Joseph Albahari - C♯ 3.0 in a nutshell

This book targets intermediate to advanced audiences. No prior knowledge of C# is required, but some general programming experience is necessary. For the beginner, this book complements, rather than replaces, a tutorial-style introduction to programming.

If you're already familiar with C# 2.0, you'll find more than a hundred pages dedicated to LINQ and other new C# 3.0 features. In addition, many other chapters are designed to lift your existing knowledge of C# and the core Framework.

This book is an ideal companion to any of the vast array of books that focus on an applied technology such as WPF, ASP.NET, or WCF. The areas of the language and .NET Framework that such books omit, C# 3.0 in a Nutshell covers in detailand vice versa.

If you're looking for a book that skims every .NET Framework technology, this is not for you. This book is also unsuitable if you want a replacement for IntelliSense (i.e., the alphabetical listings of types and type members that appeared in previous editions).

The first three chapters after the introduction concentrate purely on C#, starting with the basics of syntax, types, and variables, and finishing with advanced topics such as unsafe code and preprocessor directives. If you're new to the language, you should read these chapters sequentially, with the exception of

The remaining chapters cover the core .NET Framework, including such topics as LINQ, XML, collections, I/O and networking, memory management, reflection, attributes, security, threading, application domains, and native interoperability. You can read most of these chapters randomly, except for , which lay a foundation for subsequent topics. The three chapters on LINQ are also best read in sequence.

What You Need to Use This Book

The examples in this book require a C# 3.0 (or 2.0) compiler in conjunction with the Microsoft .NET Framework 3.5 (or 3.0/2.0). You will also require Microsoft's .NET documentation. The easiest way to get all threealong with an integrated development environmentis to install Microsoft Visual Studio. Any edition is suitable for what's taught in this book, including Visual Studio Express (currently a free download). Visual Studio also includes an express edition of SQL Server, required to run the LINQ to SQL examples, and IntelliSense, which pops up type member listings as you type.

Another option, if you don't mind using a plain-text editor and building at the command line, is to download the .NET Framework SDK. This includes the compiler, .NET documentation, and additional command-line tools.

The lightest option is to download and install just the Microsoft .NET Framework Runtime. This includes the command-line compiler; however, it doesn't include other command-line tools or any documentation.

Conventions Used in This Book

is a sample diagram depicting how we illustrate types throughout this book. Abstract classes are shown as a slanted rectangle, and interfaces are shown as a circle. Inheritance is shown as a solid line from the subtype, ending with a hollow triangle that points to the supertype. We use a line with a solid diamond to annotate any kind of relationship (whether an association, aggregation or composition).

Figure 1. Sample diagram

The following typographical conventions are used in this book:

Italic

Indicates new terms, URIs, filenames, and directories

Constant width

Indicates C# code, keywords and identifiers, and program output

Constant width bold

Shows a highlighted section of code

Constant width italic

Shows text that should be replaced with user-supplied values

Tip

This icon signifies a tip, suggestion, or general note.

Warning

This icon indicates a warning or caution.

Using Code Examples

This book is here to help you get your job done. In general, you may use the code in this book in your programs and documentation. You do not need to contact us for permission unless you're reproducing a significant portion of the code. For example, writing a program that uses several chunks of code from this book does not require permission. Selling or distributing a CD-ROM of examples from O'Reilly books does require permission. Answering a question by citing this book and quoting example code does not require permission. Incorporating a significant amount of example code from this book into your product's documentation does require permission.

We appreciate, but do not require, attribution. An attribution usually includes the title, author, publisher, and ISBN. For example: " C# 3.0 in a Nutshell , by Joseph Albahari and Ben Albahari. Copyright 2007 Ben Albahari and Joseph Albahari, 978-0-596-52757-0."