Exemplary Task for Challenge24

Challenge24, an International 24-hour Programming Contest, is the most popular Programming Contest being held in Hungary. Every year the contest invites young and talented people who get offered the possibility to demonstrate their individual programming skills. The contestants have to build teams each consisting of 3 persons and are asked to solve special tasks and programming problems.

An exemplary task for the International 24-hour Programming Contest would be the development of a specific prototype or software that enables to reduce printing costs. Consequently the software must be able to provide a better printing process. So a print job has to be carried out in a very cost-saving way in order to reduce costs for toner and ink cartridges (Toner günstig). This task is characterized to be very complex and has to be completed within 24 hours. Fact is that the contestants will need a wide variety of different IT skills. So a team consisting of 3 contestants who all do have the same know-how will have no chance to succeed in solving the task of the programming contest. Consequently the participants of one team are asked to possess different skills of networking, programming and algorithm theory.

The exemplary task described on this page requires great skills in programming and software development (Softwareentwicklung). Every task has a different focus. The focus of this task which consists in developing a software in order to reduce printing costs is based on the knowledge of web programming. Furthermore it turns out to be very important that the contestants are able to work together very properly. Strictly speaking effective teamwork is expected. If the participants are not doing fine in cooperating within the contest, the programming problem or task will not be solvable for them.

Besides, the contestants should use their own computers or notebooks. This offers them the possibility to work in their familiar environment which helps them work more efficiently in order to solve the programming task.