Assembling a gadget step by step

What this C++ code-tracing question tests

This is an easy C++ question that asks you to read and mentally execute a short code snippet. It's a warm-up problem designed to check that you can follow program flow, understand variable scope, and predict output without running the code.

Questions like this appear early in interviews to establish baseline competence and build confidence. The skill being tested is precise reading: tracking how variables change state, recognizing control flow, and understanding what gets printed. There are no tricks—just careful tracing.

• Variable declaration and initialization
• Control flow and loops
• Output formatting and order of execution