A tree is a less general structure than a network (which is tree that allows any node to be connected to any other node).
However, it's probably more useful to have the data structure reflect structure of the particular data rather than consider abstract properties of data structures. Tabular data is widely useful, particularly for experimentally-generated data and data that benefits from ordering (like names and addresses or prices of equities over time). I find higher-dimensional data (more than 2-D) particularly intriguing if somewhat hard to visualize directly; however, J is good at helping us view this kind of data indirectly. On 4/6/07, Terrence Brannon <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
I was sitting here in front of an Excel spreadsheet, thinking, "you know this is an array" ... not too long ago I was looking at a database table and thinking the same thing. HOWEVER. isn't a tree the most general data structure? You can make lists out of trees and make arrays out of lists. Therefore the most fundamental and broadly applicable data structure is a tree and not an array. Any feedback on why J is an array processing language and how it might handle tree/hierarchical data is appreciated. And how good is J with infinite data structures/streams? ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
-- Devon McCormick, CFA ^me^ at acm. org is my preferred e-mail ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For information about J forums see http://www.jsoftware.com/forums.htm
