Sams Teach Yourself Visual C# 2010 in 24 Hours: Complete Starter Kit

by Scott Dorman

Overview

C# has quickly established itself as one of the world's most widely used programming languages. The newest version, Visual C# 2010, includes several important new features, including Silverlight, the Entity Framework, tighter integration with version 4.0 of the .NET Framework, and full support for programming Windows 7 and Office. The proven Sams Teach Yourself method will help all newcomers to C# 2010 get up to speed quickly, no matter whether you've had experience with previous versions of Visual C# or not. You are taken step by step through the process of software development, learning elements as you build a sample application so that the material is framed in a real world approach. The accompanying DVD contains Visual C# 2010 Express Edition, and the companion Web site contains all the code and exercises from the book.

 

Step-by-step instructions carefully walk you through the most common tasks

Q & As, quizzes, and exercises at the end of each chapter help you test your knowledge

Notes and tips point out shortcuts and solutions

The companion DVD contains Visual C# 2010 Express Edition - everything you need to get started programming in C#

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780672331671
Publisher:	Pearson Education
Publication date:	07/08/2010
Series:	Sams Teach Yourself
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	560
File size:	23 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.

About the Author

Scott Dorman has been designated by Microsoft as a C# Most Valued Professional in recognition for his many contributions to the C# community. He has been working with computers professionally since 1993, and with .NET and C# since 2001. Currently, Scott's primary focus is developing commercial software applications using Microsoft .NET technologies. Scott runs a software architecture focused user group, speaks extensively, including at Microsoft TechEd and community sponsored code camps, and contributes regularly to online communities such as The Code Project and StackOverflow. Scott maintains a .NET Framework and C# focused blog at http://geekswithblogs.com/sdorman.

Table of Contents

Introduction     1

 

PART I:  C# FUNDAMENTALS

Hour 1  The .NET Framework and C#     7

The .NET Framework     7

The C# Language     17

Visual Studio 2010     24

Writing Your First Program     27

Q&A     31

Workshop     32

Hour 2  Understanding C# Types     35

Types     36

Predefined Types     37

Operators     47

Default Values     53

Null and Nullable Types     53

Casting and Conversion     55

Q&A     59

Workshop     60

Hour 3  Understanding Classes and Objects the C# Way 63

Object-Oriented Programming     64

Component-Oriented Programming     65

Classes in C#     65

Scope and Declaration Space 66

Nested Classes     85

Partial Classes     86

Static Classes     86

Object Initializers     88

Q&A     89

Workshop     90

Hour 4  Inheritance, Interfaces, and Abstract Classes      93

Inheritance and Polymorphism     93

Abstract Classes and Members     103

Interfaces     105

Q&A     109

Workshop     111

Hour 5  Creating Enumerated Types and Structures     113

Enumerated Types     114

Structures     119

Q&A     127

Workshop     127

Hour 6  Events and Event Handling     131

Understanding Events     132

Subscribing and Unsubscribing     132

Publishing an Event     136

Raising an Event     139

Q&A     141

Workshop     142

 

PART II:  PROGRAMMING IN C#

Hour 7  Controlling Program Flow     147

Selection Statements     148

Iteration Statements     153

Jump Statements     159

Q&A     162

Workshop     163

Hour 8  Using Strings and Regular Expressions     167

Strings     168

Mutable Strings Using StringBuilder     177

Type Formatting     178

Regular Expressions     187

Q&A     190

Workshop     191

Hour 9  Working with Arrays and Collections     195

Arrays     196

Indexers     200

Generic Collections     203

Collection Initializers     217

Collection Interfaces     219

Enumerable Objects and Iterators     220

Q&A     223

Workshop     224

Hour 10  Handling Errors Using Exceptions     227

Understanding Exceptions     228

Throwing Exceptions     231

Handling Exceptions     232

Rethrowing Caught Exceptions     239

Overflow and Integer Arithmetic     241

Q&A     243

Workshop     243

Hour 11  Understanding Generics     245

Why You Should Use Generics     246

Using Generic Methods     253

Creating Generic Classes     254

Combining Generics and Arrays     257

Working with Tuples     261

Q&A     263

Workshop     264

Hour 12  Understanding Query Expressions     267

Introducing LINQ     268

Standard Query Operator Methods     279

Lambdas     280

Deferred Execution     283

Q&A     284

Workshop     285

 

PART III:  WORKING WITH DATA

Hour 13  Using Files and Streams     289

Files and Directories     290

Reading and Writing Data     300

Q&A     307

Workshop     308

Hour 14  Working with XML     311

Understanding the XML DOM     312

Using LINQ to XML     313

Selecting and Querying XML     319

Modifying XML     323

Q&A     326

Workshop     326

Hour 15  Working with Databases     329

Understanding ADO.NET     330

Understanding LINQ to ADO.NET     333

Q&A     342

Workshop     343

 

