Questions tagged [popularity-contest]
A popularity-contest is a competition where the answer with the highest vote tally (upvotes minus downvotes) wins. As these are frequently closed, read the tag info and post your challenge to the sandbox first.
405 questions
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Mexican Hat Challenge, #メキシカンハットチャレンジ
The hashtag #メキシカンハットチャレンジ* appeared on my X/twitter feed today. Japanese hackers have been drawing the "Mexican Hat Potential" 3D curve on all sorts of ...
- 4,002
0
votes
2
answers
258
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The many ways to skin a `cat` [duplicate]
The well known cat command simply copies its stdin directly to stdout unchanged. But there are plenty of other commandline tools that exist...
What other commands ...
- 33
-1
votes
1
answer
157
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Write a typeracer [duplicate]
Description
a typeracer is an apps where user could type and evaluate their typing speed and accuracy.
Criteria
User could type "A quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog."
A visual ...
- 11
18
votes
3
answers
886
views
Universal Unicode Clock
Plot contrivance
You wake up to find that something has gone horribly wrong! Your time machine has malfunctioned and you are lost sometime between June 2022 and October 1991.
You check the computer ...
- 100k
19
votes
52
answers
3k
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Can you give me half? (No digits) [closed]
The task is to provide code that evaluates to 0.5 numerically, i.e. the output must be recognized by your chosen language as a numeric value (Number, float, double, etc), not as a string. The catch, ...
- 7,541
10
votes
5
answers
557
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(Σ*)² ⟲ Σ* (aka Round-Trip a String Pair) [closed]
This is a challenge I thought of recently which I think is not hard but allows for a wide range of possible solutions. Seems like a perfect fit for the creativity of PPCG users :)
Your Task
Define two ...
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-11
votes
5
answers
630
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Print your username by ONLY using the characters in your username [closed]
You have to print out your username, by only using the characters in your username.
Standard loopholes are forbidden
This is not code-golf, so shortest does not win
Don't modify your username please
...
- 12.4k
18
votes
28
answers
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Output a unique sign sequence
A sign sequence is an infinite sequence consisting entirely of \$1\$ and \$-1\$. These can be constructed a number of ways, for example:
Alternating signs: \$1, -1, 1, -1, ...\$
\$-1\$ for primes, \$...
- 50.3k
0
votes
1
answer
161
views
Look for n-plicates [closed]
If you are given an array of numbers between 1 and 100 and an integer n, you must remove any instances of an item that appear greater than ...
- 611
34
votes
4
answers
3k
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Make The Finest Magic Code Square
In math a magic square is an N×N grid of numbers from 1 to N2 such that every row, column, and diagonal sums to the same total. For example here's a 3×3 magic square:
In this challenge we'...
- 90k
2
votes
0
answers
293
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Heart-shaped quine [closed]
As you may or may not know, Valentine's day is getting close. So today, my task for you is:
Write a heart-shaped quine
Rules:
Code should look like an identifyable heart shape, i.e. Has two round ...
- 439
3
votes
6
answers
388
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Nested lists as printable 2D objects [closed]
I don't know if something like this exists already (and I'm not finding the right key words) but if not, it felt like it could be an interesting coding puzzle.
The challenge is, to take an ...
- 141
5
votes
3
answers
534
views
Polycops and Robbers (Robbers' Thread)
This is the robbers' thread, the cops' thread is here
A polyglot is a program, that without modification, can run in multiple languages.
Robbers' Challenge
First, find a vulnerable cop's answer, ...
- 943
6
votes
9
answers
1k
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Polycops and Robbers (Cops' Thread)
This is the cops' thread, the robbers' thread is here
A polyglot is a program, that without modification, can run in multiple languages.
Allowed languages
Any language that was made before the ...
- 943
8
votes
1
answer
508
views
Escape from the tarpit (Robbers)
This is a cops-and-robbers challenge based around defining languages and proving they are Turing complete.
This is the robbers' thread. The cops' thread is here.
Robbers
The cops will post definitions ...
- 7,332
12
votes
1
answer
920
views
Escape from the tarpit (Cops)
This is a cops-and-robbers challenge based around defining languages and proving they are Turing complete.
This is the cops' thread. The robbers' thread is here.
