Linear and Binary Searches with Sorting

What does a linear search do?

• Looks at the first item of data, then each one in turn, until it finds the data item requested
• Organises the data into alphabetical order
• Splits the data until the requested data is found

What is an advantage of a linear search?

• It is very quick
• It only works with ordered lists
• It is a simple algorithm

What does a binary search do?

• Looks at the first item of data, then each one in turn, until it finds the data item requested
• Converts all the data into binary
• Takes the data and splits it in half repeatedly until it finds the data item requested

Which search algorithm would be best to use with ordered data?

• A binary search
• Either binary search or a linear search
• A linear search

What is an advantage of a binary search

• It's very quick
• It only works with ordered lists
  
• It is a simple algorithm

What is the biggest disadvantage of a binary search?

• It is slow
• It can only be used if the data is sorted into an order
  
• It takes the data and keeps dividing it in half until it finds the item it is looking for

What does a sorting algorithm do?

• Finds an item of data in a set of data
• Saves a set of data
• Puts a list of items into order

What is the process involved in a Linear Search?

• Data in a list is divided by 2 to find the mid point. The data is then compared with the desired result and half of the list is ignored. The process is repeated until the desired result is found.

• Data is compared with the desired result from the start of the list until the end of the list or until the desired result is found.

• Data is converted into Binary and then the desired result is found.

• Data is converted into Hexadecimal and then the desired result is found.

What is the main advantage of a Binary Search?

• It is efficient and the result can be found in a few steps, normally a maximum of 8 steps.

• It can be performed on unordered data.

• It takes a long time to perform a search and is based upon traditional searches carried out on magnetic tape.

• It is similar to sorting a pack of cards.

What is the main disadvantage of a Linear Search?

• It is efficient and the result can be found in a few steps, normally a maximum of 8 steps.

• It can be performed on ordered data.

• It takes a long time to perform a search and is based upon traditional searches carried out on magnetic tape.

• It is simple.