ListItemCollection Class (System.Web.UI.WebControls)

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.NET Framework Class Library
ListItemCollection Class

A collection of ListItem objects in a list control. This class cannot be inherited.

Namespace:  System.Web.UI.WebControls
Assembly:  System.Web (in System.Web.dll)
Syntax
Visual Basic (Declaration)
<AspNetHostingPermissionAttribute(SecurityAction.LinkDemand, Level := AspNetHostingPermissionLevel.Minimal)> _
Public NotInheritable Class ListItemCollection _
	Implements IList, ICollection, IEnumerable, IStateManager
Visual Basic (Usage)
Dim instance As ListItemCollection
C#
[AspNetHostingPermissionAttribute(SecurityAction.LinkDemand, Level = AspNetHostingPermissionLevel.Minimal)]
public sealed class ListItemCollection : IList, 
	ICollection, IEnumerable, IStateManager
Visual C++
[AspNetHostingPermissionAttribute(SecurityAction::LinkDemand, Level = AspNetHostingPermissionLevel::Minimal)]
public ref class ListItemCollection sealed : IList, 
	ICollection, IEnumerable, IStateManager
JScript
public final class ListItemCollection implements IList, ICollection, IEnumerable, IStateManager
Remarks

The ListItemCollection class represents a collection of ListItem objects. The ListItem objects, in turn, represent the items displayed in list controls, such as the ListBox. To programmatically retrieve ListItem objects from a list control, use one of following methods:

  • Use the indexer to get a single ListItem from the collection, using array notation.

  • Use the CopyTo method to copy the contents of the collection to a System.Array object, which can then be used to get items from the collection.

  • Use the GetEnumerator method to create a System.Collections.IEnumerator implemented object, which can then be used to get items from the collection.

  • Use foreach (C#) or For Each (Visual Basic) to iterate through the collection.

The Count property specifies the total number of items in the collection, and is commonly used to determine the upper bound of the collection. You can add and remove items from the collection by using the Add and Remove methods.

Examples

The following code example demonstrates creating ListItemCollection objects, adding items to the collections, and removing items from the collections. In the example, the ListItemCollection named listBoxData is used as the data source for a ListBox control called ListBox1, and the ListItemCollection called ddBoxData is used as the data source for a DropDownList control called DropDownList1.

Visual Basic
<%@ Page language="VB" AutoEventWireup="true" %>
<%@ Import Namespace="System.Data" %>

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN"
    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<script runat="server">
    Private Sub Page_Load(sender As Object, e As System.EventArgs) Handles MyBase.Load
        ' If this isn't the first time the page is loaded in this session,
        ' then don't recreate the DataTables.
        If Not IsPostBack Then
            ' Create a new ListItemCollection.
            Dim listBoxData As New ListItemCollection()
            ' Add items to the collection.
            listBoxData.Add(New ListItem("apples"))
            listBoxData.Add(New ListItem("bananas"))
            listBoxData.Add(New ListItem("cherries"))
            listBoxData.Add("grapes")
            listBoxData.Add("mangos")
            listBoxData.Add("oranges")
            ' Set the ListItemCollection as the data source for ListBox1.
            ListBox1.DataSource = listBoxData
            ListBox1.DataBind()

            ' Create a new ListItemCollection.
            Dim ddBoxData As New ListItemCollection()
            ' For now, just bind the data to the DropDownList.
            DropDownList1.DataSource = ddBoxData
            DropDownList1.DataBind()
        End If
    End Sub 'Page_Load

    Private Sub moveButton1_Click(sender As Object, e As System.EventArgs) 
        'Set the SelectedIndex to -1 so no items are selected.            
        ' The new item will be set as the selected item when it is added.
        DropDownList1.SelectedIndex = - 1
        ' Add the selected item to DropDownList1.
        DropDownList1.Items.Add(ListBox1.SelectedItem)
        ' Delete the selected item from ListBox1.
        ListBox1.Items.Remove(ListBox1.SelectedItem)
    End Sub 'moveButton1_Click


