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.NET Framework Class Library
ListTFind Method

Searches for an element that matches the conditions defined by the specified predicate, and returns the first occurrence within the entire ListT.

Namespace:   System.Collections.Generic
Assembly:  mscorlib (in mscorlib.dll)
Syntax
Public Function Find ( _
	match As [%$TOPIC/x0b5b5bc_en-us_VS_110_2_0_0_0_0%](Of T) _
) As T
public T Find(
	[%$TOPIC/x0b5b5bc_en-us_VS_110_2_0_1_0_0%]<T> match
)
public:
T Find(
	[%$TOPIC/x0b5b5bc_en-us_VS_110_2_0_2_0_0%]<T>^ match
)
member Find : 
        match:[%$TOPIC/x0b5b5bc_en-us_VS_110_2_0_3_0_0%]<'T> -> 'T 

Parameters

match
Type: SystemPredicate T

The PredicateT delegate that defines the conditions of the element to search for.

Return Value

Type: T
The first element that matches the conditions defined by the specified predicate, if found; otherwise, the default value for type T.
Exceptions
ExceptionCondition
ArgumentNullException

match is .

Remarks

The PredicateT is a delegate to a method that returns true if the object passed to it matches the conditions defined in the delegate. The elements of the current ListT are individually passed to the PredicateT delegate, moving forward in the ListT, starting with the first element and ending with the last element. Processing is stopped when a match is found.

Important noteImportant

When searching a list containing value types, make sure the default value for the type does not satisfy the search predicate. Otherwise, there is no way to distinguish between a default value indicating that no match was found and a list element that happens to have the default value for the type. If the default value satisfies the search predicate, use the FindIndex method instead.

This method performs a linear search; therefore, this method is an O(n) operation, where n is Count.

Examples

The following example demonstrates the find methods for the ListT class. The example for the ListT class contains book objects, of class Book, using the data from the Sample XML File: Books (LINQ to XML). The FillList method in the example uses LINQ to XML to parse the values from the XML to property values of the book objects.

The following table describes the examples provided for the find methods.

Method

Example

Find(PredicateT)

Finds a book by an ID using the IDToFind predicate delegate.

C# example uses an anonymous delegate.

FindAll(PredicateT)

Find all books that whose Genre property is "Computer" using the FindComputer predicate delegate.

FindLast(PredicateT)

Finds the last book in the collection that has a publish date before 2001, using the PubBefore2001 predicate delegate.

C# example uses an anonymous delegate.

FindIndex(PredicateT)

Finds the index of first computer book using the FindComputer predicate delegate.

FindLastIndex(PredicateT)

Finds the index of the last computer book using the FindComputer predicate delegate.

FindIndex(Int32, Int32, PredicateT)

Finds the index of first computer book in the second half of the collection, using the FindComputer predicate delegate.

FindLastIndex(Int32, Int32, PredicateT)

Finds the index of last computer book in the second half of the collection, using the FindComputer predicate delegate.

Imports System.Collections.Generic
Imports System.Linq
Imports System.Xml.Linq
Module Module1

    Private IDToFind As String = "bk109" 

    Public Books As New List(Of Book)


    Sub Main()

        FillList()

        ' Find a book by its ID. 
        Dim result As Book = Books.Find(AddressOf FindID)
        If result IsNot Nothing Then
            DisplayResult(result, "Find by ID: " & IDToFind)
        Else

            Console.WriteLine(vbCrLf & "Not found: " & IDToFind)
        End If
        Console.WriteLine()

        ' Find last book in collection that has a publish date before 2001.
        result = Books.FindLast(AddressOf PubBefore2001)
        If result IsNot Nothing Then
            DisplayResult(result, "Last book in collection published before 2001:")
        Else
            Console.WriteLine(vbCrLf & "Not found: " & IDToFind)
        End If
        Console.WriteLine()

        ' Find all computer books. 
        Dim results As List(Of Book) = Books.FindAll(AddressOf FindComputer)
        If results.Count <> 0 Then
            DisplayResults(results, "All computer books:")
        Else
            Console.WriteLine(vbCrLf & "No books found.")
        End If
        Console.WriteLine()


        ' Find all books under $10.00.
        results = Books.FindAll(AddressOf FindUnderTen)
        If results.Count <> 0 Then
            DisplayResults(results, "Books under $10:")
        Else
            Console.WriteLine(vbCrLf & "No books found.")
        End If
        Console.WriteLine()

        ' Find index values.
        Console.WriteLine()
        Dim ndx As Integer = Books.FindIndex(AddressOf FindComputer)
        Console.WriteLine("Index of first computer book: " & ndx)
        ndx = Books.FindLastIndex(AddressOf FindComputer)
        Console.WriteLine("Index of last computer book: " & ndx)

