The curr node is the “current” position to insert new node. The head always points to the first insert node. CircularLinkList class has three variable head, curr and length. The next is the reference to the next node. Node class has two fields: data and next. The same as linked list implementation, we define Node class first. Thus you can traverse back from the last node to the first node. Part 3 – Ciucular linked list implementation Table of Content However unlike singly linked list, the last node in this circular linked list is storing address of the first head node. Circular Linked List EENG212 Algorithms and Data Structures SlideShare uses cookies to improve functionality and performance, and to provide you with relevant advertising. Part 2 – Doubly linked list implementation We can also use circular linked list to implement circular queue, by changing insert method to “enqueue”, and delete method changes to deleteFirst, aks “dequeue”. In this post, we use singly linked list.Ĭomparing with circular array, circular linked list is flexible to expand and shrink, while circular array has fixed size.

The links can be in one direction as singly linked list, or two way directions as doubly linked list. We always insert at one position – we call it “current”, not “head” or “tail” as in linked list. We can perform the following operations on a circular linked list.Circular linked list is a linked list, in which the last inserted node links back to the first inserted node. Basic Operations of the Circular Linked List A good example of an application where circular linked list should be used is a timesharing problem solved by the operating system. A circular list does not contain NULL pointers. We can insert elements anywhere in a circular linked list. A singly linked circular list is a linked list where the last node in thelist points to the first node in the list.It is used in multiplayer games to store the players next to play.It helps in quickly cycling through all jobs and fair allocation of resources to each job until all of them are over. It is used in CPU scheduling to maintain jobs in the queue and allocate one of the time to execute while the rest all wait.An efficient queue without two separate pointers for front and rear can be built, and only a single pointer pointing to the tail is sufficient to insert or remove as the front is just the next pointer from tail. It is useful for the implementation of several data structures like Queues, Fibonacci Heaps.In a doubly linked list, the next pointer of the tail points to the head, and the previous pointer of the head points to the tail and makes a doubly circular linked list. We can make a circular linked list out of both singly and doubly linked lists. We have to set the next pointer of tail node to point back to head node to complete. We can start traversing the linked list from any point on the linked list. Given a singly linked list, we have to convert it to a circular linked list. It is very dynamic in nature as we can insert elements anywhere. There is no NULL at the last node instead, it stores the address of the head of the linked list. It is a linked list in which all nodes are connected circularly and forms a chain. Basic Operations of the Circular Linked ListĪ Circular Linked List is a slightly complicated data structure than a linked list.