    Private Sub moveButton2_Click(sender As Object, e As System.EventArgs)
        'Set the SelectedIndex to -1 so no items are selected.
        ' The new item will be set as the selected item when it is added.
        ListBox1.SelectedIndex = - 1
        ' Add the selected item to ListBox1.
        ListBox1.Items.Add(DropDownList1.SelectedItem)
        'Delete the selected item from DropDownList1.
        DropDownList1.Items.Remove(DropDownList1.SelectedItem)
    End Sub 'moveButton2_Click
</script>
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" >
    <head>
    <title>ASP.NET Example</title>
</head>

    <body>
        <form id="form1" runat="server">
            <table cellpadding="6" border="0">
                <tr>
                    <td rowspan="2" valign="top">
                        <asp:ListBox id="ListBox1" runat="server" 
                            SelectionMode="Single" Width="100px">
                        </asp:ListBox>
                    </td>

                    <td>
                        <asp:Button id="moveButton1" runat="server" Text="Move -->"
                            Width="100px" OnClick="moveButton1_Click"></asp:Button>
                    </td>

                    <td rowspan="2" valign="top">
                        <asp:DropDownList Runat="server" ID="DropDownList1"
                            Width="100px">
                        </asp:DropDownList>
                    </td>
                </tr>

                <tr>
                    <td>
                        <asp:Button ID="moveButton2" Runat="server" Text="<-- Move"
                            Width="100px" onClick="moveButton2_Click"></asp:Button>
                    </td>
                </tr>
            </table>
        </form>
    </body>
</html>
C#
<%@ Page language="C#" AutoEventWireup="true" %>
<%@ Import Namespace="System.Data" %>

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN"
    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<script runat="server">
    private void Page_Load(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
    {
        // If this isn't the first time the page is loaded in this session,
        // then don't recreate the DataTables.
        if (!IsPostBack)
        {
            // Create a new ListItemCollection.
            ListItemCollection listBoxData = new ListItemCollection();
            // Add items to the collection.
            listBoxData.Add(new ListItem("apples"));
            listBoxData.Add(new ListItem("bananas"));
            listBoxData.Add(new ListItem("cherries"));
            listBoxData.Add("grapes");
            listBoxData.Add("mangos");
            listBoxData.Add("oranges");
            // Set the ListItemCollection as the data source for ListBox1.
            ListBox1.DataSource = listBoxData;
            ListBox1.DataBind();

            // Create a new ListItemCollection.
            ListItemCollection ddBoxData = new ListItemCollection();
            // For now, just bind the data to the DropDownList.
            DropDownList1.DataSource = ddBoxData;
            DropDownList1.DataBind();
        }        
    }

    private void moveButton1_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
    {
        //Set the SelectedIndex to -1 so no items are selected.
        // The new item will be set as the selected item when it is added.
        DropDownList1.SelectedIndex = -1;
        // Add the selected item to DropDownList1.
        DropDownList1.Items.Add(ListBox1.SelectedItem);
        // Delete the selected item from ListBox1.
        ListBox1.Items.Remove(ListBox1.SelectedItem);
    }

    private void moveButton2_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
    {
        //Set the SelectedIndex to -1 so no items are selected.
        // The new item will be set as the selected item when it is added.
        ListBox1.SelectedIndex = -1;
        // Add the selected item to ListBox1.
        ListBox1.Items.Add(DropDownList1.SelectedItem);
        //Delete the selected item from DropDownList1.
        DropDownList1.Items.Remove(DropDownList1.SelectedItem);
    }
</script>
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" >
    <head>
    <title>ASP.NET Example</title>
</head>

    <body>
        <form id="form1" runat="server">
            <table cellpadding="6" border="0">
                <tr>
                    <td rowspan="2" valign="top">
                        <asp:ListBox id="ListBox1" runat="server" 
                            SelectionMode="Single" Width="100px">
                        </asp:ListBox>
                    </td>

                    <td>
                        <asp:Button id="moveButton1" runat="server" Text="Move -->"
                            Width="100px" OnClick="moveButton1_Click"></asp:Button>
                    </td>

                    <td rowspan="2" valign="top">
                        <asp:DropDownList Runat="server" ID="DropDownList1"
                            Width="100px">
                        </asp:DropDownList>
                    </td>
                </tr>

