What is a typical use case for a static data structure?

A typical use case for a static data structure is when the size and structure of the data are known in advance.

Static data structures are often used in situations where the size and structure of the data are known beforehand and are not expected to change during the execution of the program. This is because static data structures have a fixed size and structure, which is determined at compile time. This means that once a static data structure is created, its size and structure cannot be changed.

For example, an array is a common type of static data structure. If a programmer knows that they need to store a specific number of elements, such as the scores of a fixed number of students in a class, they might choose to use an array. The array can be initialised with a fixed size equal to the number of students, and each element in the array can be used to store the score of a corresponding student.

Another typical use case for static data structures is in the implementation of algorithms that require a fixed structure. For instance, a matrix multiplication algorithm might require two two-dimensional arrays (matrices) of fixed sizes. The algorithm would not work correctly if the sizes of the matrices could change during its execution.

Static data structures are also useful in situations where performance is a concern. Because their size and structure are fixed, static data structures can be more efficient in terms of memory usage and performance. For example, accessing an element in an array by its index is a very fast operation, because the memory location of the element can be calculated directly from the index.

However, the main limitation of static data structures is their lack of flexibility. If the size or structure of the data needs to change during the execution of the program, a static data structure may not be suitable. In such cases, a dynamic data structure, which can grow and shrink as needed, might be a better choice.