DSA problem
Hollow Pyramid of Stars
Given an integer N, print a hollow pyramid of stars with N rows. Only the two slanted edges and the base row carry stars; the inside is hollow.
This combines the centering logic of a solid pyramid with the conditional printing of a hollow shape. For each row you print N - i leading spaces, then decide: the first row is a single star, the last row is a full base of 2 * N - 1 stars, and every row in between is a star, some interior spaces, and another star.
The key skill is recognizing which positions are border positions inside a triangular shape and handling several conditions at once.
Examples
Example 1
Input:
N = 5Output:
*
* *
* *
* *
*********Explanation: Row 1 is a single star, the base is solid, and middle rows show only their two edge stars.
Constraints
- 1 <= N <= 100
3 hints and a full solution walkthrough with step-by-step visualizations are available in the practice editor.