PART IV:  BUILDING AN APPLICATION USING VISUAL STUDIO

Hour 16  Debugging in Visual Studio     347

Commenting Your Code     348

Compiler and Runtime Errors     349

Debugging in Visual Studio     350

Visualizing Data     359

Q&A     361

Workshop     361

Hour 17  Building a Windows Application     363

Understanding WPF     364

Creating a WPF Application     370

Styling the Layout     379

Q&A     382

Workshop     382

Hour 18  Using Data Binding and Validation     385

Understanding Data Binding     386

Converting Data     390

Binding to Collections     395

Working with Data Templates     399

Validating Data     400

Q&A     404

Workshop     405

Hour 19  Building a Web Application     407

Understanding Web Application Architecture     408

Working with ASP.NET     408

Creating a Web Application     411

Understanding Data Validation     420

Q&A     423

Workshop     424

 

PART V:  DIVING DEEPER

Hour 20  Programming with Attributes     427

Understanding Attributes     428

Working with the Common Attributes     430

Using Custom Attributes     433

Accessing Attributes at Runtime     434

Q&A     436

Workshop     436

Hour 21  Dynamic Types and Language Interoperability     439

Using Dynamic Types     439

Understanding the DLR     444

Interoperating with COM     447

Reflection Interoperability     448

Q&A     449

Workshop     450

Hour 22  Memory Organization and Garbage Collection     451

Memory Organization     452

Garbage Collection     452

Understanding IDisposable     453

Using the Dispose Pattern     455

Declaring and Using Finalizers     456

Q&A     458

Workshop     459

Hour 23  Understanding Threads, Concurrency, and Parallelism     461

Understanding Threads and Threading     462

Concurrency and Synchronization     463

Understanding the Task Parallel Library     467

Working with Parallel LINQ (PLINQ)     472

Potential Pitfalls     473

Q&A     475

Workshop     476

Hour 24  Next Steps: Silverlight, PowerShell, and Entity Framework     479

Understanding the Entity Framework     479

Introducing PowerShell     482

Silverlight     483

Index     485

 

Editorial Reviews

“The Teach Yourself in 24 Hours series of books from Sams has been a staple of anyone wanting to quickly come up-to-speed on a new technology. This book is not just a simple refresh of last year’s book, Scott has written it from the ground up for the Visual Studio 2010 and .NET 4.0 release. From the C# type system, to events and data, from ASP.NET Web to WPF Windows applications, Sams Teach Yourself Visual C# 2010 in 24 Hours will provide any developer new to the C# language a great foundation to build upon.”

–Shawn Weisfeld, Microsoft Visual C# MVP

“The key to learning software development is to have a great foundation. Sams Teach Yourself Visual C# 2010 in 24 Hours is a must-read for anyone who wants to learn C# from the beginning, or just brush up on its features. Scott Dorman brings a very knowledgeable, yet casual approach to his book that anyone with the desire to learn to program in .NET can be inspired by. I found a few gems that will enhance my future programming projects.”

–Chris “Woody” Woodruff, Co-Host of Deep Fried Bytes Podcast

“This book is an excellent resource for anyone who is learning C# for the first time, migrating from Visual Basic, or catching up on the latest features of C#. It is full of information and should be on the desks of any developer who is becoming familiar with C# 2010.”

–Jeff Julian, Managing Partner, AJI Software, Founder of GeeksWithBlogs.NET

“Scott Dorman has written an excellent reference book that not only covers the basic fundamentals of .NET 4.0 C# development, but also includes instruction and guidance on the finer points of advanced C# and development with Visual Studio 2010. The book is written in a clear and concise manner, with liberal usage of ‘Did You Know,’ ‘By the Way,’ and ‘Watch Out!’ sidebars that help provide the reader with informative ‘sign posts’ along their journey for re-enforcing key concepts, best practices, and anti-patterns. These invaluable sign posts really help to ‘bring-it-home’ to the reader with Scott’s real-world commentary about why certain topics are critical in the overall understanding and use of the C# language and associated constructs. Whether you are a novice, intermediate, or professional developer, this book will certainly become a very handy, well-thumbed, desk reference for today’s highly productive .NET 4.0 C# developer.”

–Jeff Barnes, Architect Microsoft Developer & Platform Evangelism, Microsoft Corporation

“This book covers all the bases, from the C# language, through the frameworks you’ll use it with and the tools you need to be productive. The best way to learn is to do, and there is no shortage of doing here.”

–Chris Burrows, C# Compiler Team, Microsoft Corporation

“Sams Teach Yourself Visual C# 2010 in 24 Hours gives you the jump start you need to be productive quickly. I found the book extremely clear to follow and laid out logically hour by hour to flow you through related topics. From novices to C# veterans, this book gives you all you need to understand all that is new in the 2010 release.”

–Richard Jones, Microsoft MVP

From the Publisher