On List Update and Work Function Algorithms

Authors:
Eric J. Anderson;Kirsten Hildrum;Anna R. Karlin;April Rasala;Michael E. Saks
Affiliations:
-;-;-;-;-
Venue:
ESA '99 Proceedings of the 7th Annual European Symposium on Algorithms
Year:
1999

Citing 7
Cited 0

On the k-server conjecture

Journal of the ACM (JACM)
A combined BIT and TIMESTAMP algorithm for the list update problem

Information Processing Letters
Traversing layered graphs using the work function algorithm

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Off-line algorithms for the list update problem

Information Processing Letters
Improved Randomized On-Line Algorithms for the List Update Problem

SIAM Journal on Computing
On algorithm design for metrical task systems

Proceedings of the sixth annual ACM-SIAM symposium on Discrete algorithms
Self-Organizing Data Structures

Developments from a June 1996 seminar on Online algorithms: the state of the art

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Abstract

The list update problem, a well-studied problem in dynamic data structures, can be described abstractly as a metrical task system. In this paper, we prove that a generic metrical task system algorithm, called the work function algorithm, has constant competitive ratio for list update. In the process, we present a new formulation of the well-known "list factoring" technique in terms of a partial order on the elements of the list. This approach leads to a new simple proof that a large class of online algorithms, including Move-To-Front, is (2 - 1/k)-competitive.