Cops
As a cop, you will prepare two ...
- 7,332
34
votes
3
answers
2k
views
Design a One Instruction Set Computer! [closed]
Notice: I'm willing to give a bounty to any answer that I find interesting.
Your challenge is to design a Turing-complete one instruction set computer (OISC):
An OISC is an abstract machine that ...
- 13.9k
16
votes
4
answers
1k
views
Lorem Ipsum Generator [closed]
Lorem Ipsum is placeholder text used when preparing layout without wanted to have content already filled.
One of its key features over using some arbitrary text is that it is nonsense.
It isn't even ...
- 1,171
21
votes
19
answers
7k
views
Print a Variable's Name [closed]
Write a function (not a full program), so that if the function is called with a single global variable (or your language's closest equivalent) as its argument, it outputs (i.e. prints or returns) the ...
- 687
12
votes
13
answers
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Reversed language name [closed]
You should code a piece of code that looks like it outputs the language name but actually outputs the name reversed.
E.g. a Python program should look like it outputs ...
user69279
4
votes
4
answers
3k
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April Fools Day! [closed]
Your challenge is simple: write a program or function which appears to print the first ten numbers of any integer sequence (on OEIS, the answerer may choose which sequence), but instead prints the ...
- 806
101
votes
10
answers
6k
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Write a Programming language of Unknown Completeness
Determining whether a Language is Turing Complete is very important when designing a language. It is a also a pretty difficult task for a lot of esoteric programming languages to begin with, but lets ...
- 100k
7
votes
3
answers
663
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HRNG - Human Random Number Generator [closed]
You know it: keyboard or mouse input is just too mainstream to create Random Numbers through human behavior.
Create the most unique (Pseudo)Random Number Generator that create its numbers through ...
- 255
0
votes
4
answers
368
views
A boring version of yourself [duplicate]
A boring version of yourself
Have you ever dreamed of a boring version of you which types the text you just typed ?
No ? Because that's exactly what I'm challenging you to do !
The program needs to ...
- 1,167
4
votes
0
answers
409
views
Unpixellate an image [closed]
When you resize an image down to a very small size, it looks very blocky when you scale the pixels back up individually.
In extreme cases, as above, you can no longer reconstruct the original image, ...
- 65
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votes
4
answers
477
views
Help Me Count to Ten! [closed]
You will write a simple program that prints exactly 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 to STDOUT, Console, or your language's closest output method. No other visible output ...
- 377
20
votes
27
answers
2k
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8 ought to become Infinity [closed]
Let's take a look on a typical loop, which usually performs 8 iterations:
for (int x=0; x<8; ++x);
You have to make it infinite!
It's a popularity-contest ...
- 3,009
3
votes
3
answers
208
views
Correlation Coefficient of Words [closed]
This is going to be relatively quick...
Challenge
Given a lower-case word as input, calculate the Pearson's Correlation Coefficient between the letter position of the word (nth letter within the ...
- 7,541
2
votes
0
answers
231
views
Generate groups for in-class work [closed]
In a smallish class, some lectures are set aside for working in groups. The instructors don't want people to group themselves together with the same people every time; instead, they create the groups ...
- 16.1k
32
votes
5
answers
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Patch the Paragraph
In the spirit of Patch the Image, here's a similar challenge but with text.
Challenge
Bit rot has afflicted your precious text! Given a paragraph composed of ASCII characters, with a rectangular ...
- 43.5k
1
vote
1
answer
393
views
Meta Obfuscate a String [closed]
There are numerous reasons for trying to obfuscate input. These include preventing decompiling, and being a nuiscance.
With this in mind your challenge should your choose to accept it is to write a ...
- 2,666
45
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Computer Generated Cracked Soil
Write a program that takes in an integer from 0 to 65535 (216-1) and generates a unique 500×500 pixel image that looks as similar as possible to these 6 real life images of cracked soil:
These ...
- 90k
37
votes
0
answers
5k
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Deep learning Fizzbuzz [closed]
Inspired by the job-interview with Joel Grus, the goal of this challenge is to write a tensorflow (or other deep/machine learning) program that learns Fizzbuzz and correctly prints out the answers to ...
