In computer science, a data structure is a particular way of storing and organizing data in a computer so that it can be used efficiently.
Different kinds of data structures are suited to different kinds of applications, and some are highly specialized to specific tasks. For example, B-trees are particularly well-suited for implementation of databases, while compiler implementations usually use hash tables to look up identifiers.
Data structures provide a means to manage huge amounts of data efficiently, such as large databases and internet indexing services. Usually, efficient data structures are a key to designing efficient algorithms. Some formal design methods and programming languages emphasize data structures, rather than algorithms, as the key organizing factor in software design. Storing and retrieving can be carried out on data stored in both main memory and in secondary memory. Various Data Structures are available that are needed to be employed based on the need. Every Data structure has different advantages and dis-advantages. Hence there is no Data structure which can be fully depended(like dependable Rahul Dravid) on in every situation. So various Data Structures come handy in various situations.
Read more about Data Structure: Overview, Basic Principles, Language Support
Famous quotes containing the words data and/or structure:
“To write it, it took three months; to conceive it three minutes; to collect the data in it—all my life.”
—F. Scott Fitzgerald (1896–1940)
“Why does philosophy use concepts and why does faith use symbols if both try to express the same ultimate? The answer, of course, is that the relation to the ultimate is not the same in each case. The philosophical relation is in principle a detached description of the basic structure in which the ultimate manifests itself. The relation of faith is in principle an involved expression of concern about the meaning of the ultimate for the faithful.”
—Paul Tillich (1886–1965)