While practicing LeetCode, I kept running into the same problem:
I’d read the problem in one tab, think through an approach, then switch to another tab
(ChatGPT, notes, docs) to sanity-check my thinking. By the time I came back, I’d already
lost the context of the problem.
I tried a few things:
- Writing notes in Notion
- Copy-pasting problem text into ChatGPT
- Keeping explanations in separate markdown files
None of them worked well. The friction of switching tabs was small, but constant — and it
added up.
So I built a small side-panel tool that lives next to the LeetCode editor. It can:
- See the problem context directly
- Give hints instead of full solutions
- Help me write structured study notes while I’m solving
I originally built this just for myself, but a few friends asked to try it, so I cleaned
it up and released it as a browser extension.
I’m still unsure about a few things:
- Whether this actually helps learning, or just feels more convenient
- How people balance “getting unstuck” vs. not overusing hints
- Whether interview prep tools should optimize for speed or understanding
Would love to hear how others here deal with context switching or learning while practicing.