Linked List Data Structure

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Questions and Answers

What should be done when inserting a new node at a specified position in a linked list?

The previous node's next should point to null.

Next of the previous node should point to the new node and new node's next should point to the previous's next. (correct)

Only the previous node needs to be updated.

The new node should be set as the head of the linked list.

What is the first action to take when searching for an element in a linked list?

Check if the head node is the search value.

Traverse the list without tracking the index.

Start from the last node of the list.

Create a temp node pointing to the head. (correct)

Which condition initiates the deletion of the first node in a linked list?

The head's next node is not null.

The list has more than one node.

The temp node is empty.

The head is not null. (correct)

What must be checked before deleting the last node of a linked list?

If the head is null Signup and view all the answers

When deleting a node at a given position in a linked list, what should the specified position be greater than or equal to?

1 Signup and view all the answers

What is a primary disadvantage of linked lists compared to arrays?

Random access to elements is not allowed. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following statements about singly linked lists is true?

They can only be traversed in forward direction. Signup and view all the answers

In a linked list, what is the function of pointers in each node?

They connect each node to the next node. Signup and view all the answers

What is a characteristic of circular doubly linked lists?

The first element points to the last element as well. Signup and view all the answers

Which of the following is NOT an advantage of linked lists?

They enable quick searching of elements using binary search. Signup and view all the answers

What does the 'HEAD' node represent in a linked list?

The first node that acts as a reference point. Signup and view all the answers

What is the main reason why linked lists are better than arrays in terms of memory utilization?

Arrays have fixed sizes, while linked lists can grow dynamically. Signup and view all the answers

What is the first step when inserting a new node at the start of a linked list?

Create a new node with a given element Signup and view all the answers

What is the purpose of the TraverseList function?

Display the contents of the linked list Signup and view all the answers

How is a new node added at the end of the linked list?

By linking the last node to the new node Signup and view all the answers

When inserting a new node at a given position, what must be checked before proceeding?

If the previous node to the insert position is null Signup and view all the answers

What happens if the temp node is null when trying to traverse the linked list?

The list is considered empty Signup and view all the answers

Which operation directly removes the head node from the linked list?

Delete the first node Signup and view all the answers

To insert a new node at the start, what must be done to the head pointer?

It should point to the new node Signup and view all the answers

In which scenario is the new node made to head when inserting at a given position?

When the position is 1 Signup and view all the answers

What should be done if the list contains no items at the beginning of traversal?

Display a message indicating the list is empty Signup and view all the answers

What is a key characteristic of traversing a linked list?

It requires a temporary node. Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Linked List

A linked list is a linear data structure where elements are stored in nodes.
Each node has two sub-elements: a data part storing the element's value and a next part storing a pointer to the next node.
Linked lists are dynamic, allocating memory as needed.
Insertion and deletion are efficient.
Other data structures (like stacks and queues) can be implemented using linked lists.
Access time is faster than some other structures, and it can be expanded in constant time without extra memory.
Memory usage is efficient as there's no need to predetermine the list size.
Backtracking is possible in doubly linked lists.
Random access is not allowed (sequential access required).
Linked lists are less memory-intensive for large elements compared to arrays.
Wasted memory exists in the form of pointers within each node.
The first node (HEAD) is used as a reference point.
The last node points to NULL (tail).
Linked lists can be visualized as a chain of nodes.

Types of Linked Lists

Singly Linked List: Traversal is only forward.
Doubly Linked List: Traversal is both forward and backward.
Circular Singly Linked List: The last element points to the first element.
Circular Doubly Linked List: Both the last and first elements point to each other.

Linked List Operations

Insert a node at the start
Insert a new node at the end
Insert a node at a given position
Traverse the linked list
Search for a node
Delete a node (first node)
Delete a node (last node)
Delete a node at a given position
Delete all nodes
Count the nodes
Reverse the list
Update the list

Insert a new node at the start

A new node with the given element is created.
The new node is added before the existing head of the list.
The head pointer is updated to point to the new node.

Traverse Linked List

A temporary (temp) node is created, pointing to the head of the list.
If the temp node is not null, display its content and move to the next node using temp.next.
Repeat this process until temp becomes null.
If temp is null at the start, the list is empty.

Insert a new node at the end

A new node with the given element is created.
The last node in the list is found (temp).
The next pointer of the last node is linked to the new node.

Insert a new node at the given position

A new node with the given element is created.
If the position is 1, make the new node the head.
Otherwise, traverse to the node before the desired position (temp).
Update links to insert the new node at the specified position.
Handle cases where the position is invalid or the list is empty.

Search Element

A temporary node is created pointing to the head.
Variables (found, i) are used to track search progress.
If the temp node is not null:
- Traverse the list, checking if the current node's value matches the search value.
- If a match is found, update found and exit the loop.
If found is 1, display the element and index; otherwise, say it's not found.
If the temp node is null at the start, the list is empty.

Delete the first node

If head is not null, create a temporary node pointing to head.
Move head to the next node of head
Delete the temporary node.

Delete the last node

Check if the head is empty.
If the head is not empty, check if head.next is empty.
- If it is, release the head.
- Otherwise, traverse to the second-to-last node.
Link the next of the second-to-last node to NULL and delete the last node.

Delete a node at the given position

Check if the position is valid (greater than or equal to 1).
If position is 1 and head is not null, make the head next as head and delete the previous head.
Else, traverse to the node before the specified position.
If previous node and the node to be deleted exist, adjust links.
Handle cases where the position is invalid or the node does not exist.

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Description

This quiz covers the fundamental concepts of linked lists, a dynamic data structure where elements are stored in nodes. Learn about their efficient memory usage, insertion and deletion processes, and how they can implement other structures like stacks and queues.