        Dim mid As Integer = Books.Count / 2
        ndx = Books.FindIndex(mid, mid, AddressOf FindComputer)
        Console.WriteLine("Index of first computer book in the second half of the collection: " & ndx)



        ndx = Books.FindLastIndex(Books.Count - 1, mid, AddressOf FindComputer)
        Console.WriteLine("Index of last computer book in the second half of the collection: " & ndx)


    End Sub 



    Private Sub FillList()

        ' Create XML elements from a source file. 
        Dim xTree As XElement = XElement.Load("c:\temp\books.xml")

        ' Create an enumerable collection of the elements. 
        Dim elements As IEnumerable(Of XElement) = xTree.Elements

        ' Evaluate each element and set values in the book object. 
        For Each el As XElement In elements
            Dim Book As New Book()
            Book.ID = el.Attribute("id").Value
            Dim props As IEnumerable(Of XElement) = el.Elements
            For Each p As XElement In props
                If p.Name.ToString.ToLower = "author" Then
                    Book.Author = p.Value
                End If 
                If p.Name.ToString.ToLower = "title" Then
                    Book.Title = p.Value
                End If 
                If p.Name.ToString.ToLower = "genre" Then
                    Book.Genre = p.Value
                End If 
                If p.Name.ToString.ToLower = "price" Then
                    Book.Price = Convert.ToDouble(p.Value)
                End If 
                If p.Name.ToString.ToLower = "publish_date" Then
                    Book.Publish_date = Convert.ToDateTime(p.Value)
                End If 
                If p.Name.ToString.ToLower = "description" Then
                    Book.Description = p.Value
                End If 
            Next
            Books.Add(Book)
        Next

        DisplayResults(Books, "All books:")
        Console.WriteLine()

    End Sub 

    ' Predicate delegates for 
    ' Find and FindAll methods. 
    Private Function FindID(ByVal bk As Book) As Boolean 
        If bk.ID = IDToFind Then 
            Return True 
        Else 
            Return False 
        End If 
    End Function 
    Private Function FindComputer(ByVal bk As Book) As Boolean 
        If bk.Genre = "Computer" Then 
            Return True 
        Else 
            Return False 
        End If 
    End Function 
    Private Function FindUnderTen(ByVal bk As Book) As Boolean 
        Dim tendollars As Double = 10.0
        If bk.Price < tendollars Then 
            Return True 
        Else 
            Return False 
        End If 
    End Function 
    Private Function PubBefore2001(ByVal bk As Book) As Boolean 
        Dim year2001 As DateTime = New DateTime(2001, 1, 1)
        Return bk.Publish_date < year2001
    End Function 
    Private Sub DisplayResult(ByVal result As Book, ByVal title As String)
        Console.WriteLine()
        Console.WriteLine(title)
        Console.WriteLine(vbLf & result.ID & vbTab & result.Author & _
                          vbTab & result.Title & vbTab & result.Genre & _
                          vbTab & result.Publish_date & vbTab & result.Price)
        Console.WriteLine()
    End Sub 
    Private Sub DisplayResults(ByVal results As List(Of Book), ByVal title As String)
        Console.WriteLine()
        Console.WriteLine(title)
        For Each b As Book In results
            Console.Write(vbLf & b.ID & vbTab & b.Author & _
                              vbTab & b.Title & vbTab & b.Genre & _
                              vbTab & b.Publish_date & vbTab & b.Price)
        Next
        Console.WriteLine()
    End Sub 

    Public Class Book
        Public ID As String 
        Public Author As String 
        Public Title As String 
        Public Genre As String 
        Public Price As Double 
        Public Publish_date As DateTime
        Public Description As String 
    End Class 


End Module
using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Xml.Linq;

namespace Find
{
    class Program
    {
        private static string IDtoFind = "bk109";

        private static List<Book> Books = new List<Book>();
        public static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            FillList();

            // Find a book by its ID.
            Book result = Books.Find(
            delegate(Book bk)
            {
                return bk.ID == IDtoFind;
            }
            );
            if (result != null)
            {
                DisplayResult(result, "Find by ID: " + IDtoFind);   
            }
            else
            {
                Console.WriteLine("\nNot found: {0}", IDtoFind);
            }


            // Find last book in collection published before 2001.
            result = Books.FindLast(
            delegate(Book bk)
            {
                DateTime year2001 = new DateTime(2001,01,01);
                return bk.Publish_date < year2001;
            });
            if (result != null)
            {
                DisplayResult(result, "Last book in collection published before 2001:");
            }
            else
            {
                Console.WriteLine("\nNot found: {0}", IDtoFind);
            }