                <tr>
                    <td>
                        <asp:Button ID="moveButton2" Runat="server" Text="<-- Move"
                            Width="100px" onClick="moveButton2_Click"></asp:Button>
                    </td>
                </tr>
            </table>
        </form>
    </body>
</html>
Visual Basic
<!-- This example demonstrates how to select multiple items from a DataList 
and add the selected items to a DataGrid. The example uses a For Each loop 
to iterate through the ListItem objects in the ListItemCollection of ListBox1. -->
C#
<!-- This example demonstrates how to select multiple items from a DataList and add the 
selected items to a DataGrid. The example uses a foreach loop to iterate through 
the ListItem objects in the ListItemCollection of ListBox1. -->
Visual Basic
<%@ Page language="VB" AutoEventWireup="true"%>
<%@ Import Namespace="System.Data" %>

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN"
    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<script runat="server">
            ' Global Variables.
            Private dv As DataView
            Private dt As New DataTable()

            Private Sub Page_Load(sender As Object, e As System.EventArgs)
                ' Set the number of rows displayed in the ListBox to be
                ' the number of items in the ListBoxCollection.
                ListBox1.Rows = ListBox1.Items.Count

                ' If the DataTable is already stored in the Web form's default
                ' HttpSessionState variable, then don't recreate the DataTable.
                If Session("data") Is Nothing Then
                    ' Add columns to the DataTable.
                    dt.Columns.Add(New DataColumn("Item"))
                    dt.Columns.Add(New DataColumn("Price"))
            ' Store the DataTable in the Session variable so it can be 
                    ' accessed again later.
                    Session("data") = dt

                    ' Use the table to create a DataView, because the DataGrid
                    ' can only bind to a data source that implements IEnumerable.
                    dv = New DataView(dt)

                    ' Set the DataView as the data source, and bind it to the DataGrid.
                    DataGrid1.DataSource = dv
                    DataGrid1.DataBind()
                End If
            End Sub

            Private Sub addButton_Click(sender As Object, e As System.EventArgs)
                ' Add the items selected in ListBox1 to DataGrid1.
                Dim item As ListItem
                For Each item In ListBox1.Items
                    If item.Selected Then
                        ' Add the item to the DataGrid.
                        ' First, get the DataTable from the Session variable.
                        dt = CType(Session("data"), DataTable)

                        If  Not (dt Is Nothing) Then
                            ' Create a new DataRow in the DataTable.
                            Dim dr As DataRow
                            dr = dt.NewRow()
                            ' Add the item to the new DataRow.
                            dr("Item") = item.Text
                            ' Add the item's value to the DataRow.
                            dr("Price") = item.Value
                            ' Add the DataRow to the DataTable.
                            dt.Rows.Add(dr)

                            ' Rebind the data to DataGrid1.
                            dv = new DataView(dt)
                            DataGrid1.DataSource = dv
                            DataGrid1.DataBind()
                        End If
                    End If
                Next item
            End Sub
        </script>
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" >
    <head>
    <title> ListItemCollection Example </title>
</head>

    <body>
        <form id="form1" runat="server">

            <h3> ListItemCollection Example </h3>

            <table cellpadding="6" border="0">
                <tr>
                    <td valign="top">
                        <asp:ListBox id="ListBox1" runat="server" SelectionMode="Multiple">
                            <asp:ListItem Value=".89">apples</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value=".49">bananas</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value="2.99">cherries</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value="1.49">grapes</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value="2.00">mangos</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value="1.09">oranges</asp:ListItem>
                        </asp:ListBox>
                    </td>

                    <td valign="top">
                        <asp:Button id="addButton" runat="server" Text="Add -->"
                            Width="100px" OnClick="addButton_Click"></asp:Button>
                    </td>

                    <td valign="top">
                        <asp:DataGrid Runat="server" ID="DataGrid1" CellPadding="4">
                        </asp:DataGrid>
                    </td>
                </tr>
            </table>        
        </form>
    </body>
</html>
C#
<%@ Page language="c#" AutoEventWireup="true"%>
<%@ Import Namespace="System.Data" %>

<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN"
    "http://www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd">
<script language="C#" runat="server">
            // Global Variables.
            private DataView dv;
            private DataTable dt = new DataTable();

            private void Page_Load(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
            {
                // Set the number of rows displayed in the ListBox to be
                // the number of items in the ListBoxCollection.
                ListBox1.Rows = ListBox1.Items.Count;

