Introduction to Data structures
In computer terms, a data structure is a Specific way to store and organize data in a computer's memory so that these data can be used efficiently later. Data may be arranged in many different ways such as the logical or mathematical model for a particular organization of data is termed as a data structure. The variety of a particular data model depends on the two factors -
Firstly, it must be loaded enough in structure to reflect the actual relationships of the data with the real world object.
Secondly, the formation should be simple enough so that anyone can efficiently process the data each time it is necessary.
Categories of Data Structure:
The data structure can be sub divided into major types:
Linear Data Structure
Non-linear Data Structure
Linear Data Structure:
A data structure is said to be linear if its elements combine to form any specific order. There are basically two techniques of representing such linear structure within memory.
First way is to provide the linear relationships among all the elements represented by means of linear memory location. These linear structures are termed as arrays.
The second technique is to provide the linear relationship among all the elements represented by using the concept of pointers or links. These linear structures are termed as linked lists.
The common examples of linear data structure are:
Arrays
Queues
Stacks
Linked lists
Non linear Data Structure:
This structure is mostly used for representing data that contains a hierarchical relationship among various elements.
Examples of Non Linear Data Structures are listed below:
Graphs
family of trees and
table of contents
Tree: In this case, data often contain a hierarchical relationship among various elements. The data structure that reflects this relationship is termed as rooted tree graph or a tree.
