Singly Linked Lists vs. Doubly Linked Lists

Linked lists are important ways to organize data in computer science. There are two main types: singly linked lists and doubly linked lists. They have some key differences.

Key Differences

• Structure:

  • Singly Linked Lists: Each part, or “node,” has a link to the next part only.
  • Doubly Linked Lists: Each node has links to both the next part and the previous part.

• Traversal:

  • Singly Linked Lists: You can only move forward through the list.
  • Doubly Linked Lists: You can move forward and backward in the list.

Operations

• Insertion:

  • Singly Linked List: You only need to change one link to add a new node.
  • Doubly Linked List: You need to change two links to add a new node.

• Deletion:

  • Singly Linked List: Sometimes, you have to start at the beginning to find the node before the one you want to remove.
  • Doubly Linked List: You can easily reach the previous node to remove the one you want.

Using these linked lists the right way can make computer programs work better in many different situations!