Data Structures Overview¶
Master the fundamental data structures used in software development and interviews.
What You'll Learn¶
Understanding data structures is crucial for writing efficient code and acing technical interviews.
Topics¶
| Topic | Description | Difficulty |
|---|---|---|
| Arrays & Lists | Sequential collections | Easy |
| Strings | Text manipulation | Easy |
| Hash Tables | Key-value storage | Easy |
| Linked Lists | Chain of nodes | Medium |
| Stacks & Queues | LIFO and FIFO | Easy |
| Trees | Hierarchical structures | Medium |
| Graphs | Network structures | Medium |
Complexity Overview¶
| Operation | Array | Linked List | Hash Table | BST |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Access | O(1) | O(n) | O(1) avg | O(log n) |
| Search | O(n) | O(n) | O(1) avg | O(log n) |
| Insert | O(n) | O(1) | O(1) avg | O(log n) |
| Delete | O(n) | O(1) | O(1) avg | O(log n) |
Practice Files¶
All implementations are in build/data-structures/:
# Arrays
python build/data-structures/01-arrays-lists/array_basics.py
# Linked Lists
python build/data-structures/04-linked-lists/singly_linked.py
# Trees
python build/data-structures/06-trees/binary_tree.py
Learning Path¶
- Start with Arrays & Lists - the foundation
- Progress to Strings and Hash Tables
- Master Linked Lists - common interview topic
- Understand Stacks & Queues
- Dive into Trees - essential for advanced problems
- Explore Graphs - powerful modeling tool
Interview Tips¶
- Know time/space complexity for all operations
- Practice implementing from scratch
- Understand when to use each structure
- Be able to explain trade-offs