                // If the DataTable is already stored in the Web form's default
                // HttpSessionState variable, then don't recreate the DataTable.
                if (Session["data"] == null)
                {
                    // Add columns to the DataTable.
                    dt.Columns.Add(new DataColumn("Item"));
                    dt.Columns.Add(new DataColumn("Price"));
            // Store the DataTable in the Session variable so it can 
                    // be accessed again later.
                    Session["data"] = dt;

                    // Use the table to create a DataView, because the DataGrid
                    // can only bind to a data source that implements IEnumerable.
                    dv = new DataView(dt);

                    // Set the DataView as the data source, and bind it to the DataGrid.
                    DataGrid1.DataSource = dv;
                    DataGrid1.DataBind();
                }
            }

            private void addButton_Click(object sender, System.EventArgs e)
            {
                // Add the items selected in ListBox1 to DataGrid1.
                foreach (ListItem item in ListBox1.Items)
                {
                    if (item.Selected)
                    {
                        // Add the item to the DataGrid.
                        // First, get the DataTable from the Session variable.
                        dt = (DataTable)Session["data"];

                        if (dt != null)
                        { 
                            // Create a new DataRow in the DataTable.
                            DataRow dr = dt.NewRow();
                            // Add the item to the new DataRow.
                            dr["Item"] = item.Text;
                            // Add the item's value to the DataRow.
                            dr["Price"] = item.Value;
                            // Add the DataRow to the DataTable.
                            dt.Rows.Add(dr);

                            // Rebind the data to DataGrid1.
                            dv = new DataView(dt);
                            DataGrid1.DataSource = dv;
                            DataGrid1.DataBind();
                        }
                    }
                }
            }
        </script>
<html xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1999/xhtml" >
    <head>
    <title> ListItemCollection Example </title>
</head>

    <body>
        <form id="form1" runat="server">

            <h3> ListItemCollection Example </h3>

            <table cellpadding="6" border="0">
                <tr>
                    <td valign="top">
                        <asp:ListBox id="ListBox1" runat="server" SelectionMode="Multiple">
                            <asp:ListItem Value=".89">apples</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value=".49">bananas</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value="2.99">cherries</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value="1.49">grapes</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value="2.00">mangos</asp:ListItem>
                            <asp:ListItem Value="1.09">oranges</asp:ListItem>
                        </asp:ListBox>
                    </td>

                    <td valign="top">
                        <asp:Button id="addButton" runat="server" Text="Add -->"
                            Width="100px" OnClick="addButton_Click"></asp:Button>
                    </td>

                    <td valign="top">
                        <asp:DataGrid Runat="server" ID="DataGrid1" CellPadding="4">
                        </asp:DataGrid>
                    </td>
                </tr>
            </table>        
        </form>
    </body>
</html>
.NET Framework Security
Inheritance Hierarchy
System.Object
  System.Web.UI.WebControls.ListItemCollection
Thread Safety
Any public static (Shared in Visual Basic) members of this type are thread safe. Any instance members are not guaranteed to be thread safe.
Platforms

Windows 7, Windows Vista, Windows XP SP2, Windows XP Media Center Edition, Windows XP Professional x64 Edition, Windows XP Starter Edition, Windows Server 2008 R2, Windows Server 2008, Windows Server 2003, Windows Server 2000 SP4, Windows Millennium Edition, Windows 98

The .NET Framework and .NET Compact Framework do not support all versions of every platform. For a list of the supported versions, see .NET Framework System Requirements.
Version Information

.NET Framework

Supported in: 3.5, 3.0, 2.0, 1.1, 1.0
See Also

Reference

ListItemCollection Members
System.Web.UI.WebControls Namespace
ListItem
ListBox
CopyTo
GetEnumerator
System.Collections.IEnumerator
Count
Add
Remove
Community Content

Mostafa M. Arafa Elzoghbi
A Design Question ?
Hi All,

I have a question : Why ListItemCollection class is embedded in Web.dll instead of System.Collections.dll ? this is very strange !.

I'm developing a windows application,and since its a collection class why I do need to add the web.dll in my application ? i think this has to be re-designed or please give me a reasonable cause of that ?