Is it worth it to make a transition from SPOJ to TopCoder? If yes, when do you suggest to shift to TC and participate in programming contests?

Thanks for the A2A. Firstly, allow me to "judge" you based on your question. Since you have solved around 200 problems on , you are certainly close to blue level on . I can see you advancing to Div1 in your first SRM (provided you know how the arena works, ofcourse). Secondly, about your use of the word "transition". If you do start doing SRMs, you won't be stopping SPOJ completely, will you? If so, don't! What you should do isn't as much a "transition" as simply starting to take part in SRMs. Now let me answer your question. I suggest you start doing TopCoder asap. First learn how to use the arena properly, then solve about 4-5 problems in practice (it's ok if they are mostly Div2 250s). After that you will be ready to attempt a live SRM. Then you can start thinking about rating and color. About "which is better", it depends on you really. Do you want to solve problems in the order easy-medium-hard (TopCoder) or do you want to solve a set of problems involving similar approach all together (SPOJ)? My suggestion is to primarily attempt to solve TopCoder problems. But if you aren't able to solve one, and later find out it involves a "new" algorithm, then you can read up on it, understand it, and solve a few SPOJ problems on that topic. Then come back to the TopCoder problem and try it again! Lastly, don't let this affect your CG. together with screwed mine! Your current CG isn't too bad, but it isn't great either. (Mine is nearly the same, so no more comments on CG! :P) If you want me to add anything more, you can write it in comments.

SPOJ: akhiluanandh TC: akhilu Thanks for the A2A. I wouldn't use the word "transition", really. It's not as if the two are completely on  different planes, or as if you can't do both; and there isn't really much time you would need to spend to get "used" to Topcoder. Topcoder gives you the feel of a real contest environment. The experience of participating in a live contest is not something you can get for SPOJ. The problems on TC are categorized by difficulty levels as Div 1/2 250/500/1000, which is a useful classification rather than the mixed bag of problems on SPOJ (the number of users who have solved the problem does give a rough indication, but is often misleading). The quality of problems on SPOJ has degraded over the past few years. Problems added before 2010 (by some really good problem setters) are far better than the ones added in recent years. However, the points system of SPOJ is designed to award more points to problems solved by less users (which is the often case with recent problems despite them being easier than many of the older problems), giving users a misplaced sense of superiority. Whether or not you realize it, points do tend to be a motivating factor in choosing problems to solve, and it is very easy to fall into the trap of spending much of your time on SPOJ solving recent and easy problems, which are of little use in terms of learning. I would advise you to follow the list of solved problems of former ICPC world finalists on SPOJ or high-ranked coders you may know who have been inactive in recent years, as I have found these to contain some really good problems (which may give you less points than recent problems, but have much more to learn). Topcoder, on the other hand, has preserved its quality of problems over the years (by hand-picking its contest writers), and has a far better ranking system (which takes into account only live contests). Your topcoder rating is a real indicator of your learning curve. Topcoder also has really good editorials to help you when stuck during practice. I would therefore advise you to start Topcoder. Do not give up SPOJ completely, but look for good problems on SPOJ. Hope this helps. Cheers!