Guide to Competitive Programming

Just saw this book on Amazon.
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Guide-Competitive-Programming-Algorithms-Undergraduate/dp/3319725467/ref=cm_wl_huc_item

It says in the description:

The text highlights how competitive programming has proven to be an excellent way to learn algorithms, by encouraging the design of algorithms that actually work, stimulating the improvement of programming and debugging skills, and reinforcing the type of thinking required to solve problems in a competitive setting.


I wonder what the experts here say about it. IMHO Competitive-Programming encourages more a cryptic style, where the code is hard to understand, difficult to test or maintain - at least when I look at the accepted solutions on codechef.
closed account (E0p9LyTq)
No expert here, but reading about the author shows he has a vested interest in promoting programming competitions. He would believe they are a good thing.

The description you quote is from the back cover. Either the author or publisher wrote that, to sell books.

Real world programming projects do have a dead-line, but the only competition happening is with the programmer(s) on the project.

reinforcing the type of thinking required to solve problems in a competitive setting

This bit is true, but professional software development is a collaborative setting. Pretty much the exact opposite.
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