Data Structure - Language Support

Language Support

Most assembly languages and some low-level languages, such as BCPL (Basic Combined Programming Language), lack support for data structures. Many high-level programming languages and some higher-level assembly languages, such as MASM, on the other hand, have special syntax or other built-in support for certain data structures, such as vectors (one-dimensional arrays) in the C language or multi-dimensional arrays in Pascal.

Most programming languages feature some sort of library mechanism that allows data structure implementations to be reused by different programs. Modern languages usually come with standard libraries that implement the most common data structures. Examples are the C++ Standard Template Library, the Java Collections Framework, and Microsoft's .NET Framework.

Modern languages also generally support modular programming, the separation between the interface of a library module and its implementation. Some provide opaque data types that allow clients to hide implementation details. Object-oriented programming languages, such as C++, Java and .NET Framework may use classes for this purpose.

Many known data structures have concurrent versions that allow multiple computing threads to access the data structure simultaneously.

Read more about this topic:  Data Structure

Famous quotes containing the words language and/or support:

    The etymologist finds the deadest word to have been once a brilliant picture. Language is fossil poetry. As the limestone of the continent consists of infinite masses of the shells of animalcules, so language is made up of images or tropes, which now, in their secondary use, have long ceased to remind us of their poetic origin.
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