[Javascript] Data Structure implementation

[james]

Thanks, that is a fantastic answer to my question!!!

I think I was focusing too much on the way my CS tutor introduced the 
concept of Linked List as a way to get around the problems of Arrays in C, 
which are problems that (because javascript Arrays are hashtables), don't 
really come into the question with JavaScript.

but I see that linked lists have benefits over hashtable style arrays also 
for many operations

thanks again!

Jenni

At 18:22 04/04/2005 -0400, you wrote:
>Jenni,
>
>On Apr 4, 2005 1:50 PM, james <james at southspace.org> wrote:
> > I am not really as much of an expert on this as I would like to be
> > but I would say the reasons for using a linked list structure if for
> > example you were using C are:
> >
> > easy insertions
> > easy joins
> > no risk of overflow (so you can for example easily implement a queue)
> >
> > the downsides being:
> >
> > no direct but only sequential access
>
>Well, you are assuming this is a downside. For abstraction and
>encapsulation purposes, it is often a very desireable consequence. If
>I pass a method/function a list node, it doesn't have to know anything
>about the node's position in the list. I have seen many javascript
>applications that fall all over themselves trying to keep track of
>indeces, because the developer never thought about anything but an
>array.
>
>I could just as easily turn the question around and ask you why you
>would ever want an array, and you would likely say: there are
>situations where direct access is important. But, if you are in a
>situation where only relative access is important, you are wasting
>resources if you use an array over a linked list.
>
>Then, of course, it is rather difficult to efficiently model a tree
>structure and similar nonlinear structures in an array. In fact, you
>waste quite a bit of space in an array implementation unless your tree
>is full.
>
> > but this is in comparison to classic C Arrays, whereas in comparison
> > to a Hash Table for everything approach of JavaScript, and when you
> > have compiled into the Javascript interpreter methods like
> > Array.Splice(), I'm not sure what the benefits are of implementing
> > such an structure....
>
>Yes, I cannot speak to the efficiency of Array.splice(). Maybe do some tests?
>
>My point with the "well, hashtables are usually arrays" comment was
>only that I don't see how the fact that in JS 'arrays' are hashtables
>in any way encroaches on the usefulness of linked lists.
>
> > (oh, and aplogies, I am using a friend's account, my name is Jenny, not 
> James!)
>
>It would seem *I* owe the apologies :)
>
>--
>Matt Warden
>Miami University
>Oxford, OH, USA
>http://mattwarden.com
>
>
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