Resources

BooksAbrams, Brad. .NET Framework Standard Library Annotated Reference,Volumes 1 and 2. Boston,

MA: Addison-Wesley Professional, 2004, 2005.

Allison, Damon, Andy Olson, James Speer. Visual Basic .NET Class Design Handbook: CodingEffective Classes. Berkeley, CA: Apress, 2003.

Boehm, Anne. Murach’s Visual Basic 2005. Fresno, CA: Mike Murach & Associates, 2006.

Booch, Grady. Object-Oriented Analysis and Design with Applications, Second Edition. Boston,MA: Addison-Wesley Professional, 1993.

Box, Don, with Chris Sells. Essential .NET,Volume 1: The Common Language Runtime. Boston,MA: Addison-Wesley Professional, 2002.

Cwalina, Krzysztof, and Brad Abrams. Framework Design Guidelines: Conventions, Idioms, andPatterns for Reusable .NET Libraries. Boston, MA: Addison-Wesley Professional, 2005.

Ecma International. Standard ECMA-335: Common Language Infrastructure (CLI), Fourth Edition.Geneva, Switzerland: Ecma International, 2006.

Evjen, Bill, Rockford Lhotka, Billy Hollis, Bill Sheldon, Kent Sharkey, Tim McCarthy, RamaRamachandran. Professional VB 2005. Indianapolis, IN: Wiley Publishing, 2006.

Ferracchiati, Fabio Claudio. LINQ for VB 2005. Berkeley, CA: Apress, 2007.

Fischer, Tom, John Slater, Pete Stromquist, Chaur G. Wu. Professional Design Patterns in VB.NET: Building Adaptable Applications. Berkeley, CA: Apress, 2002.

Fowler, Martin. UML Distilled: A Brief Guide to the Standard Object Modeling Language, ThirdEdition. Boston, MA: Addison-Wesley Professional, 2003.

Freeman, Elisabeth, and Eric Freeman, with Kathy Sierra and Bert Bates. Head First DesignPatterns. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media, 2004.

Gamma, Erich, Richard Helm, Ralph Johnson, and John Vlissides. Design Patterns: Elements ofReusable Object-Oriented Software. Boston, MA: Addison-Wesley Professional, 1995.

Griver, Yair Alan, Matthew Arnheiter, Michael Gellis. Visual Basic Developer’s Guide to UML andDesign Patterns. Hoboken, NJ: Sybex, 2000.

Larman, Craig. Applying UML and Patterns: An Introduction to Object-Oriented Analysis andDesign and Iterative Development. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall PTR, 2004.

Lau, Yun-Tung. The Art of Objects: Object-Oriented Design and Architecture. Boston, MA:Addison-Wesley Professional, 2001.

417

A P P E N D I X A

Lhotka, Rockford. Expert VB 2005 Business Objects, Second Edition. Berkeley, CA: Apress, 2006.

Liberty, Jesse. Programming Visual Basic 2005. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media, 2005.

Moore, Karl. Karl Moore’s Visual Basic .NET: The Tutorials. Berkeley, CA: Apress, 2002.

Patrick, Tim, and John Clark Craig. Visual Basic 2005 Cookbook: Solutions for VB 2005Programmers. Sebastopol, CA: O’Reilly Media, 2006.

Richter, Jeffrey. Applied Microsoft .NET Framework Programming. Redmond, WA: MicrosoftPress, 2002.

Stephens, Rod. Visual Basic 2005 Programmer’s Reference. Indianapolis, IN: Wiley Publishing, 2005.

Stoecker, Matthew, with Microsoft Corporation. MCAD/MCSD Self-Paced Training Kit:Developing Windows-Based Applications with Microsoft Visual Basic .NET and Visual C#.NET, Second Edition. Redmond, CA: Microsoft Press, 2003.

Sutter, Herb. Exceptional C++: 47 Engineering Puzzles, Programming Problems, and Exception-Safety Solutions. Boston, MA: Addison-Wesley Professional, 1999.