            // Find all computer books.
            List<Book> results = Books.FindAll(FindComputer);
            if (results.Count != 0)
            {
                DisplayResults(results, "All computer:");
            }
            else
            {
                Console.WriteLine("\nNo books found.");
            }

            // Find all books under $10.00.
            results = Books.FindAll(
            delegate(Book bk)
            {
                return bk.Price < 10.00;
            }
            );
            if (results.Count != 0)
            {
                DisplayResults(results, "Books under $10:");
            }
            else
            {
                Console.WriteLine("\nNo books found.");
            }


            // Find index values.
            Console.WriteLine();
            int ndx = Books.FindIndex(FindComputer);
            Console.WriteLine("Index of first computer book: {0}", ndx);
            ndx = Books.FindLastIndex(FindComputer);
            Console.WriteLine("Index of last computer book: {0}", ndx);

            int mid = Books.Count / 2;
            ndx = Books.FindIndex(mid, mid, FindComputer);
            Console.WriteLine("Index of first computer book in the second half of the collection: {0}", ndx);

            ndx = Books.FindLastIndex(Books.Count - 1, mid, FindComputer);
            Console.WriteLine("Index of last computer book in the second half of the collection: {0}", ndx);

        }





        // Populates the list with sample data. 
        private static void FillList()
        {

            // Create XML elements from a source file.
            XElement xTree = XElement.Load(@"c:\temp\books.xml");

            // Create an enumerable collection of the elements.
            IEnumerable<XElement> elements = xTree.Elements();

            // Evaluate each element and set set values in the book object. 
            foreach (XElement el in elements)
            {
                Book book = new Book();
                book.ID = el.Attribute("id").Value;
                IEnumerable<XElement> props = el.Elements();
                foreach (XElement p in props)
                {


                    if (p.Name.ToString().ToLower() == "author")
                    {
                        book.Author = p.Value;
                    }
                    else if (p.Name.ToString().ToLower() == "title")
                    {
                        book.Title = p.Value;
                    }
                    else if (p.Name.ToString().ToLower() == "genre")
                    {
                        book.Genre = p.Value;
                    }
                    else if (p.Name.ToString().ToLower() == "price")
                    {
                        book.Price = Convert.ToDouble(p.Value);
                    }
                    else if (p.Name.ToString().ToLower() == "publish_date")
                    {
                        book.Publish_date = Convert.ToDateTime(p.Value);
                    }
                    else if (p.Name.ToString().ToLower() == "description")
                    {
                        book.Description = p.Value;
                    }
                }

                Books.Add(book);

            }

            DisplayResults(Books, "All books:");

        }

        // Explicit predicate delegate. 
        private static bool FindComputer(Book bk)
        {

            if (bk.Genre == "Computer")
            {
                return true;
            }
            {
                return false;
            }

        }

        private static void DisplayResult(Book result, string title)
        {
            Console.WriteLine();
            Console.WriteLine(title);
            Console.WriteLine("\n{0}\t{1}\t{2}\t{3}\t{4}\t{5}", result.ID,
                result.Author, result.Title, result.Genre, result.Price,
                result.Publish_date.ToShortDateString());
            Console.WriteLine();


        }

        private static void DisplayResults(List<Book> results, string title)
        {
            Console.WriteLine();
            Console.WriteLine(title);
            foreach (Book b in results)
            {

                Console.Write("\n{0}\t{1}\t{2}\t{3}\t{4}\t{5}", b.ID,
                    b.Author, b.Title, b.Genre, b.Price,
                    b.Publish_date.ToShortDateString());
            }
            Console.WriteLine();

        }

    }

    public class Book
    {
        public string ID { get; set; }
        public string Author { get; set; }
        public string Title { get; set; }
        public string Genre { get; set; }
        public double Price { get; set; }
        public DateTime Publish_date { get; set; }
        public string Description { get; set; }
    }
}
Version Information

.NET Framework

Supported in: 4.5, 4, 3.5, 3.0, 2.0

.NET Framework Client Profile

Supported in: 4, 3.5 SP1

Portable Class Library

Supported in: Portable Class Library

.NET for Windows Store apps

Supported in: Windows 8
Platforms

Windows 8, Windows Server 2012, Windows 7, Windows Vista SP2, Windows Server 2008 (Server Core Role not supported), Windows Server 2008 R2 (Server Core Role supported with SP1 or later; Itanium not supported)

The .NET Framework does not support all versions of every platform. For a list of the supported versions, see .NET Framework System Requirements.