aoc

Advent of code attempts. See advent of code

Overview

awk seems like a really good fit to solve advent of code problems. Hence, the solutions here are all done using awk.

advent of code has 2 problems with one data set. the second problem usuallys extends on the first. make is used to organize and run the solutions.

Code organiation

Top level folders will represent years like 2023, 2024 etc

Under a year, expect the following files

2024
└── 1
    ├── input
    ├── Makefile
    ├── process2.awk
    ├── process.awk
    ├── sample.1
    └── sample.2

2 directories, 6 files

• input is the input file from aoc for the specific problem. Usually both problems have the same input
• Makefile has targets and other bookkeeping to solve problems.
  • make or make 1 will solve the first problem and output the answer
  • make 2 will solve the second problem and output the answer
• process.awk is optional. if present, it will have the code for solving the first part of the problem
• process2.awk is optional. if present, it will have code to solve the second part of the problem.
• sample.1 usually contains input file to check the sample solution from the aoc problem description
• sample.2 usually contains input file to check the second part of the solution

How to use

It is best if you find the problem in advent of code first. Then, to check, copy the sample file as sample.1 and run make INPUT=sample.1 Once you understand how the solution works, download the input (this could be different based on your login to the site) as input and run make or make 1 Input the answer on advent of code site to verify.

When you read and understand the second part of the problem and the solution, you can try make 2 and verify.

why are awk files optional

sometimes, the problems can be solved with tools like grep or a one line awk which becomes part of make. therefore, awk files might be optional