Troelsen, Andrew. Pro VB 2005 and the .NET 2.0 Platform. Berkeley, CA: Apress, 2006.

Yourdon, Edward, and Larry L. Constantine. Structured Design: Fundamentals of a Discipline ofComputer Program and Systems Design. Upper Saddle River, NJ: Prentice Hall, 1979.

ArticlesKaplan, Michael, and Cathy Wissink. “Custom Cultures: Extend Your Code’s Global Reach With

New Features In The .NET Framework 2.0.” MSDN Magazine, October 2005.

Robbins, John. “Unhandled Exceptions and Tracing in the .NET Framework 2.0.” MSDNMagazine, July 2005.

Schmidt, Douglas C. “Monitor Object: An Object Behavioral Pattern for ConcurrentProgramming.” Department of Computer Science and Engineering, WashingtonUniversity, St. Louis, MO, April 2005.

Toub, Stephen. “High Availability: Keep Your Code Running with the Reliability Features of the.NET Framework.” MSDN Magazine, October 2005.

Vermeulen, Allan. “An Asynchronous Design Pattern.” Dr. Dobb’s Journal, June 1996.

Ng, Timothy. “Basic Instincts: Lambda Expressions.” MSDN Magazine, September, 2007.

Horst, Bill. “Basic Instincts: Type Inference in Visual Basic 2008.” MSDN Magazine, October2007.

Web101 LINQ Samples. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vbasic/bb688088.aspx

101 Samples for Visual Basic 2005. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vbasic/ms789075.aspx

The Code Project. www.codeproject.com/

Developer.com. www.developer.com/net/vb/

Free Book - Introducing Microsoft Visual Basic 2005 for Developers.http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vbrun/ms788235.aspx

APPENDIX A ■ RESOURCES418

Visual Basic 2008 Express Edition. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/express/future/bb421469.aspx

VB.Net Heaven. www.vbdotnetheaven.com/

Visual Basic Developer Center. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/vbasic/default.aspx

Consuming Unmanaged DLL Functions. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/26thfadc(vs.90).aspx

A Closer Look at Platform Invoke. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/0h9e9t7d(vs.90).aspx

Code Access Security: When Role-Based Security Isn’t Enough. http://www.devx.com/security/Article/31259/0/page/1

How to Create an Indexer Property in Visual Basic .NET or in Visual Basic 2005.http://support.microsoft.com/kb/311323

How to Demand Permissions by Using Code Access Security.http://support.microsoft.com/kb/315529

Code Access Security. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/930b76w0(VS.90).aspx

Code Access Permissions. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/h846e9b3(vs.90).aspx

Unicode Frequently Asked Questions. http://unicode.org/faq/utf_bom.html

Wikipedia, “Regular Expression,” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regular_expression, 2007.

Regular Expression Tutorial. http://www.regular-expressions.info/tutorial.html

Array Covariance Rules. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa664572(VS.71).aspx

The LINQ Project. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/netframework/aa904594.aspx

Hooked on LINQ. http://www.hookedonlinq.com/MainPage.ashx

Beth Massi, “Sharing the Goodness that is VB: Quickly Import and Export Excel Data with LINQto XML,” http://blogs.msdn.com/bethmassi/archive/2007/10/30/quickly-import-and-export-excel-data-with-linq-to-xml.aspx

Douglas Reichard, “Shim Classes,” http://www.ddj.com/cpp/184401200?pgno=5

Deployment of Managed COM Add-Ins in Office XP. http://msdn2.microsoft.com/en-us/library/aa164016(office.10).aspx

APPENDIX A ■ RESOURCES 419

Running the Examples

This appendix describes the various types of code examples throughout the book and how torun them. It is meant to aid you if you’re new to the VB 2008 environment.

Example TypesThis book contains three types of code examples: code snippets; classes, structures, and inter-faces and console applications.

Code SnippetsA code snippet is a short code sample used to display the syntax of an entire method or singlefunction call. These samples are not meant to be compiled or executed.

