What’s array sorting?

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Array sorting is the process of taking the individual elements of an array and arranging them in some kind of logical order according to a set of user-defined rules. The process involves exploring the array, one element at a time, and testing that element against its surrounding elements to determine whether it should be moved to another index within the array. When sorting arrays, several algorithms can be used, especially when the sorting conditions are numeric rather than something more arbitrary. Most array sorting algorithms are measured by their speed and efficiency, with the slowest algorithms being the easiest to program and the fastest being much more complex.

The simplest array sorting algorithm is called bubble sort and it is also the slowest. The process begins with a loop that will go through each element of the array. The current item is compared to the next item in the array, and if the next item has a value less than the current item, the data in the indexes are swapped. The disadvantage of a bubble sort is that you have to iterate through the array multiple times to perform all the swaps needed to sort the array. In the most basic implementations, the sort will iterate through the entire array once complete for each element it contains.

A selection sort uses an algorithm that sorts arrays slightly more efficiently than a bubble sort, but still requires more iterations through the array. This sort begins by looping through the array to find the element with the lowest value. This element is then placed in the first index of the array and some tracking variables are incremented. The loop then repeats, now looking for the next lowest value which will then be inserted into the second index of the array. The process continues until the element with the highest value is inserted into the last index of the array.

One method of sorting arrays that can be efficient but sometimes complex to implement is known as quicksort. Fast sorting involves assuming a value that is in the middle of all possible values ​​contained in the array. The algorithm examines all elements of the array and places all values ​​greater than the median number at the end of the array and values ​​less than the beginning. This process is done recursively on the blocks of the array until eventually the entire array is sorted. Assuming the average value used for the array is accurate enough, this can be a very fast way to sort.

One factor that can affect an array sorting algorithm is the means by which the data is tested for equivalence. Simple numbers are easy to compare for which value is greater, but this may not be the case for complex data classes where multiple conditions need to be compared. The longer it takes to compare whether one element is greater or less than another, the longer it will take for the algorithm to sort the array.

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