C# Language (How Do I in C#)
This topic links to help about widely used C# Language tasks. To view other categories of popular tasks explained in Help, see How Do I in C#.
- What's New in Visual C#
Contains information about new language features, such as query expressions, collection initializers, lambda expressions, anonymous types, auto-implemented properties, partial methods, and more. Also points to information about what's new in the Visual C# IDE.
- C# Language Specification
Pointers to the latest version of the specification in Microsoft Word format.
- Main() and Command-Line Arguments (C# Programming Guide)
Explains the Main method, the entry point of your program, where you create objects and invoke other methods. There can only be one entry point in a C# program.
- How to: Access Command-Line Arguments Using foreach (C# Programming Guide)
Provides a code example that shows how to access the command-line parameters.
- How to: Display Command Line Arguments (C# Programming Guide)
Explains how to display arguments to the command line through the args string array.
- Main() Return Values (C# Programming Guide)
Explains the possible return values of the Main method.
- How to: Initialize Objects without Calling a Constructor (C# Programming Guide)
Demonstrates how to use an object initializer.
- base (C# Reference)
Explains how to specify the base-class constructor that is called when creating instances of a derived class.
- How to: Know the Difference Between Passing a Struct and Passing a Class Reference to a Method (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that shows that when a struct is passed to a method, a copy of the struct is passed, but when a class instance is passed, a reference is passed.
- Instance Constructors (C# Programming Guide)
Explains class constructors and inheritance.
- How to: Write a Copy Constructor (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that demonstrates how a constructor of a class takes another object as an argument.
- How to: Implement User-Defined Conversions Between Structs (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that defines two structs and demonstrates conversions between them.
- Types (C# Programming Guide)
Gives an overview of types in C# and the .NET Framework.
- Casting and Type Conversions (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to use implicit and explicit conversions.
- Boxing and Unboxing (C# Programming Guide)
Contains examples that show how to box and unbox value types.
- How to: Safely Cast by Using as and is Operators (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to cast without the risk of raising an InvalidCastException.
- How to: Convert a byte Array to an int (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to convert from an array of bytes to a System.Int32 type.
- How to: Convert a string to an int (C# Programming Guide)
How to convert a string value such as "432" to an integer.
- How to: Convert Between Hexadecimal Strings and Numeric Types (C# Programming Guide)
How to convert a string value such as "0xA10" to an integer.
- Arrays as Objects (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that displays the number of dimensions of an array.
- Jagged Arrays (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that builds an array whose elements are themselves arrays.
- Passing Arrays as Arguments (C# Programming Guide)
Contains code examples that initialize a string array and pass it as a parameter to the PrintArray method, where its elements are displayed.
- Passing Arrays Using ref and out (C# Programming Guide)
Contains code examples that demonstrate the difference between out and ref when used to pass arrays to methods.
- How to: Use Implicitly Typed Local Variables and Arrays in a Query Expression (C# Programming Guide)
Explains how to use implicit typing for arrays and local variables.
- How to: Implement an Immutable Class That Has Auto-Implemented Properties (C# Programming Guide)
Demonstrates how to create small classes that encapsulate a set of properties.
- How to: Declare and Use Read/Write Properties (C# Programming Guide)
Contains an example that shows how to declare and use read/write properties.
- How to: Define Abstract Properties (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that shows how to define abstract properties.
- Passing Value-Type Parameters (C# Programming Guide)
Contains code examples that demonstrate the various ways to pass value types.
- Passing Reference-Type Parameters (C# Programming Guide)
Contains code examples that demonstrate the various ways to pass reference types.
- How to: Implement and Call a Custom Extension Method (C# Programming Guide)
Explains how to create a static method that can be called as if it were an instance method on another type.
- How to: Subscribe to and Unsubscribe from Events (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to subscribe to events published by other classes, including forms, buttons, list boxes, and so on.
- How to: Publish Events that Conform to .NET Framework Guidelines (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to create events based on EventHandler and EventHandler<TEventArgs>.
- How to: Implement Interface Events (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to implement events that are declared in interfaces.
- How to: Use a Dictionary to Store Event Instances (C# Programming Guide)
Explains how to use a hash table to store the event instances.
- How to: Raise Base Class Events in Derived Classes (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to wrap base class events in protected virtual methods in order to make them callable from derived classes.
- How to: Implement Custom Event Accessors (C# Programming Guide)
- How to: Explicitly Implement Interface Members (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to declare a class that explicitly implements an interface and how to access the members through the interface instance.
