The author explores the complex Knuth-Morris-Pratt (KMP) algorithm for string search, notorious for being hard to understand due to many explanations obscuring its essence. Through step-by-step illustrations and elementary functional programming techniques, the paper simplifies the algorithm, emphasizing visual intuition over program manipulation, leading to an optimal solution. The evolution from naive string search to the KMP algorithm is detailed, highlighting the critical role of lazy evaluation in achieving efficiency. Additionally, the innovative use of pictures to represent patterns and text columns provides unique insights into algorithmic optimization. The KMP algorithm refines the Morris-Pratt algorithm, delivering linear time complexity by skipping unnecessary comparisons.
https://www.cambridge.org/core/journals/journal-of-functional-programming/article/knuthmorrispratt-illustrated/8EFA77D663D585B68630E372BCE1EBA4