Algorithm¶
Extends¶
Definition¶
An algorithm is an effective method that can be expressed within a finite amount of space and time and in a well-defined formal language for calculating a function. Starting from an initial state and initial input (perhaps empty), the instructions describe a computation that, when executed, proceeds through a finite number of well-defined successive states, eventually producing “output” and terminating at a final ending state. The transition from one state to the next is not necessarily deterministic; some algorithms, known as randomized algorithms, incorporate random input. [from www.wikipedia.org 15 April 2016] The underlying properties of the algorithm or method rather than the specifics of any particular implementation. In short a description of the method in its simplest and most general representation.