Data Structures and Algorithms in C for Beginners

Compare two simple C algorithms for adding two numbers, contrasting time and space efficiency and introducing time complexity concepts and the idea of counting statements as units.

Explore asymptotic notation and big O, and learn how time complexity like O(1), O(n), O(log n), O(n^2), O(n^3), exponential, and factorial reveal algorithm efficiency.

Explore how to find time complexity in algorithms, analyzing constants, linear, quadratic, cubic, and logarithmic cases with examples like a two dimensional scanner and nested loops.

Analyze time complexity by focusing on worst-case, ignoring constants, and tracing nested loops to reveal log squared and other growth patterns in algorithms.

Explore arrays in c as a collection of elements of the same type, with zero-based indexing and direct element access; note static memory allocation.

Learn how to read user input into an array using a loop, scan values from the keyboard, and store them with zero-based indexing, while outlining a simple algorithm.

Explore how arrays serve as a basic data structure to store and retrieve elements in C, with zero-based indexing, initialization rules (including partial initialization), and static memory implications.

Learn how to insert an element into an array and why simple assignment overwrites existing values. The lecture uses a concrete index example to show preserving data when inserting.

Learn to write C code for inserting and deleting elements in an array, using a global variable and shifting elements to make space at the chosen position.

Explore stacks, a linear data structure in C, implemented with arrays or lists. Learn push and pop operations from the top end, using a top pointer.

See how the top variable tracks stack’s top element, starting at minus one to signal emptiness, and how push updates top for insertion while you can only access top element.

Understand the last in, first out behavior of stacks, with push and pop operations, the top pointer, and undo-like applications in browsers and office software.

Learn how stacks manage push, pop, and top operations, and identify stack overflow when full and stack underflow when empty, with practical examples.

Learn to implement a stack in C using arrays, with push and pop operations, overflow/underflow checks, a top index, and a menu-driven interface for display.

Learn how to reverse a string using a stack by pushing characters and popping them into an output string, illustrating the stack-based algorithm with push and pop.

Learn to reverse a string in C by using a stack: push each character, then pop to form the reversed output, with simple push and pop functions.

Check if parentheses are balanced by scanning the string, pushing opening parentheses onto a stack, popping on closing ones, ignoring operands, and ensuring the number of openings equals closings.

Learn to verify balanced parentheses in C using a stack, pushing opening brackets, ignoring operands, and popping on closing brackets to detect mismatches and empty-stack conditions.

Learn how to verify balanced parentheses with a stack by pushing on opening symbols, popping on closing ones, and ensuring the stack is empty to confirm balance.

Master balanced parentheses checking in C using a stack. Implement push and pop for opening and closing symbols, and use a check function to verify string balance.

Explore manual infix to postfix conversion by applying operator precedence and parentheses rules. Build postfix expressions by placing operators after their operands and evaluate using postfix notation.

Explain converting infix to postfix using a stack, balancing parentheses, scanning left to right, pushing operands to the postfix output and managing operator precedence.

Trace the infix to postfix algorithm using a stack to manage operators and operands and parentheses, converting an input expression to postfix by left-to-right scanning.

Explore coding the infix to postfix algorithm in C using a character stack to manage operators, operands, and precedence, with concrete steps for parentheses and output formatting.

Introduces linked lists in C, explains the node structure with data and next pointers, demonstrates dynamic memory allocation, and discusses insertion, deletion, and limited random access.

Explore self-referential structures in C by defining a node with a data field and a next pointer to the same structure, enabling linked lists.

Pointers store the address of a variable, not its value, enabling access to the value at that address with operators, and their type reflects the pointed-to data.

Define a node structure with data and a next pointer to form a linked list. Allocate memory for the start node with malloc and sizeof, using an external start pointer to traverse.

Create a simple linked list in c by defining a self-referential node with data and next, allocate nodes with malloc, link them, and print their data.

Create a linked list with n nodes by initializing the first node outside the loop, then iteratively creating and linking new nodes, and traversing the list.

Inserting at the beginning of a linked list in C, create a new node, update the start pointer, and link the new node to the former first node.

Shows how to insert a new node at the beginning of a linked list in C by linking the new node to the first element and updating the start pointer.

