Abakoda was NOI.PH’s initiative to make competitive programming accessible for beginners. Many of our strongest participants from recent years had been introduced to NOI.PH through Abakoda!
But now, it’s time for Abakoda to level up. Starting next year, we will unveil a brand new Abakoda that will make competitive programming even more accessible to all Filipinos than ever before!
As a final send-off to this first phase of Abakoda’s life, we invite all Filipino HS students to participate in our Abakoda Christmas Extravaganza (ACE) as we look back on all the famous and infamous Abakoda Long Contest problems from over the years!
What is the Abakoda Christmas Extravaganza?
This is a for-fun, educational long contest that will take place over the course of December.
On December 5 (Friday), five problems will be released on Codeforces, each starting with the letter A. Then, every three days, another 5-6 problems will be added to contest, each starting with the same letter. The final problems will be posted on December 29, and the contest will run until the end of December.
Discover old classics you’ve never seen before, or revisit past problems with newfound strength. The Christmas extravaganza is great training fun for beginners and veterans alike!
Are you ready for the biggest leaderboard ever seen in NOI.PH history!?
How difficult will these problems be?
There will be problems interesting for everyone, regardless of your skill level. If you want to try out competitive programming, this is the perfect place to start—you can tackle the problems with no time limit, at your own pace. No need to have syntax memorized!
If you are a Filipino high school student, we invite you to join the NOI.PH Discord server by following this link: https://noi.ph/discord-invite/
We invite our HS students to actively discuss these problems on the Discord for the duration of ACE. The goal is, after all, to learn and to have fun. You can ask for help, ask for advice, talk about anything your heart desires—get to know your trainers and your peers, and bond over some cool programming puzzles!
What resources am I allowed to use?
You can look up programming documentation and algorithm tutorials on the internet, and you’re encouraged to ask your fellow HS students for help on the Discord. The goal of this contest is to learn a lot!
That said, for the sake of learning and integrity, we ask participants to please respect two rules:
- Do not spoil yourself on tutorials for past problems (for those that exist). Try to figure it out on your own, or through the community’s help!
- Do not use generative AI to generate code or solution ideas. The point of this contest is for you to improve and for you to have fun.
You can use any programming language that Codeforces supports, although you are reminded that you are limited to Python 3 or C++ for our actual NOI.PH Eliminations and Finals Rounds.
How much does it cost to join?
It’s free, Bruce Lee! Participation is FREE and open to anyone interested in computer science and programming.
Are there prizes?
Yes, there will be a special prize for the highest-scoring participant in the Christmas Extravaganza, with the prize to be distributed during NOI.PH Finals.
That said, in the spirit of Christmas, perhaps the truest prize is the community and the friends we made along the way!
Note: Only high school students are eligible to win prizes.
How do I join? How do I register?
- Create a Codeforces account at https://codeforces.com/.
- Join the contest at https://tinyurl.com/AbakodaChristmasExtravaganza and submit there when the contest starts!