Create Original Challenges – Coding Style

Steps to Create Original Challenges (Coding Style)

What Is Marine?

Detailed Workflow: Build & Upload with Marine

Supported Programming Languages

How to Create Other Question Styles

Marine is a tool that lets you create Track content and preview its behavior in real time.

◾️ Menu Options

◾️ Writing Content

Marine supports authoring these content types:

Map raw scores to ranks S-E.

The first matching range takes precedence if ranges overlap.

Unknown keys are ignored.

Example:

Write the full problem statement in Markdown.

Official challenges follow a template; custom challenges may use any structure.

Markdown extensions are available—see the extension guide.

README.md itself is not listed in track.yml.

During compilation, Track selects the README file based on the language option (ja / en):

Provide both files for bilingual challenges.

Inside the judge application, read the CHALLENGE_LANGUAGE environment variable to localize error messages.

Write the full assignment in Markdown.

Official content follows a template; custom content may use any format.

Markdown extensions are available.

Include only the files that differ from app.

For solution preview, Track overlays solution on top of app before startup.

hidden is not distributed to candidates.

Typical files:

Each script must begin by downloading and unpacking the candidate ZIP via $SUBMISSION_URL:

You may also place additional private files (e.g., test data) here.

If your test runner cannot output TAP directly, place a converter script here and reference it via application.yml#conversion.

Otherwise, omit this directory.

If you provide an explanatory write-up, add it as solution.md.

Marine and the web UI do not display this file.

Fargate does not support Compose-style service aliases (db:5432).

Instead, containers must connect via 127.0.0.1:<port>.

Add an environment variable in the Main Service whose value is 127.0.0.1, and instruct candidates to reference that variable both locally and on Track.

During compilation, Track selects README files as follows:

The same rule applies to solution.md.

Other files are not internationalized.

A complete guide to creating coding challenges with Marine is available here:

Official Challenges are provided by Track and, depending on your plan, are available to all organizations.

Custom Challenges are created by an organization and are visible only to that organization.

Official Challenges must include at least one full-score solution to guarantee quality; Custom Challenges only need a compilable, non-zero solution.

Track relies on TAP output.

• CLI / Function: write tests in JavaScript with mocha -R tap (helper library codecheck available).

• Coding: use any TAP-capable framework included in your Docker image.

ok n … = pass  not ok n … = fail

Mandatory

type, test, testcases

Common optional keys

editable, readonly, hide, testExclude, images, allowNewFile, build, initialize, mainFile, languages, templateType, envConf, evaluationPoint, solutions, namedSolutions, shared, debug, watch, function, functionInputDir, systemTag

Example

Write the problem statement in Markdown.

Track supports several Markdown extensions (see the extension guide).

Do not list README.md in track.yml.

• Files under hide   → secret tests (hidden)

testcases.open / testcases.secret must match the actual counts; mismatches raise warnings.

Template shown to users for free-text comments after coding.

If absent, a blank page is displayed.

Author-facing explanation of the model solution.

Visible only to administrators, never to candidates.

On compilation Track chooses files as follows:

• ja → README_ja.md else README.md

• en → README_en.md else README.md

solution.md follows the same rule.

You may add track_en.yml / track_ja.yml; top-level keys in these files override the main track.yml.

At runtime the environment variable CHALLENGE_LANGUAGE contains ja or en—use it to localize error messages.

In any file listed in editable or readonly, code lines between

BEGIN_CHALLENGE and END_CHALLENGE are removed before delivery to candidates (but remain visible in Marine Dev Mode).

Register model answers.

Syntax: destName:sourcePath (dest = filename seen during testing).

Any solution.* file in the root folder is auto-registered.

CLI / Function: one solution.ext per language (plus additional files such as package.json if needed).

Coding: all listed files overwrite candidates’ versions during solution verification.

Define multiple solution sets with names.

Frontend Challenges use the template name as name.

See env.md for all available images.

Coding Challenges must set envConf.

CLI / Function templates automatically select the correct image.

Supported languages: c, cpp, csharp, java, nodejs, php, python, python3, scala, perl, ruby, go, swift, kotlin, rust.

Provide a Docker image and template to add more.

Define in track.yml:

Supported types: int, string, float, boolean plus 1-D / 2-D arrays.

Strings cannot contain whitespace; int range ±9 007 199 254 740 991.

Use codecheck with mocha:

APP_COMMAND contains the user’s executable.

CLI templates:

default (Args) | stdin (STDIN) | plain (no input)

If omitted, default is used.

Define input JSON per test case under functionInputDir; Track converts it to a plain text file:

input1.in.json

→ input1.in

Use codecheck or custom scripts to pass the values to the function and verify the return value.

Run one-time setup when the editor opens.

Group tests by evaluation criteria.

Prefix a TAP test title with [FileIO] etc. to assign it.

Reuse files across multiple challenges.

alias example:

_ places files in the root directory.

Provide quick test commands for candidates.

Placeholders

$f = input file $* = args list $c = user command

codecheck-based challenges generate debug entries automatically.

Flags that modify Track behavior:

• alwaysSave Evaluate on every local run (needed for server-side deploy tasks).

• incompleteSolution Allow official challenges without a full-score solution.

• simpleBuild Skip heavy build steps (e.g., no npm install).

(End of document)

After creating your challenge according to the guide, send the entire project to the Track Customer Success team.

See the list of languages and runtime environments Track supports here.

Create Original Questions – Quiz Style