Omid - Challenge 231

data-challenges
advanced-exercises
🔰 Question Result ID MN ABC Y ABC#123 MN@XZ
Published

March 24, 2026

Illustration for Omid - Challenge 231

Challenge Description

🔰 Question Result ID MN ABC Y ABC#123 MN@XZ

Solutions

library(tidyverse)
library(readxl)

path = "files/200-299/231/CH-231 Column Splitting.xlsx"
input = read_excel(path, range = "B2:B7")
test = read_excel(path, range = "D2:F7")

result = input %>%
  extract(
    ID,
    into = c("Before Symbol", "Symbol", "After Symbol"),
    regex = "([[:alnum:]]+)([^[:alnum:]]+)([[:alnum:]]+)",
    remove = TRUE
  )

all.equal(result, test)
#> [1] TRUE

  • Logic:

    • Reads the workbook ranges needed for the challenge

    • 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 = "200-299/231/CH-231 Column Splitting.xlsx"

input = pd.read_excel(path, usecols="B", skiprows=1, nrows=6)
test = pd.read_excel(path, usecols="D:F", skiprows=1, nrows=6).astype(str)

result = input["ID"].str.extract(r"([a-zA-Z0-9]+)([^a-zA-Z0-9]+)([a-zA-Z0-9]+)")
result.columns = ["Before Symbol", "Symbol", "After Symbol"]

print(test.equals(result))

  • Logic:

    • Reads the workbook ranges needed for the challenge

  • 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 business rule is readable, but the workbook still requires careful implementation to reach the expected layout.