Linked List Quiz: Inserting Nodes at Head and Tail

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Questions and Answers

What does a NULL link in the last node of a singly linked list indicate?

An error in the list

The end of the list (correct)

A loop in the list

The beginning of the list

When inserting a new node before the head of a singly linked list, what needs to be updated?

Neither the new node nor the head pointer

Both the new node's data and the head pointer

Only the new node's next pointer (correct)

Only the new node's data

What is the primary purpose of updating the head pointer when inserting a new node at the beginning of a singly linked list?

To prevent data corruption

To avoid memory leaks

To maintain the order of nodes (correct)

To ensure efficient traversal

Why is creating a temporary node necessary when deleting the first node in a singly linked list?

To maintain the integrity of the list Signup and view all the answers

Why is extra memory space required for a pointer with each element in a linked list?

To point to the next node in the list Signup and view all the answers

What is the purpose of freeing memory allocated to nodes when deleting an entire singly linked list?

To ensure proper garbage collection Signup and view all the answers

What is the purpose of the 'head' in a linked list?

To indicate the beginning of the linked list Signup and view all the answers

In a singly linked list, what does it mean to insert a new node at a given position?

Inserting at an arbitrary location within the list Signup and view all the answers

In a linked list node, what is typically stored in the 'data' part of each node?

Information like integers or strings Signup and view all the answers

What does the 'next' pointer in a linked list node do?

Connects one node to another in the sequence Signup and view all the answers

How can we represent a linked list node in C?

With structures Signup and view all the answers

What type of linked list has a next pointer for each element to connect to the following element?

Singly-linked list Signup and view all the answers

What is the main disadvantage of linked lists compared to arrays?

Linked lists take O(n) for access to an element in the list in the worst case. Signup and view all the answers

How does access time to individual elements in linked lists compare to arrays?

Linked lists take O(n) for access to an element in the list in the worst case, while arrays take O(1). Signup and view all the answers

Why can deleting the last item in a linked list be challenging?

When the last item is deleted, the last but one must have its pointer changed. Signup and view all the answers

Which memory-related issue is mentioned as a disadvantage of linked lists?

Linked lists waste memory with extra reference points. Signup and view all the answers

What feature distinguishes arrays from linked lists in terms of memory usage?

Arrays define contiguous blocks of memory, while linked lists have scattered memory allocation. Signup and view all the answers

Why is random access not allowed in linked lists?

Linked lists do not support accessing elements directly by index. Signup and view all the answers

What is the additional step required for inserting a new node before the head in a doubly linked list?

Update the right pointer of the new node and make the left pointer NULL Signup and view all the answers

What is the time complexity for inserting a new node at a given position in a doubly linked list?

O(n) Signup and view all the answers

When deleting a node at a given position in a doubly linked list, how many possible nodes need to be updated?

2 Signup and view all the answers

What is the space complexity for inserting a new node at the end of a doubly linked list?

O(1) Signup and view all the answers

After deleting the last node in a doubly linked list, what should be done with the tail pointer?

Update it to point to NULL Signup and view all the answers

What is the main difference between inserting a new node at the beginning versus at a given position in a doubly linked list?

Number of pointers that need adjustment Signup and view all the answers

What is the time complexity for scanning the complete list in a circular linked list?

O(n) Signup and view all the answers

How do we stop traversal in a circular linked list?

When we reach the head node again Signup and view all the answers

What is the purpose of maintaining a pointer to the last inserted node in a circular linked list?

To easily access the front node Signup and view all the answers

How would you insert a node at the beginning of a circular linked list?

Make the new node as the head node Signup and view all the answers

What is the node previous to the head node in a circular linked list?

The tail node Signup and view all the answers

What would be the time complexity for inserting an element at the end of a circular linked list?

O(1) Signup and view all the answers

Study Notes

Advantages of Linked Lists

Dynamic size, allowing for easy insertion and deletion of elements without the need for copying and reallocating space
13 advantages of linked lists, including dynamic size and ease of insertion/deletion

Disadvantages of Linked Lists

Access time to individual elements takes O(n) in the worst case, compared to O(1) for arrays
Spatial locality in memory is not utilized, making it unfriendly to modern CPU caching methods
Dynamic allocation of storage can be expensive, and linked lists can be hard to manipulate
Deleting the last item requires traversing the list to find the last but one link and setting its pointer to NULL
Linked lists waste memory due to extra reference points
Random access is not allowed, and elements must be accessed sequentially
Extra memory space is required for a pointer with each element of the list

Representation of Linked Lists

A linked list is represented by a pointer to the first node of the linked list, also known as the head
If the linked list is empty, the head points to NULL
Each node in a list consists of at least two parts: data and a pointer (or reference) to the next node

Creating a First Node

A node can be represented using structures in C
An example of a linked list node with integer data is struct Node { int data; struct Node* next; };

Linked List Traversal

Traversal involves accessing each node in the linked list
The program of traversal.c demonstrates linked list traversal

Types of Linked Lists

Singly-linked list
Doubly linked list
Circular linked list

Singly Linked List

A singly linked list consists of a number of nodes, each with a next pointer to the following element
The link of the last node in the list is NULL, indicating the end of the list

Singly Linked List Operations

Insertion: inserting a new node before the head (at the beginning), after the tail (at the end of the list), or at a given position of the list
Deletion: deleting the first node, the last node, or a node at a given position of the list

Doubly Linked List

A doubly linked list allows for insertion and deletion at the beginning, end, or at a given position of the list
Insertion and deletion operations involve modifying previous and next pointers

Circular Linked List

A circular linked list has a circular structure where the last node points to the first node
Traversal of a circular linked list involves stopping when we reach the head node again
Insertion operations involve creating a new node and updating the next and previous pointers accordingly

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Description

Learn about the different insertion operations in a singly linked list, such as inserting a new node before the head, after the tail, or at a specific position. Understand the step-by-step process for inserting an element at the beginning of the list.

Singly Linked List Insertion Operations

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