What is the functionality of the following piece of code? Select the most…
2023
What is the functionality of the following piece of code? Select the most appropriate.
public void function(int data)
{
int flag = 0;
if( head != null)
{
Node temp = head.getNext();
while((temp != head) && (!(temp.getItem() == data)))
{
temp = temp.getNext();
flag = 1;
break;
}
}
if(flag)
System.out.println("success");
else
System.out.println("fail");
}
- A.
Print success if a particular element is not found
- B.
Print fail if a particular element is not found
- C.
Print success if a particular element is equal to 1
- D.
Print fail if the list is empty
Attempted by 1 students.
Show answer & explanation
Correct answer: A
Concept: In a linked-list search loop written as while (condition) { ...; break; }, the trailing break fires unconditionally on the very first pass through the loop body, so the loop can run at most once no matter how many times the while-condition would otherwise hold. A flag set inside such a loop therefore reflects only the outcome of checking ONE node, not a scan of the whole list.
Application
Trace the code step by step:
flag is initialised to 0, and head.getNext() is stored in temp — the node immediately after head.
If head is null (empty list), the whole if-block is skipped, so flag stays 0 and the code prints "fail".
If the list has only one node, temp equals head, so the while-condition (temp != head) is false before anything else is checked; the loop body never runs, flag stays 0, and the code prints "fail".
If the list has two or more nodes and temp.getItem() equals data (the node right after head matches the target), the while-condition is false because of the negation !(temp.getItem() == data); the loop body is skipped, flag stays 0, and the code prints "fail".
If the list has two or more nodes and temp.getItem() does not equal data, the while-condition is true: the loop body runs exactly once — temp advances, flag is set to 1, and break exits the loop immediately; flag is 1 and the code prints "success".
Cross-check: So success is printed in exactly one situation: there are at least two nodes and the node right after head does not carry the searched value; every other situation — an empty list, a single-node list, or a match at that very node — prints fail. Checking the four options against this trace, only the option that ties success to a particular element not being found matches the direction the code actually takes; the option that ties a not-found element to fail describes the exact opposite of what the unconditional break produces.
Result: Hence the code's functionality matches: print success if a particular element is not found.