Array and collection in java

How to implement arrays and collections in Java? [SOLVED]

In Java, Arrays and Collections are two types of data structures that are used to store and manipulate collections of related data. While they are similar in some ways, they have some fundamental differences. Arrays are a fixed-size collection of related elements, which are stored in contiguous memory locations. In Java, an array is a reference type that is created using the new keyword and the type of elements it will contain. Arrays are useful for storing a large amount of data, but their size cannot be changed once they are created. Arrays are indexed using integer values, starting from 0, and the individual elements of an array can be accessed using their index value. This makes it easy to access, modify or perform operations on the elements of an array. In Java, arrays can be one-dimensional or multi-dimensional.

Collections, on the other hand, are dynamic, resizable containers that can hold a collection of related objects or elements. Unlike arrays, collections can grow or shrink in size as elements are added or removed. In Java, collections are implemented using interfaces and classes provided by the Java Collections Framework.

The Java Collections Framework provides a set of interfaces, implementations, and algorithms to manipulate and store groups of related objects or elements. There are four core interfaces in the Java Collections Framework:

1. Collection — This is the root interface of the framework, and it provides the basic operations that are common to all collection types.
2. List — This interface extends the Collection interface and provides an ordered collection of elements. Elements can be added, removed, and accessed by their index.
3. Set — This interface extends the Collection interface and provides a collection of unique elements. Elements can be added and removed, but duplicates are not allowed.
4. Map — This interface provides a mapping between a key and a value, similar to a dictionary in Python. Maps can be used to store key-value pairs, and the keys are used to access the associated values.

Implement arrays in Java

We know that in Java, arrays are a fundamental data structure that is used to store a fixed-size collection of related elements. They can be one-dimensional or multi-dimensional, and their size is specified when the array is created. In this section, we will discuss how to implement arrays in Java.

Declaring an Array in Java

To declare an array in Java, you must specify the type of elements it will contain and the number of elements in the array. The syntax for declaring an array is as follows:

dataType[] arrayName = new dataType[arraySize]; 

For example, to declare an integer array with 5 elements, you would use the following code:

Initializing an Array in Java

Once an array is declared, you can initialize its elements with values. There are two ways to initialize an array:

To initialize each element individually, you can use the following syntax:

For example, to initialize the first element of the numbers array to 10, you would use the following code:

To initialize the entire array at once, you can use the following syntax:

For example, to initialize an integer array with the values 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5, you would use the following code:

Accessing Array Elements

Once an array is initialized, you can access its elements using their index values. The index values start from 0 for the first element and increase by 1 for each subsequent element. To access an array element, you can use the following syntax:

For example, to access the third element of the numbers array, you would use the following code:

public class Main < public static void main(String[] args) < int[] numbers = ; int thirdElement = numbers[2]; > >

Iterating Over an Array

To iterate over the elements of an array, you can use a loop such as a for loop or a for-each loop. The for loop allows you to iterate over the array using its index values, while the for-each loop allows you to iterate over the array using its elements directly.

For example, to iterate over the numbers array using a for loop, you would use the following code:

public class Main < public static void main(String[] args) < int[] numbers = ; for (int i = 0; i < numbers.length; i++) < System.out.println(numbers[i]); >> >

Implementation of Collection in Java

In Java, a collection is an object that groups multiple elements into a single unit. The Java Collections Framework provides a set of interfaces and classes to implement different types of collections. The most commonly used collections are ArrayList, LinkedList, HashSet, and HashMap.

In this section, we will discuss the implementation of collections in Java.

The Collection Interface

The Collection interface is the root interface of the Java Collections Framework. It is extended by several other interfaces, such as Set, List, Queue, and Deque. The Collection interface defines the basic operations that are common to all collection types, such as add, remove, and contain.

Here is an example of how to create a Collection and add elements to it:

import java.util.ArrayList; import java.util.Collection; public class Main < public static void main(String[] args) < Collectioncollection = new ArrayList<>(); collection.add("element1"); collection.add("element2"); collection.add("element3"); > >

The ArrayList Interface

An ArrayList is similar to an array, but it has a variable size, and you can add or remove elements dynamically. To create an ArrayList, you need to specify the data type of the elements. Here’s an example:

ArrayList myArrayList = new ArrayList();

Here is an example of how to create a List and add elements to it:

import java.util.ArrayList; import java.util.List; public class Main < public static void main(String[] args) < Listlist = new ArrayList<>(); list.add("element1"); list.add("element2"); list.add("element3"); > >

A LinkedList is a collection of elements where each element points to the next element. It also has a variable size, and you can add or remove elements dynamically. To create a LinkedList, you don’t need to specify the data type of the elements. Here’s an example:

LinkedList myLinkedList = new LinkedList();

This creates a LinkedList of strings. You can add elements to the LinkedList using the add() method, and you can access elements using their index. For example:

myLinkedList.add("hello"); String s = myLinkedList.get(0);

This adds a string » hello » to the LinkedList and assigns it to the variable s .