Classes, Structures, and InterfacesThese examples contain class, structure, and interface definitions. You build these by usingthe Class Library project type. Chapter 6 contains several examples that fall into this category.

Console ApplicationsThese examples, built using the Console Application project type, are the most prevalent typeof code example in the book. By default, VB creates a Module1.vb file with the following stub:

Module Module1Sub Main()End Sub

End Module

We recommend that you replace the entire Module stub with the example text, which con-tains a Public EntryPoint class and a Shared Main method. Next, in your project’s Propertiespage, on the Application tab, set the “Startup object:” to “Sub Main.” For examples that requirecommand-line arguments, you can enter these, separated by spaces, in your project’s Propertiespage, on the Debug tab, in the “Command line arguments” input area. Finally, the few samplesthat discuss globalization require a message box to display the results. You should build andrun these examples the same way as other console applications, but you need to add a refer-ence to System.Windows.Forms in your project’s Properties page, on the References tab.

421

A P P E N D I X B

Running a Console Application via the Debug ➤ Start Without Debugging menu, or theCtrl+F5 shortcut, will launch the application, displaying each output as needed, then pausewith a “Press any key to continue . . .” message when execution is complete.

For a more thorough understanding of an example, place a breakpoint on the first exe-cutable line inside Shared Sub Main(), and “Step Into” or “Step Over” each line of code whilereviewing the call stack, any variables, and console output.

A Few Words Regarding ModulesIf you’re an experienced object-oriented developer, the concept of a module may seem foreign.The Module construct, which cannot be instantiated, is a feature carried over from Visual Basic6.0 (VB6) to facilitate migration of those applications to .NET.

A Module, when compiled, is converted to a NotInheritable class with Shared members.These Shared members are available to your entire application, acting like a global variable.This may not be what you desire. Classes, on the other hand, are not automatically Shared.

We consider creating an EntryPoint class, containing a Shared Sub Main method, to bethe much better practice for creating object-oriented systems with VB.

APPENDIX B ■ RUNNING THE EXAMPLES422

■AA(Of T), 241Abort(), 277-279aborting threads, 277access modifiers, 36-38accessors, 78AcquireReaderLock(), 302AcquireWriterLock(), 302Activator class, 270Add() method, 74, 244, 246Add(Of Integer), 246Add(Of T) method, 246AddHandler statement, 232-233addition (+) operator

composite strings, 184overloading, 121-122

AddressOf operator, 220aliases, assigning to namespaces, 28allocated resources, exceptions, 158-161AllocateDataSlot(), 283, 285AllocateNamedDataSlot method, 283anonymous types, 9, 375-376APIs

LINQ to Objects, 8LINQ to XML, 7

AppDomain.IsFinalizingForUnload, 340AppDomain.UnhandledException, 136AppDomainUnloadException, 136Append() method, 184AppendFormat() method, 184application domains

finding with LINQ, 385-386shared fields and, 81

ApplicationException, 157ApplyRaiseOf method, 224, 226ArgumentException, 205ArgumentOutOfRange exception, 135-136

exception-neutral code and, 145shared constructors and, 141

ArgumentOutOfRangeException, 184array initializers, 7Array.GetLength(), 201ArrayList, boxing, 239arrays, 197-200

covariance, 199, 238declaring, 197-198

jagged arrays, 202-203multidimensional, 200-201

generics, 238multidimensional, 200-203

declaring, 200-201jagged, 202-203mapping to mathematical concepts,

202ParamArray, 73-74range checking, 198ranks, 199

multidimensional arrays, 202RankException, 200

searchability, 200sortability, 200synchronization, 200type convertibility, 198-199

As keyword, 254assemblies, 88-91

cross-language compatibility, 95culture-neutral, 93-94global assembly cache (GAC), 92-94header information, 88-89loading (probing), 94-95managed assemblies, 91management of, 91-92metadata, 95private, 92shared, 92-94versioning, 95viewing manifests, 89-90, 92viewing metadata, 90-91

assembly language, IL (intermediatelanguage), 86-87

asynchronous exceptions, 148, 150asynchronous method calls, 311-315asynchronous processing, IOU pattern,

