C# Tips and Traps

By Jason Roberts
Sometimes it's hard to know what you don't know. Short-circuit your learning of C# and level-up your code with this collection of C# and .NET features.
Get started
Play course overview
Course info
Rating
(82)
Level
Intermediate
Updated
Dec 13, 2019
Duration
4h 7m
Table of contents
Course Overview
Course Overview 1m
String, Character, and Formatting Tips
Introduction 2m Simplifying String Empty and Null Checking Code 4m Testing Char Unicode Validity 3m String Formatting and String Interpolation 4m Formatting and Aligning Values into Columns 3m Conditional Formatting for Positive, Negative, and Zero Numbers 3m Building Strings with the StringBuilder Class 4m Creating and Using Custom Numeric Format Providers 4m Summary 1m
Tips for Working with Numbers and Dates
Introduction 1m Parsing Strings into Numbers with the NumberStyles Enumeration 6m Preventing Ambiguous DateTime Parsing and Mis-parsing 3m Parsing DateTimes with the DateTimeStyles Enumeration 4m Representing Arbitrarily Large Integer Values 3m Creating Random Numbers 7m Creating Cryptographically Secure Random Numbers 2m Generating Sequences of Integer Values 3m Summary 1m
Data Types and Object Tips
Introduction 1m Using Tuples to Reduce the Amount of Code 4m Creating and Using Combinable Enums 9m Improving Struct Equality Performance 3m Forcing Reference Equality Comparisons 3m Summary 1m
Tips for Working with Files, Paths, and URIs
Introduction 1m Simplifying Path Creation Code 4m Other Useful Path Methods 5m Working with URIs 8m Working with Zip Files 6m Compressing and Decompressing In-memory Streams 4m Summary 1m
Organizing and Structuring Classes and Code
Introduction 1m The Danger of Virtual Method Calls from Constructors 3m Simplifying Constructor Overloads 3m Creating Methods That Take an Arbitrary Number of Arguments 4m Using Indexers in Your Own Classes 3m Partial Classes and Partial Methods 4m Simplifying Code with Local Functions 2m Creating Type Namespace Aliases 2m Using Keywords for Variable Names and Parameters 1m Exiting Loops Early 1m Summary 1m
Compilation Tips
Introduction 1m An Overview of C# Preprocessor Directives 2m Implementing Conditional Compilation with Preprocessor Directives 4m Conditionally Compiling Code for Different Platforms 5m Defining Custom C# Compilation Symbols 3m Emitting Custom C# Compiler Warnings and Errors 3m Conditionally Calling a Method Based on Compilation Symbols 2m Unit Testing Internal Methods 2m Marking Code as Obsolete 2m Binary Compatibility and Optional Parameters 2m Summary 1m
Tips for Casting and Conversions
Introduction 1m Converting Binary Data to ASCII with Base64 Encoding 6m Converting Base Types to Binary with BitConverter 5m Runtime Conversions with Convert.ChangeType 5m Converting Characters to Numeric Values 2m As or Cast? 1m Summary 1m
Runtime Execution Tips
Introduction 1m Consequences of Exceptions in Static Constructors 3m Getting Environment Information in C# 3m Changing the Current Thread's Culture at Runtime 2m Deferring Creation of Resource-intensive Objects until First Use 6m Exception Caching with Lazy<T> 2m Creating Delays with Tasks 2m Launching Arbitrary Programs and Processes 4m Capturing Process Output and Errors 3m Summary 1m
Bonus Tips
Introduction 1m Merging IEnumerable Sequences Together 7m Performing Set-based Operations on IEnumerable Sequences 4m The Caller Information Attributes 6m Non Short-circuiting Logical Operators in C# 5m Preserving Your Stack Trace When Rethrowing Exceptions 4m The Null-coalescing and Null-conditional C# Operators 5m Summary and Further Learning 2m
Description
Course info
Rating
(82)
Level
Intermediate
Updated
Dec 13, 2019
Duration
4h 7m
Your 10-day individual free trial includes:

Expert-led courses

Keep up with the pace of change with thousands of expert-led, in-depth courses.
Start a 10-day free trial
Description

There are so many features of C# and .NET that are underutilized or unknown that can make solving problems easier. In this course, C# Tips and Traps, you will gain the ability to more easily implement C# solutions. First, you will learn string, number, date, and object tips. Next, you will discover tips related to file paths and URIs, in addition to tips related to structuring and compiling classes and code. Finally, you will explore how to cast and convert types, and also how to get and control information about the runtime environment. When you are finished with this course, you will have the skills and knowledge of C# needed to develop effective C# applications with less code.

About the author
Jason Roberts
About the author

With over 15 years experience, Jason Roberts is a Microsoft .NET MVP, freelance developer, and author.

More from the author
Working with Nulls in C#
Advanced
2h 31m
Aug 13, 2021
Working with Files and Streams in C#
Intermediate
3h 25m
Jun 2, 2021
Exception Handling in C#
Intermediate
1h 44m
Mar 22, 2021
More courses by Jason Roberts
Section Introduction Transcripts
Section Introduction Transcripts

Course Overview
Hi everyone. My name is Jason Roberts, and welcome to my course, C# Tips and Traps. I'm a freelance developer and author. Whether you're still learning C# or you already have some experience, it's often hard to know what you don't know. This course is designed to short circuit your C# learning. It provides a whole host of useful information about the sometimes underused or unknown features of both C# and .NET. Some of the major topics that we'll cover include string, character, and formatting tips, tips for working with files, paths, and URIs, tips on organizing and structuring classes and code, code compilation tips, and tips on casting and converting. By the end of this course, you will have filled in the gaps in your C# knowledge and learned a whole host of useful C# tips. Before beginning the course, you should be familiar with the basics of C# programming. I hope you'll join me on this journey to learn C# with the C# Tips and Traps course, at Pluralsight.

You're the smartest person in the room

PROVE IT

Your team won't just close the skills gap

THEY'LL HURDLE IT

Course info
Rating
(82)
Level
Intermediate
Updated
Dec 13, 2019
Duration
4h 7m
Pluralsight IQ
Know exactly where everyone on your team stands with assessments and analytics.
Try our full library including this course free for your whole team for 14-days.