Nothing special it’s working, I’m as usual troubled with the instructions, or let’s say the lack of instructions.
I quote :
" Write a recursive function, sum(arr, n), that returns the sum of the first n elements of an array." Is this really an instruction ? from where to where this function should go over a million or not ? I’m sorry it’s way insufficient to me.
function sum(arr, n) {
// Only change code below this line
if (n <= 0) {
return 0;
}else {
return sum(arr, n - 1 ) + arr[n - 1];
}
// Only change code above this line
}
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The array arr contains elements. You need to make a recursive function that adds together (takes the sum) of the first n elements in the array arr.
Is there a specific part of the output you don’t understand? Do you know how to index into an array? Do you know how to access the first n elements? Do you know how to sum? What can I clarify?
The recursive part is hard, but recursion doesn’t have anything to do with the basic task that needs to be accomplished - only how the task is accomplished.
By the way, I added spoiler tags around your code. Whenever you post a full working solution and have questions about it, please use [spoiler] and [/spoiler] tags around your code.
No the letter “n” is specific enough for me, that’s not the matter since I could write the code.
The instructions are most of the time incomplete to me. If I’m instructed to do a recursive function starting at some point and finishing somewhere else, I’m comfortable with that.
For instance, in the next challenge we have a list of names, and out of the blue comes a “Bob” who happens to love potatoes. But this Bob is nowhere in the code, how can that be ?
And another point, is the fact that i’m unable to check my code line by line if I want/need to, my only option is “Submit” button, but it does not explain what’s going on.
That is all that it’s about.
I forgot some important point here, I hate to copy without understanding what I’m doing. And I find myself doing like that too many times in this tutorial.
I’d like to see them earlier in the curriculum, though that’s a bit of a chicken and the egg problem because they don’t make as much sense without context.
Though, no single order works for everyone, so there will always a place for good old questions and answers on the forum.
I have started coding with Python, where you learn quite quickly how to check each function, variable and so, or their type. I felt very comfortable probably because I had some control on it and knew what was not working .
It’s not the same here and that got me confused I guess.
If there was a user input somewhere (which I would create), or if I could try some non existing names, I would be understanding that easier. That’s not the case here.
open a topic for that challenge if the issue is there
functions are reusable, in this case you are said that they take an array and a number, what those rapresent, how they relate to the outpur, and then you should make it work with any possible value of arr and n
the instructions are generic, because the function you are creating is also generic
you can always add a function call to try how it works
yeah, I’m not getting your point at all. Can you explain? maybe we can find a solution