Learn how to insert a new node at the end in C by traversing to the last node and linking the new node.

Learn how to insert a new node at end of a linked list in C by traversing to last node, linking the new node, and setting its next to null.

Learn how to insert a new node after a given element in a linked list by searching for the target value and updating next pointers.

Learn to implement a C code algorithm that inserts a new node after a specific position in a linked list, using traversal, pointer updates, and user input.

Explore deleting the first node in a C data structure, freeing allocated memory, and updating the head to the next node to complete deletion at the beginning.

Delete the first element in a linked list in C by updating the head to the second node, freeing the original first node, and showing the before and after states.

Learn to delete the end node in a linked list by locating the last and previous nodes, updating the previous node’s next to null, and freeing the last node.

Learn how to delete a specific node in a linked list in C by locating the target, keeping the previous node, and linking its next to the following node.

Explore the queue data structure through a ticket counter analogy, learning front and rear pointers, fifo (first in, first out) behavior, and insertion and deletion operations.

Examine the main disadvantage of a linear queue: once full, freed space cannot be reused, causing a queue overflow. The video notes circular alternatives as a possible remedy.

Learn to implement a basic queue in C, including enqueue at the rear and dequeue from the front. Use a size macro for capacity and display the queue contents.

Explore non-linear data structures, focusing on trees and graphs, with nodes and links as core elements; learn real-world examples like the file system and why non-linearity matters for interviews.

Learn essential tree terminologies used in data structures: nodes and root, leaves, internal and external nodes. Understand parent-child relationships, degree, height, depth, and levels.

Explore binary trees and binary search trees, learn node structure with at most two children, and master preorder, postorder, and inorder traversals, plus level-order traversal basics.

Learn how to perform preorder traversal by visiting the root first, then the left subtree, then the right, with multiple examples.

Master post order traversal by visiting the left subtree, then the right subtree, and finally the root node, using examples to illustrate visiting leftmost nodes and subtrees.

Explore inorder traversal on a binary tree by visiting the left subtree, then the root, and then the right subtree, with examples and comparisons to preorder and postorder.

Master binary search trees, a binary-tree variant with at most two children, where left values are smaller and right values are larger; in-order traversal yields ascending order.

Discover graph terminology, including undirected and directed graphs, weighted and unweighted edges, and key concepts like nodes, edges, in-degree, out-degree, loops, cycles, articulation points, and connected graphs.

Explore graph representations in C, including adjacency matrices and adjacency lists, and learn to convert graphs into these forms, handle directed versus undirected edges, and assign weights when needed.

Implement binary tree in C++ using a linked list approach with left and right pointers, a root node, and leaf nulls, illustrating memory allocation and internal versus leaf nodes.

Implement a binary tree node in C/C++ using a self-referential structure with left and right pointers and a data field, and allocate memory with malloc via the arrow operator.

Create and link a simple binary tree in C++ using dynamic memory, defining node structures with left/right pointers and a root, using an online compiler and planning traversal notes.

Learn data structures and algorithms with searching and sorting, including linear and binary search, traversal, and sorting techniques like bubble sort, insertion sort, and quicksort for ascending or descending orders.

Perform a linear search by sequentially scanning an array from the first element, comparing each value to the target, and breaking when found, noting best and worst-case time.

Implement a linear search in C by reading an array and a target, iterating with a for loop, and reporting the found position as index plus one or not found.

Learn binary search on a sorted array, using the middle element to compare with the target and discard half, achieving log n worst-case and a best-case when a match occurs.

Implement binary search in C using first, last, and mid indices on a sorted array. Explain why a linked list prevents binary search and why the array must be sorted.

Explore bubble sort, a simple ascending sort that compares consecutive elements and swaps them, iterating with outer and inner loops to sort the array.

Implement the bubble sort algorithm in C using a swap function and pointers, sorting an array with size handling and breaking the outer loop when no swaps occur.

Learn how insertion sort inserts each element into its correct position by using a key, shifting elements, and performing swaps, with comparisons and a worst-case time complexity of O(n^2).

Learn how quicksort uses a pivot element to partition an array and place smaller items left of the pivot and larger items right, using two pointers and swaps.