Collections
Collection is a group of objects which can be represented as a single unit. Collections are introduced to bring a unified common interface to all the objects.
Collection Framework was introduced since JDK 1.2 which is used to represent and manage Collections and it contains:
- Interfaces
- Classes
- Algorithms
This framework also defines map interfaces and several classes in addition to Collections.
Advantages:
- High performance
- Reduces developer's effort
- Unified architecture which has common methods for all objects.
| Collection | Description |
|---|---|
| Set | Set is a collection of elements which can not contain duplicate values. Set is implemented in HashSets, LinkedHashSets, TreeSet etc |
| List | List is a ordered collection of elements which can have duplicates. Lists are classified into ArrayList, LinkedList, Vectors |
| Queue | FIFO approach, while instantiating Queue interface you can either choose LinkedList or PriorityQueue. |
| Deque | Deque(Double Ended Queue) is used to add or remove elements from both the ends of the Queue(both head and tail) |
| Map | Map contains key-values pairs which don't have any duplicates. Map is implemented in HashMap, TreeMap etc. |