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Chapter 17: Problem 15

After creating a linked list’s head pointer, you should make sure it points to __________ before using it in any operations.

Short Answer

Expert verified
Answer: The head pointer should point to 'null' or 'None', indicating that the linked list is empty and uninitialized.

Step by step solution

01

Understanding linked lists and their head pointers

A linked list is a data structure that consists of nodes, where each node contains a data element and a reference (pointer) to the next node in the list. The head pointer is a reference to the first node in the list, which is crucial for executing operations on the list.
02

Initializing the head pointer

When creating a new linked list, the head pointer should initially be set to an appropriate value before executing any operations on the list. This is to ensure that the list is in a valid and consistent state from the beginning.
03

Determine the value for the head pointer in an empty list

In cases where the linked list is empty (i.e., it has no nodes), the head pointer should point to a special value called 'null' or 'None' (depending on the programming language being used). This indicates that the list is empty and there are no nodes to work with.
04

Answer the question

Considering the points discussed above, after creating a linked list's head pointer, we should make sure it points to 'null' or 'None' before using it in any operations to indicate that the list is empty and uninitialized.

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Most popular questions from this chapter

What is a self-referential data structure?

Find as many mistakes as you can. NumberList::~NumberList() { ListNode *nodePtr, *nextNode; nodePtr = head; while (nodePtr != nullptr) { nextNode = nodePtr->next; nodePtr->next = nullptr; nodePtr = nextNode; } }

How is the end of a linked list usually signified?

Find as many mistakes as you can. void NumberList::appendNode(double num) { ListNode *newNode, *nodePtr; // Allocate a new node & store num newNode = new listNode; newNode->value = num; // If there are no nodes in the list // make newNode the first node. if (!head) head = newNode; else // Otherwise, insert newNode. { // Find the last node in the list. while (nodePtr->next) nodePtr = nodePtr->next; // Insert newNode as the last node. nodePtr->next = newNode; } }

__________ a node means adding it to a list, but not necessarily to the end.
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