Doubly Linked List in Rust

Description

This project implements a doubly linked list in Rust, aimed at deepening understanding of specific Rust concepts and demonstrating their application in creating a common data structure.

Learning Outcomes

The project focuses on:

• Shared Ownership via Rc: Demonstrating how Rc enables shared data ownership, essential for linked lists in Rust.
• Interior Mutability via RefCells: Utilizing RefCell for mutable data access in an immutable context.
• Option Type: Employing Option to handle optional values (Some(T) or None).
• Reference Management with Rc and Weak: Differentiating strong (Rc) and weak (Weak) references for effective memory management.
• Strong vs. Weak References: Using weak references to prevent circular references in the doubly linked list.

Glossary

• Option: An enum representing an optional value, either Some(T) or None.
• Rc: A single-threaded reference-counting pointer. It enables shared data ownership.
• Weak: A non-owning reference type used in conjunction with Rc.
• RefCell: A type for interior mutability, allowing mutable data access in otherwise immutable contexts.
• Node: A linked list element, connected to its subsequent and potentially previous node.
• T: A generic type parameter, indicating the data type held in the linked list.

Usage and Examples

To explore and test the doubly linked list:

• Running Examples:

  • Download the project.
  • Use cargo run to execute main.rs, which contains examples of the linked list being used with both integers and strings.

• Running Unit Tests:

  • The doubly.rs file includes a suite of unit tests.
  • Use cargo test to run these tests and verify the functionality of the linked list implementation.

These steps will help you understand the implementation and ensure its reliability through testing.

I hope you find this project helpful in understanding Rust's unique features!