- How to: Explicitly Implement Members of Two Interfaces (C# Programming Guide)
Provides an example that displays the dimensions of a box in both metric and English units.
- Generics in the .NET Framework
Explains the features and use of the new set of generic collections in the System.Collections.Generic namespace.
- default Keyword in Generic Code (C# Programming Guide)
Provides a code example that demonstrates how to use the default keyword for type parameters.
- Generic Methods (C# Programming Guide)
Introduces the syntax to declare a generic method. It also includes an example that demonstrates how to use generic methods in an application.
- Constraints on Type Parameters (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to constrain type parameters to enable access to methods and properties of the types used to instantiate the generic class.
- Generic Delegates (C# Programming Guide)
Contains the syntax to declare generic delegates. It also includes important remarks about instantiating and using generic delegates as well as code examples.
- How to: Use the Namespace Alias Qualifier (C# Programming Guide)
Discusses the ability to access a member in the global namespace when the member might be hidden by another entity of the same name.
- How to: Create an Iterator Block for a Generic List (C# Programming Guide)
Provides an example of an array of integers that is used to build the list SampleCollection. A for loop iterates through the collection and yields the value of each item. Then a foreach loop is used to display the items of the collection.
- How to: Create an Iterator Block for a Generic List (C# Programming Guide)
Provides an example where a generic class Stack<T> implements a generic interface IEnumerator<T>. An array of the type T is declared and assigned values by using the method Push. In the GetEnumerator method, the values of the array are returned by using the yield return statement.
- Anonymous Functions (C# Programming Guide)
Describes how to use lambda expressions and anonymous methods to create delegate types.
- How to: Combine Delegates (Multicast Delegates)(C# Programming Guide)
Provides an example that demonstrates how to compose multicast delegates.
- How to: Declare, Instantiate, and Use a Delegate (C# Programming Guide)
Provides an example that illustrates how to declare, instantiate, and use a delegate.
- How to: Use Operator Overloading to Create a Complex Number Class (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how you can use operator overloading to create a complex number class Complex that defines complex addition.
- How to: Use Platform Invoke to Play a Wave File (C# Programming Guide)
Illustrates how to use platform invoke services to play a wave sound file on the Windows platform.
- How to: Use Pointers to Copy an Array of Bytes (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to use pointers to copy bytes from one array to another.
- How to: Use the Windows ReadFile Function (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to call the Windows ReadFile function, which requires the use of an unsafe context because the read buffer requires a pointer as a parameter.
- Using Threads and Threading
Provides a list of topics that discuss the creation and management of managed threads and how to avoid unintended consequences.
- How to: Create and Terminate Threads (C# Programming Guide)
Provides an example that demonstrates how to create and start a thread, and shows the interaction between two threads running simultaneously within the same process.
- How to: Use a Thread Pool (C# Programming Guide)
Explains an example that shows how to use a thread pool.
- How to: Search Strings Using Regular Expressions (C# Programming Guide)
Explains how to use the Regex class to search strings. These searches can range in complexity from very simple to making full use of regular expressions.
- How to: Concatenate Multiple Strings (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that demonstrates how to join multiple strings.
- How to: Search Strings Using String Methods (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that demonstrates how to use String methods to search for a string.
- How to: Split Strings (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that demonstrates how a string can be split using the Split method.
- How to: Modify String Contents (C# Programming Guide)
Contains a code example that extracts the contents of a string into an array and then modifies some elements of the array.
- How to: Create a C/C++ Union Using Attributes (C# Programming Guide)
Contains an example that uses the attribute Serializable to apply a specific characteristic to a class.
- How to: Create and Use C# DLLs (C# Programming Guide)
Demonstrates how to build and use a DLL by using an example scenario.
- How to: Determine If a File Is an Assembly (C# Programming Guide)
Contains an example that tests a DLL to see if it is an assembly.
- How to: Load and Unload Assemblies (C# Programming Guide)
Explains how it is possible to load specific assemblies into the current application domain at run time.
- How to: Share an Assembly with Other Applications (C# Programming Guide)
Explains how to share an assembly with other applications.
- Executing Code in Another Application Domain (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how to execute an assembly that has been loaded into another application domain.
- How to: Create and Use an Application Domain (C# Programming Guide)
Shows how operator overloading can be used to implement a three-valued logical type.
- Visual C# Samples
Contains links to open or copy the sample's files that range from Hello World Sample to Generics Sample (C#).
