The importance of data structures and algorithms

You’ll find that an important part of programming is practice and experience, where you continually improve your skills, try new things, and apply what you have learned from past mistakes and wins. As an example, in Chapter 5, Writing Your First C# Program, you have probably learned that you need to add a semicolon at the end of every C# statement; otherwise, your code won’t run. As you practice, you may find that you discover new ways to do something, a new solution to an old problem. When it comes to solving problems with software, algorithms create solutions.

Algorithms solve problems, where problems can vary in complexity from adding two numbers to finding text in a picture. You have probably used software that has solved these problems and you may not have noticed how fast it was and how accurate it was in doing so. These are things that software engineers face daily, and not only is it important to find a solution...