.
- ^ Joyce, Kara E. (November 11, 2020). "Brain teasers and other fun tips for learning Python". SearchBusinessAnalytics. TechTarget. Archived from the original on November 12, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
- ^ Speed, Richard (December 1, 2021). "On the first day of Christmas, my true love gave to me... a coding puzzle and it's a doozy". The Register. Archived from the original on December 1, 2021. Retrieved December 5, 2021.
- ^ a b Roberts, Siobhan (December 17, 2021). "This puzzle challenge brings joy to the world of code". MIT Technology Review. Retrieved February 20, 2022.
- ^ Gee, Sue (December 6, 2020). "Advent Of Code For Programmers". I Programmer. Archived from the original on December 6, 2020. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
- ^ Fisher, Kenneth (December 3, 2020). "SQL Homework – December 2020 – Participate in the Advent of Code. from Blog Posts – SQLServerCentral". Packt Hub. Archived from the original on January 26, 2021. Retrieved May 12, 2021.
- ^ a b c Hjelle, Geir Arne (December 1, 2021). "Advent of Code: Solving Your Puzzles With Python". Real Python. Retrieved February 20, 2022.
External links
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