Omid - Challenge 196

data-challenges
advanced-exercises
🔰 Question Result ID ID.1 ID.2 SSS MN ABC123
Published

March 24, 2026

Illustration for Omid - Challenge 196

Challenge Description

🔰 Question Result ID ID.1 ID.2 SSS MN ABC123

Solutions

library(tidyverse)
library(readxl)

path = "files/CH-196 Column Splitting.xlsx"
input = read_excel(path, range = "B2:B8")
test  = read_excel(path, range = "D2:E8")

result = input %>%
  mutate(`ID.1` = str_remove_all(ID, "[0-9]"),
         `ID.2` = str_remove_all(ID, "[A-Z]") %>% as.numeric()) %>%
  select(-ID)

all.equal(result, test, check.attributes = FALSE)
#> [1] TRUE

  • Logic:

    • Reads the workbook ranges needed for the challenge

    • Builds the intermediate columns that drive the final result

    • Parses the text patterns directly instead of relying on manual cleanup

  • Strengths:

    • The R solution stays close to the workbook rule and keeps the transformation compact.

  • Areas for Improvement:

    • The code assumes the sheet structure and source ranges remain stable.

  • Gem:

    • The strongest part of the solution is choosing the right intermediate representation before shaping the final output.
import pandas as pd
import re

path = "CH-196 Column Splitting.xlsx"
input = pd.read_excel(path, usecols="B", skiprows=1, nrows=7)
test = pd.read_excel(path, usecols="D:E", skiprows=1, nrows=7)

input['ID.1'] = input['ID'].apply(lambda x: re.sub(r'[0-9]', '', x))
input['ID.2'] = input['ID'].apply(lambda x: int(re.sub(r'[A-Z]', '', x)))
result = input.drop(columns=['ID'])

print(result.equals(test)) # True

  • Logic:

    • Reads the workbook ranges needed for the challenge

    • Parses the text patterns directly instead of relying on manual cleanup

  • Strengths:

    • The Python version follows the same rule in a direct dataframe-oriented implementation.

  • Areas for Improvement:

    • The code assumes the workbook layout remains stable, so any sheet redesign would require small adjustments.

  • Gem:

    • The implementation stays close to the original workbook rule instead of adding unnecessary abstraction.

Difficulty Level

This task is moderate:

  • The core logic is clear, but the correct transformation pattern is not obvious from the raw input.

  • The challenge combines multiple reshaping, grouping, or parsing steps.