Abstract Data Types (ADTs)

One of the basic rules concerning programming is that no routine should ever exceed a page. This is accomplished by breaking the program down into modules. Each module is a logical unit and does a specific job. Its size is kept small by calling other modules. Modularity has several advantages. First, it is much easier to debug small routines than large routines. Second, it is easier for several people to work on a modular program simultaneously. Third, a well-written modular program places certain dependencies in only one routine, making changes easier. For instance, if output needs to be written in a certain format, it is certainly important to have one routine to do this. If printing statements are scattered throughout the program, it will take considerably longer to make modifications. The idea that global variables and side effects are bad is directly attributable to the idea that modularity is good.

An abstract data type (ADT) is a set of operations. Abstract data types are mathematical abstractions; nowhere in an ADT's definition is there any mention of how the set of operations is implemented. This can be viewed as an extension of modular design.

Objects such as lists, sets, and graphs, along with their operations, can be viewed as abstract data types, just as integers, reals, and booleans are data types. Integers, reals, and booleans have operations associated with them, and so do abstract data types. For the set ADT, we might have such operations as union, intersection, size, and complement. Alternately, we might only want the two operations union and find, which would define a different ADT on the set. 

The basic idea is that the implementation of these operations is written once in the program, and any other part of the program that needs to perform an operation on the ADT can do so by calling the appropriate function. If for some reason implementation details need to change, it should be easy to do so by merely changing the routines that perform the ADT operations. This change, in a perfect world, would be completely transparent to the rest of the program. 

There is no rule telling us which operations must be supported for each ADT; this is a design decision. Error handling and tie breaking (where appropriate) are also generally up to the program designer.