Introduction
Microsoft added a lot of new syntax goodies in their latest release of C# that will make you more productive, namely:
- Index from the end operatorĀ ^
- Range operatorĀ ..
- Null coalescing operatorĀ ??=
- Using variables
- Verbatim string with interpolationĀ $@Ā @$
Index from the end operatorĀ ^
^^e.g., Get the second last item of an array
var array = new[] {1,2,3,4,5};
// Before
array[array.Length - 2]; // 4
// Now this is also allowed
array[^2]; // 4For more details, please take a look at my article onĀ indices and ranges.
Range operatorĀ ..
..Selecting sub-arrays in C# used to imply a lot of boilerplate code. WithĀ .., there's now a super simple way to do it.
e.g., Get a subarray
var array = new[] {1,2,3,4,5};
// Before
var newArray = new List<int>();
for (var i = 1; i < 3; i++)
{
newArray.Add(array[i]);
}
// Now this is also allowed
var newArray = array[1..3]; // 2,3For more details, please take a look at my article onĀ indices and ranges.
Null coalescing operatorĀ ??=
??=??=// Before
var possibleNullValue = possibleNullValue ?? "default value";
// Now this is also allowed
var possibleNullValue ??= "default value";Using variables
usingusingĀ So why not just dispose of them at the end of the method's scope? It's what Microsoft did with the newĀ
using var// Before
using (var stream = new FileStream("", FileMode.Open))
{
using (var sr = new StreamReader(stream))
{
...
}
}
// Now this is also allowed
using var stream = new FileStream("", FileMode.Open);
using var sr = new StreamReader(stream);
...Verbatim string with interpolationĀ $@
Ā @$
$@@$Verbatim stringsĀ @Ā andĀ string interpolationĀ $Ā are two useful concepts to build string literals. However, if you wanted to use both on the same string literal, you had to specify them in the correct order; otherwise, you were getting an error from the compiler.
Not anymore! You can now specify them in any order, and the compiler will figure it out for you.
// Before
$@"This -> {nameof(this)}";
// Now this is also allowed
@$"This -> {nameof(this)}";Closing word
I hope you enjoyed learning about these tips and tricks. If you are curious about other new features introduced with C# 8.0.
All code samples are available onĀ github
Previously published at https://blog.miguelbernard.com/5-tips-to-improve-your-productivity-in-c-8-0/