When programmers talk about "data structures", are they only talking about abstract data types like lists, trees, hashes, graphs, etc.?
Or does that term include any structure that holds data, such as composite types (class objects, structs, enums, etc.) and primitive types (boolean, int, char, etc.)?
I've only ever heard programmers use the term to reference complex data structures or abstract data types, however the Wikipedia article that provides a list of data structures includes both composite types and primitive types in the definition, which is not what I expected (even though it does make sense).
When looking around online I see other places that refer to the term "data structure" in the programming sense as only referring to abstract data types, such as this lecture from Stony Brook University's Department of Computer Science which states
A data structure is an actual implementation of a particular abstract data type.
or this wikibook on data structures, which uses the term in sentences like this:
Because data structures are higher-level abstractions, they present to us operations on groups of data, such as adding an item to a list, or looking up the highest-priority item in a queue
So why do I only ever hear programmers referring to complex data structures or abstract data types when they use the term "data structure"? Do programmers have a different definition for the term than the dictionary definition?
if programmers mean something different when they talk about data structures
is still polling for opinions though.