How does the bubblesort work?
Bubble Sort The bubble sort is notoriously slow, but it’s conceptually the simplest of the sorting algorithms and for that reason is a good beginning for our exploration of sorting techniques.
Bubble Sort on the Baseball Players Imagine that you’re near-sighted (like a computer program) so that you can see only two of the baseball players at the same time, if they’re next to each other and if you stand very close to them. Given this impediment, how would you sort them? Let’s assume there are N players, and the positions they’re standing in are numbered from 0 on the left to N-1 on the right. The bubble sort routine works like this: You start at the left end of the line and compare the two kids in positions 0 and 1. If the one on the left (in 0) is taller, you swap them. If the one on the right is taller, you don’t do anything. Then you move over one position and compare the kids in positions 1 and 2. Again, if the one on the left is taller, you swap them. This sorting process is shown in Figure 3.3. Here are the rules you’re following: 1. Compare two players. 2. If the one on the left is taller, swap them. 3. Move one position right.
