What is Data Structure?

A data structure is a way of storing and organizing data in a computer so that it can be accessed and manipulated efficiently. Different types of data structures are suitable for different kinds of applications, and some are highly specialized to specific tasks. Data structures are essential for designing and implementing various software systems, such as databases, operating systems, compilers, web applications, etc.

Dynamic Memory Allocation

Dynamic memory allocation in C is a way of allocating memory for variables or data structures at run time, instead of compile time. This allows the program to use only the amount of memory that is needed, and to free the memory when it is no longer used. Dynamic memory allocation is useful for creating data structures that have variable size or unknown size at compile time, such as linked lists, trees, graphs,etc.

Advantages of Dynamic Memory Allocation

• It allows for creating data structures that have variable size or unknown size at compile time, such as linked lists, trees, graphs, etc.
• It ensures that only the amount of memory that is needed is used, and that the memory is freed when it is no longer used. This results in more efficient use of resources and can increase performance significantly.
• It allows for reusing the memory that is freed by the user, unlike static memory allocation that cannot reuse the unused memory.

Disadvantages of Dynamic Memory Allocation

• It is slower than static memory allocation, because the memory address is not known at compile time and the program has to search for a suitable memory block at run time.
• It can result in memory leaks if the memory is not freed properly by the user after use. This can cause the program to consume more memory than needed and eventually crash.
• It can cause memory fragmentation if the memory is allocated and freed in an irregular pattern. This can reduce the performance of the program and make it difficult to find a contiguous memory block for large allocations.
• It is slower than static memory allocation, because the memory address is not known at compile time and the program has to search for a suitable memory block at run time.
• It can result in memory leaks if the memory is not freed properly by the user after use. This can cause the program to consume more memory than needed and eventually crash.

Self-referential Structure

A self-referential structure is a structure that can have members which point to a structure variable of the same type. They can have one or more pointers pointing to the same type of structure as their member.

Array

An array is a collection of data elements that are stored in contiguous memory locations and have the same data type. Arrays are useful for storing and accessing data in a sequential or random manner. Arrays can be one-dimensional, two-dimensional, or multi-dimensional.

Linked List

A linked list is a linear data structure that consists of nodes that are connected by pointers. Each node contains a data element and a pointer to the next node. Linked lists are useful for inserting and deleting data at any position without shifting other elements. Linked lists can be singly linked, doubly linked, or circularly linked.

Stack

A stack is a linear data structure that follows the LIFO (Last In First Out) principle. It means that the last element inserted into the stack is the first one to be removed. A stack can be implemented using an array or a linked list. Stacks are useful for implementing recursion, backtracking, expression evaluation, etc.

Queue

A queue is a linear data structure that follows the FIFO (First In First Out) principle. It means that the first element inserted into the queue is the first one to be removed. A queue can be implemented using an array or a linked list. Queues are useful for implementing scheduling, buffering, simulation, etc.

Tree

A tree is a hierarchical data structure that consists of nodes that are connected by edges. Each node contains a data element and a pointer to its children nodes. The topmost node is called the root, and the nodes with no children are called the leaves. Trees are useful for representing hierarchical or nested data, such as file systems, XML documents, organizational charts, etc.

Graph

A graph is a non-linear data structure that consists of vertices (or nodes) and edges (or links) that connect them. A graph can be directed or undirected, weighted or unweighted, cyclic or acyclic, etc. Graphs are useful for modeling complex networks, such as social networks, transportation networks, web pages, etc.

Sorting

Sorting is a process of arranging data elements in a certain order, such as ascending or descending, based on a comparison operator. Sorting is important for many reasons, such as making data searching faster and easier, improving data readability, and facilitating other operations on data. There are many types of sorting algorithms that can be used to sort data elements in different ways.

Bubble Sort

This algorithm compares each pair of adjacent elements in the array and swaps them if they are in the wrong order. It repeats this process until no swaps are needed. Bubble sort has a time complexity of O(n^2) in the worst case, where n is the number of elements in the array.

Example:1

Program to accept 10 numbers from the user sort them in ascending order and print it back.

Example:2

Write a program to accept 10 numbers from the user sort them in descending order.

Example:3

Write a program to accept 10 name from the user sort them in ascending order and print them back.