This method is an O(1) operation.
This method is an O(n) operation.
What do these mean?
If memory serves correctly the O stands for 'Order'.
Thus O(n) would be called "Order n" and O(n^2) would be "Order n
squared".
This is a measure of how efficient a given algorithm performs.
Technically it is a measure of the asymptotic behavior as the number of
elements gets very large, but, it often is appropriate even for fairly
small collections.
O(1) means that this operation takes a constant amount of time
independent of the number of items involved. A hashtable retrieval is an
O(1) operation
O(n) means that an operation takes a time proportional to the number of
elements (n). If an collection has twice as many elements, the operation
takes twice as long. A linear search is an O(n) operation
others include
O(n^2) : Goes as n*n (not very efficient for large collections)
O(log(n)): goes as the logarithm of the number of elements
O(n*log(n)) : you get the idea.
Hope this helps
Bill
