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The basic idea and the top-level pseudo-code of Insertion Sort, Shell Sort, Heap Sort, Radix Sort and Quick Sort along with a demo applet are available for the user to use. Random data is generated, the student can choose the size of the array being used, and step-by-step the code is followed. This site was created by the Computer Science Department at Lawrence.
This site contains a list of links compiled by the Hope College Computer Science Department that can be run over the Internet. These sites contain animations to aide learning and understanding of algorithms. You have the choice of searching the list either by site or algorithm. This page was last updated on July 30, 1997.
JCAT, Java-based Collaborative Active Textbooks is a java-based implementation of CAT. CAT is a web-based algorithm animation system. This project is well-suited for electronic classrooms since views of a running program can be viewed on numerous machines. There are two versions of JCAT. A non-collaborative version which requires Java 1.0, and a collaborative version which requires Java 1.1. You are also given the choice of Solo, Teacher, or Student. If you choose the Solo link, you will be shown a non-collaborative animation that will work with any java-capable browser. The Teacher and Student links, on the other hand, lead to collaborative animations that, for the time being, only work with HotJava.
The Department of Computer Science located at the University of Helsinki has created a project which applies methods of algorithm animation to problem solving. Eliot runs on Linux workstations and Jeliot runs on the World Wide Web. Jeliot allows users to visualize algorithms written in Java. The user is able to select visualized objects from source code, and Jeliot automatically produces the animation. Some knowledge of Java is useful if you want to write your own algorithms to be animated, but basic C programing skills should also be proficient. How to prepare animations of simple algorithms using Microsoft Excel is being studied. In addition to animation, they are currently working on making tools for creating and managing concept maps in education and problem solving. Keep checking back for their newest updates.
Justin Dildy and Sandeep Poonen created this Java Sorting Animator March 1996 while going to school at Haverford College in Haverford, PA. This applet animates: insertion sort, selection sort, bubble sort, shaker sort, and shell sort. The user has the options of resizing the window, fast or slow mode, and random or reverse-sorted data.
Nakamori Lab has animated examples of Selection Sort, Bubble Sort, Insertion Sort and Quick Sort. The user is able to control the number of items to begin with as well as the speed at which the sort will be executed. If you choose to run the demo with the animation on, you will be shown each individual step. If you choose the animation off option, they you'll see a quick idea of what will eventually happen without individual steps.
The Computer Science Department at Princeton University has animated algorithms for the benefit of education. Included are: Bubble Sort, Quick Sort, Merge Sort, Heap Sort, Tree Sort, Graham Scan, Quick Hull, Jarvis March, Fortune, PerpBis, Angle, Hull and Bezier. To use the interface, all you need to do is choose an algorithm, choose an input generator, then click "run" to start the algorithm. The user is able to control which algorithm is run, the type of input, how the algorithm should be visualized, how many algorithm events elapse with each "step", and the speed at which to run the algorithm. As well as being able to run, stop, reverse and pause the algorithm being run.
This page consists of a number of links to animation applets compiled by the Computer Science Department at SUNY Brockport. Students studying sorting techniques for the first time are the main target audience because the animations provide information about the algorithms in a very simple manner. The user is able to observe every step, they can choose the pace the algorithm is run, and there's a "back up" option in case the user didn't understand a particular step. You can choose from algorithms working with a fixed input list: Simple Sort, Bubble Sort (ordinary), Bubble Sort (more efficient), Selection Sort, Heap Sort, Insertion Sort, Merge Sort (breadth first), Merge Sort (depth first), Quick Sort. Or you can use your own input: Simple Sort, Bubble Sort (ordinary), Bubble Sort (more efficient>, Selection Sort, Heap Sort, Insertion Sort, Merge Sort (breadth first), Merge Sort (depth first), Quick Sort. You are also able to RACE various sorting algorithms.
Christopher Morris from the Computer Science and Electrical Engineering Department at the University of Maryland in Baltimore County has compiled a list of numerous links dealing with algorithms. While this page is under construction, he currently has links to Algorithm Animations, Visualizations, etc.