The HashSet Interface

A HashSet is a collection of unique elements. It doesn’t allow duplicate elements, and it doesn’t maintain the order of the elements.

HashSet myHashSet = new HashSet();

Here is an example of how to create a Set and add elements to it:

import java.util.HashSet; import java.util.Set; public class Main < public static void main(String[] args) < Setset = new HashSet<>(); set.add("element1"); set.add("element2"); set.add("element3"); > >

The HashMap Interface

The Map interface is a collection of key-value pairs, where each key is unique. The Map interface provides methods to add, remove, and retrieve values by their key.

HashMap myHashMap = new HashMap();

Here is an example of how to create a Map and add key-value pairs to it:

import java.util.HashMap; import java.util.Map; public class Main < public static void main(String[] args) < Mapmap = new HashMap<>(); map.put("key1", "value1"); map.put("key2", "value2"); map.put("key3", "value3"); > >

Iterating over a Collection

To iterate over a collection, you can use a for-each loop. Here is an example of how to iterate over a List using a for-each loop:

import java.util.ArrayList; import java.util.List; public class Main < public static void main(String[] args) < Listlist = new ArrayList<>(); list.add("element1"); list.add("element2"); list.add("element3"); for (String element : list) < System.out.println(element); >> >

element1 element2 element3

Summary

Here is a summary of using arrays and collections in Java:

• An array is a collection of elements of the same data type, and it has a fixed size.
• To declare an array, you need to specify the data type of the elements and the size of the array.
• Arrays are accessed using their index, which starts at 0.
• Arrays can be used when you know the size of the data you need to store in advance.

• A collection is a group of objects that can be manipulated as a single unit.
• Java provides several collection classes, including ArrayList, LinkedList, HashSet, and HashMap.
• Collections can hold objects of any type, including other collections.
• Collections are dynamic and can be resized as needed.
• Collections can be sorted, searched, and filtered using various methods.
• Collections can be used when you don’t know the size of the data you need to store in advance or when you need more flexibility than an array provides.

In general, arrays are best used when you have a fixed amount of data that you need to store and access quickly. Collections are best used when you need more flexibility or when you don’t know the exact amount of data you need to store. By using arrays and collections effectively, you can write more efficient and flexible Java code.

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  Источник

  Difference between Arrays and Collection in Java

  In order to store multiple values or objects of the same type, Java provides two types of data structures namely Array and Collection.

  The following are the important differences between Arrays and Collection.

  Sr. No.	Key	Arrays	Collection
  1	Size	Arrays are fixed in size i.e once the array with the specific size is declared then we can’t alter its size afterward.	The collection is dynamic in size i.e based on requirement size could be get altered even after its declaration.
  2	Memory Consumption	Arrays due to fast execution consumes more memory and has better performance.	Collections, on the other hand, consume less memory but also have low performance as compared to Arrays.
  3	Data type	Arrays can hold the only the same type of data in its collection i.e only homogeneous data types elements are allowed in case of arrays.	Collection, on the other hand, can hold both homogeneous and heterogeneous elements.
  4	Primitives storage	Arrays can hold both object and primitive type data.	On the other hand, collection can hold only object types but not the primitive type of data.
  5	Performance	Arrays due to its storage and internal implementation better in performance.	Collection on the other hand with respect to performance is not recommended to use.

  Источник

  Differences between an array and any collection from the java Collection framework?

  As stated in a doc I just read: To say that «structure A is faster/slower than structure B» is never true. To say that «function F on structure A is faster/slower than structure B» may or may not be true. Hence trying to compare performances here would be irrelevant

  Also, most Collections don’t store their data in an array. The only ones I can think of at the moment is ArrayList, PriorityQueue, and Stack

  4 Answers 4

  They are virtually unreleated, except to say they both store a group of values.

  From a capability perspective, while both can store references to objects:

  • Arrays can store primitives
  • Collections can not store primitives (although they can store the primitive wrapper classes, such as Integer etc)

  One important difference, commonly not understood by programmers new to java, is one of usability and convenience, especially given that Collections automatically expand in size when needed:

  • Arrays — Avoid using them unless you have to
  • Collections — Use them in preference to arrays

  Arrays are ultimately the only way of storing a group of primitives/references in one object, but they are the most basic option. Although arrays may give you some speed advantages, unless you need super-fast code, Collections are preferred because they have so much convenience.

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