3. INTRODUCTION
• a data structure
• any of various methods or formats (such as an array, file, or record)
for organizing data in a computer
4. USAGE
IImplementing the physical representations of abstract data types uses data structures. When
creating effective software, data structures are a key component. They are also essential to the
design of algorithms and the use of those algorithms in software. The data structures are used
in different aspects, such as,
Storing Data
When providing the set of attributes and matching structures that will be used to store records
in a database management system, data structures are utilised to efficiently persist data.
Managing Resources and Services
Data structures, including linked lists for memory allocation, file directory management and file
structure trees, as well as process scheduling queues, are used to allow core operating system
(OS) resources and functions.
5. IMPORTANT
• As data structures are used to store data in an organized form, and since data is the
most crucial entity in computer science, the true worth of data structures is clear.
• No matter what problem are you solving, in one way or another you have to deal
with data — whether it’s an employee’s salary, stock prices, a grocery list, or even a
simple telephone directory.
• Based on different scenarios, data needs to be stored in a specific format. We have a
handful of data structures that cover our need to store data in different formats
6. FUNDAMENTAL QUESTIONS ABOUT
ALGORITHMS
•
1. What is it supposed to do?
•
2. Does it really do what it is supposed to do?
•
3. How efficiently does it do it?
•
The technical terms normally used for these three aspects are:
•
1. Specification.
•
2. Verification.
• 3. Performance analysis.
7. EXAMPLE
-There are numerous types of data structures, generally built upon simpler primitive data types. Well known
examples are:[10]
1-An array is a number of elements in a specific order, typically all of the same type (depending on the
language, individual elements may either all be forced to be the same type, or may be of almost any type).
Elements are accessed using an integer index to specify which element is required. Typical implementations
allocate contiguous memory words for the elements of arrays (but this is not always a necessity). Arrays may be
fixed-length or resizable.
2-A linked list (also just called list) is a linear collection of data elements of any type, called
nodes, where each node has itself a value, and points to the next node in the linked list. The principal advantage of
a linked list over an array is that values can always be efficiently inserted and removed without relocating the rest
of the list. Certain other operations, such as random access to a certain element, are however slower on lists than
on arrays.
3-A record (also called tuple or struct) is an aggregate data structure. A record is a value that
contains other values, typically in fixed number and sequence and typically indexed by names. The elements of
records are usually called fields or members. In the context of object-oriented programming, records are known as
plain old data structures to distinguish them from objects.[11]
4-Hash tables, graphs and binary trees
