craterdog.collections.interfaces

Interface Sortable<E>

Type Parameters:

E - The type of element managed by the collection.

All Known Implementing Classes:

Dictionary, List, Map, SortableCollection

public interface Sortable<E>

This interface defines the methods that must be implemented by each collection that allows its elements to be explicitly sorted. By default, the elements are stored in the order that they were added to the collection. But they can be explicitly sorted at any time by passing in a specific sort algorithm and comparison function.

Author:

Derk Norton

Method Summary

Modifier and Type	Method and Description
Manipulator<E>	createDefaultManipulator() This method creates a new default manipulator for the collection.
void	shuffleElements() This method shuffles the elements in the collection using a randomizing algorithm.
void	sortElements() This method sorts the elements in the collection using the default (merge) sorting algorithm and the elements' compareTo method.
void	sortElements(java.util.Comparator<? super E> comparator) This method sorts the elements in the collection using the default (merge) sorting algorithm and the specified comparison function.
void	sortElements(Sorter<E> sorter, java.util.Comparator<? super E> comparator) This method sorts the elements in the collection using the specified sorting algorithm and the specified comparison function.

Method Detail

shuffleElements

void shuffleElements()

This method shuffles the elements in the collection using a randomizing algorithm.

sortElements

void sortElements()

This method sorts the elements in the collection using the default (merge) sorting algorithm and the elements' compareTo method. It provides an easy way to sort a collection using its natural ordering.

sortElements

void sortElements(java.util.Comparator<? super E> comparator)

This method sorts the elements in the collection using the default (merge) sorting algorithm and the specified comparison function.

Parameters:

comparator - The desired comparison function.

sortElements

void sortElements(Sorter<E> sorter,
                  java.util.Comparator<? super E> comparator)

This method sorts the elements in the collection using the specified sorting algorithm and the specified comparison function.

Parameters:

sorter - The desired sorting algorithm.

comparator - The desired comparison function.

createDefaultManipulator

Manipulator<E> createDefaultManipulator()

This method creates a new default manipulator for the collection.

Returns:

The new manipulator.