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Array Searching

Array searching is the process of finding the position or index of a specific element within an array.

One common search algorithm is the Linear Search algorithm.

The Linear Search algorithm works by iterating through each element in the array and comparing it with the target element. If a match is found, the index of the element is returned. If no match is found, -1 is returned.

Here's an example of how to implement the Linear Search algorithm in Java:

TEXT/X-JAVA
1public class ArraySearching {
2    public static int linearSearch(int[] array, int target) {
3        for (int i = 0; i < array.length; i++) {
4            if (array[i] == target) {
5                return i;
6            }
7        }
8        return -1;
9    }
10
11    public static void main(String[] args) {
12        int[] array = {5, 3, 8, 4, 2};
13        int target = 8;
14        int index = linearSearch(array, target);
15        if (index != -1) {
16            System.out.println("Found at index " + index);
17        } else {
18            System.out.println("Not found");
19        }
20    }
21}

In this example, we have an array array with elements [5, 3, 8, 4, 2]. We want to search for the element 8 and find its index using the linearSearch() method. If the target element is found, its index is printed. If the target element is not found, a message indicating that it was not found is printed.

The Linear Search algorithm has a time complexity of O(n), where n is the number of elements in the array. It is a simple search algorithm but may not be efficient for large arrays.

There are other search algorithms available, such as Binary Search and Hashing, which have better time complexities for sorted arrays or when the elements have specific properties.

When searching for elements in an array, it is important to consider the requirements and constraints of your specific use case to choose the most appropriate search algorithm.

Array searching is a fundamental topic in data structures and algorithms, and understanding different search algorithms is essential for efficient and optimized searching in your code.

JAVA
OUTPUT
:001 > Cmd/Ctrl-Enter to run, Cmd/Ctrl-/ to comment