310, 312AutoResetEvent, 306-307

■Bbackground threads, 280-281

IsBackground property, 315Base Class Library (BCL), 3base class version of methods, calling, 76BeginInvoke(), 311-315BeginInvoke()/EndInvoke() pattern, 315BeginMethod()/EndMethod() pattern, 310BeginProcessData()/EndProcessData()

pattern, 310

423

Index

best practices. See reference-type bestpractices; value-type best practices

binary operators, overloading, 117-118BinarySearch(), 200Boolean operators, overloading, 126-129boxing, 22-23, 52-57

efficiency of, 56-57generics, 239instances of, 55-56synchronizing threads, 295-296value types, 368

Bridge pattern, 230browsing namespaces with Object Browser,

28ByRef arguments, 71-73ByVal arguments, 71

■CC# .NET runtime, 1-2C# 3.0 versus VB 2008, 2-3callbacks

delegates. See delegatesevents. See events

CallDelegates method, 247calling base class version of methods, 76canonical forms

reference-type best practices, 317checklist, 361-362cloneable objects, 320-322, 324-326defaulting to NotInheritable classes,

317-318disposable objects, 334-336finalizers, 337-341, 343-344formattable objects, 326-331immutable reference types, 358, 360NVI pattern, using, 318-320object equality, 344-350ordering objects, 331-332, 334overriding GetHashCode(), 350-353type safety, 353-354, 356-357

value-type best practices, 362-372checklist, 371-372implementing type-safe forms, 368, 371overriding Equals(), 363, 365, 367

carriage return/line feed (CRLF), linetermination, 29

casting reference types, DirectCast andTryCast, 22

Catch blocks, 134-138CERs (constrained execution regions),

148-150, 154chaining delegates, 220-222

iterating through delegate chains, 222-224chaining operations on string builder, 184ChangeType(), 330

checklistsreference types, 361-362value-types, 371-372

class constraints, 254class definition, 35-36

accessibility/access modifiers, 37-38constructors, 36interfaces, 38-39item property indexers, 46, 48MustInherit classes, 42-43MyBase and MyClass keywords, 39-42nested classes, 43, 45-46NotInheritable classes, 42partial classes, 48

Class keyword, 17, 35Class Library project type, 421classes

Activator, 270Array, 238Base Class Library (BCL), 3best practices. See reference-type best

practicesComparer(Of T), 266Convert, 20, 329-330Coordinate, 20-21creating custom exception classes, 155-158CultureAndRegionInfoBuilder, 171-172definitions. See class definitionDimensions, 325EntryPoint, 422EventArgs, 231EventHandler(Of T), 231generic, 241-242generic. See generics, 237GraphCoordinate, 20-21implementing contracts, 107-109

vs. interfaces, 110-113implementing multiple interfaces, 101-102inheritance, 39-42

MustInherit classes, 42-43NotInheritable classes, 42

Interlocked, 148methods of, 285synchronization, 286-290

Iterator, 45LINQ to SQL database/field mapping,

408-411Monitor, 285

versus Mutex, 291Monitor, synchronizing threads, 291-295

boxing, 295-296Pulse() and Wait(), 296-300

MulticastDelegate, 217-218MustInherit, 42-43

■INDEX424

Mutex, 285lock objects, 305-306transition to kernel mode, 286versus Monitor, 291

nested, 43, 45-46non-nested, 43, 45NotInheritable, 42

defaulting to, 317-318overriding methods in derived classes,

75-77partial, 48PlayerUI, 232-233PlayEventArgs, 231QueueProcessor, 274ReaderWriterLock, 301-303ReaderWriterLockSlim, 303-305Regex, 186RuntimeHelpers, 148SafeHandle derived classes, 150-154sealed, NotInheritable methods, 77SpinLock, 290StringBuilder, 184-185StringComparer, 180System.Attribute, 95System.Char, 167System.Delegate, 220System.Exception

constructors, 155, 157-158exception handling, 135inner exceptions, 138, 141

System.Monitor, 200System.Object, 12System.Reflection, 95System.String, 167System.Text.Encoding, 168, 181-183System.Thread, 273Threading.Interlocked, 286ThreadPool. See thread poolWaitHandle, 306-309

