Solution: Find the Difference
Understand how to find the index of an extra character in one of two similar strings by applying bitwise XOR manipulation. This lesson guides you through implementing an optimized algorithm that compares ASCII values, achieving linear time complexity and constant space use.
Statement
Given two strings, str1 and str2, find the index of the extra character that is present in only one of the strings.
Note: If multiple instances of the extra character exist, return the index of the first occurrence of the character in the longer string.
Constraints:
-
str1.length,str2.length - Either
str2.lengthstr1.length + 1, or,str1.length