- 431
-2
votes
1
answer
254
views
Ponderous primality testing [closed]
One of my favorite algorithms was posted on Stack Overflow as an answer to What is the fastest way to generate prime number recursively?. In pseudocode:
Nathan's algorithm
...
- 2,801
3
votes
1
answer
331
views
What time is it again? [closed]
The Inspiration
The Challenge
I'm tired of seeing the same old-same old clock in my top-right-hand corner of my screen. It's time for a new clock. While the clock clock sated my lack of interesting ...
- 11.2k
120
votes
10
answers
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Patch the Image
In a popular image editing software there is a feature, that patches (The term used in image processing is inpainting as @mınxomaτ pointed out.) a selected area of an image, based on the information ...
- 43.9k
2
votes
2
answers
301
views
Find the line guaranteed by Sylvester-Gallai
The Sylvester-Gallai theorem says: Suppose you have a finite list of points in the plane. Suppose further that not all of those points are collinear (lie in a single line). Then there is some line ...
- 3,473
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votes
2
answers
271
views
Unique multiplication by ten [closed]
People, it's a popularity contest, you have to do somthing cool here.
Think about cool ways of breaking the code in most languages, not about validating for everyting!
Initially this challenge ...
- 3,009
55
votes
6
answers
3k
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Paint by Numbers (using programming, not numbers)
Your task is to create a program which takes a black-and-white outlined image (example images are below) and fills it in with colour. It is up to you how you section off each region and which colour ...
- 659
8
votes
1
answer
6k
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Make the pattern from composition notebooks [closed]
This challenge was xnor's idea, taken from Digital Trauma's challenge donation thread.
Your challenge is to write a program that, as xnor put it, "procedurally generate[s] the splotchy black-and-...
- 1,577
4
votes
0
answers
337
views
Build an image-glitching algorithm [closed]
It's well known that corrupted JPEG files or NTSC/PAL streams will appear as distorted versions of the true images, or versions covered in random-looking blocks of pixels.
Consider the below image (...
- 35.1k
3
votes
0
answers
355
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Most creative/diabolical/entertaining way to find Python version? [closed]
There are important differences between Python 2 and 3, so it's often useful to know which version of the interpreter is running your code. The straightforward method is something like this:
...
- 757
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votes
1
answer
493
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Self-debugging code [closed]
Your Task
Write a program using ASCII characters. Five alphanumeric (0-9, A-Z, a-z) characters will be inserted at random into your program's source code. Your task is to detect and output these ...
- 3,311
-6
votes
24
answers
516
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Generate 0 or 1 [closed]
Is this Q too easy to ask, or has it just never been thought of?
Generate a random number, either 0 or 1 using a program
You may use a pre-defined function. The code must be executable. (It can't ...
- 3,311
26
votes
8
answers
3k
views
Create a programming language that only appears to be unusable (Robbers' thread)
See the cop thread for more information. Each answer to this question should crack an answer there. That is to say, it should be code to find the third-largest integer in the input when run in the ...
- 31.5k
99
votes
15
answers
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Create a programming language that only appears to be unusable
Robbers' challenge thread is here.
Cops' challenge: Design a programming language that appears to be unusable for programming, but admits computation (or at least completion of the task) through some ...
- 31.5k
0
votes
15
answers
622
views
Programming? No, it's Projamming [closed]
Hopefully not duplicate, but I did not find one.
Challenge
The challenge is to write full program, which compiles (without errors), but, when executed, will not finish the execution till the end, ...
- 1,193
222
votes
92
answers
40k
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Make your language unusable
Try to write some code in your language and make it not satisfying our criteria of being a programming language any more.
A language satisfies our criteria (simplified version for this challenge) of ...
- 37k
0
votes
1
answer
279
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Help me get a date for Homecoming [duplicate]
My school has its Homecoming dance next week, and there's someone in mind I want to ask. But I don't want to ask her the normal way. I want to send her a program that prints "Rachel, will you go to ...
- 7,387
14
votes
5
answers
2k
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RTTTL Obfuscation
RTTTL, or Ring Tone Text Transfer Language is a music format that was invented by Nokia in the dawn of time when dinosaurs roamed the land. It allows for fairly crude pieces of music (no chords or ...
- 11.3k