WaitOne(), 306-307cleaning up directly held resources, 337CLI (Common Language Infrastructure),

85, 167Clone() method, 167. See also ICloneable

custom attributes, 324-325cloneable objects, reference-type best

practices, 320-326Close() method, 159-160closed types, 240-241code snippets, 421console applications, 421-422CLR (common language runtime), 1-2, 85

assemblies, 88-91cross-language compatibility, 95global assembly cache (GAC), 92-94loading (probing), 94-95managed assemblies, 91

management of, 91-92private, 92shared, 92-94versioning, 95viewing manifests, 89-92viewing metadata, 90-91

callback mechanism. See delegatesCommon Language Infrastructure (CLI)

standard, 85, 167common type system, 3-5entry-point methods, 91-92exception handling, 133. See also

exception handlingcritical finalizers, 150finalizers, 140-141lack of deterministic destruction, 158SafeHandle, 150-151, 153-154

exception-neutral codeasynchronous exceptions, 148, 150CERs (constrained execution regions),

148-150operations, 147

garbage collection, 3IL (intermediate language)

JIT compiling, 87-88VB compiler and, 85-87

impact on VB language, 3internal string representation format, 183managed code, 1metadata, 95performing optimizations at run time, 87-

88JIT compiling, 87-88

CLS (Common Language Specification), 14code

assemblies. See assembliesexception-neutral code, 143exception-safe coding, 133managed code, 1writing exception-neutral

constrained execution regions (CERs),148-150

critical finalizers and SafeHandle, 150-154

rollback behavior, 162-165structure of, 143-148

Collection(Of T), 208-209, 242collections, 203-211

defining collection types, 208-211dictionaries, 208generic, 255-257ICollection, 203-205lists, 206-207synchronization, 205-206System.Collection.ObjectModel, 208-211types that produce collections, 206

colon (:), multiple statements, 29

■INDEX 425

Combine() method, 220, 222, 233Commit() method, 162, 164Common Language Infrastructure (CLI)

standard, 85, 167common language runtime. See CLR

(common language runtime)Common Language Specification (CLS), 14common type system (CTS), 3-5CompareExchange(), 288, 290Comparer(Of T) class, 266CompareTo(), 331-332, 368, 371comparing strings, 180-181comparison operators, overloading, 122, 125-

129compiler, method overloading and, 74CompilerServices namespace, 148complex numbers, references to, 347composite strings, 184Console.WriteLine(), 174-175, 177Const fields, 82constants, enumerations, 16-17constrained execution regions (CERs),

148-150, 154constraints

class, 254generics, 251, 253-255IConvertible, 266New, 254primary, 254structure, 254

constructed types, generics, 240accessibility, 251creating dynamically, 268-270

constructed types. See closed typesconstructors, 36, 49-50

CorePlayer, 232instance, 61-62Shared, 60-61, 141-142System.Exception class, 155-158

Container identifier, 241container types, generic delegates, 245Container(Of T), 241Contains queries (LINQ to Objects), 384Continue, 33contracts, 97, 107, 253

classes, 107-109classes vs. interfaces, 110-113interfaces, 109-110

control flow constructsIf . . . Then . . . Else, 29-30Select . . . Case, 30

controlling execution flow, exceptionhandling, 134

conversion operators, overloading, 117-119,129-130

CType, 130-131conversions, boxing and, 55

Convert class, 20, 329ChangeType(), 330

ConvertAll(Of TOutput)() method, 249Converter(Of T, Of R) delegate, 244Converter(TInput, TOutput) delegate, 245convertible objects, best practices, 329-331converting floating-point values to strings,

171converting types, 19-20

boxing conversions, 22-23Convert class, 20CType, 20-21DirectCast and TryCast, 22explicit conversion, 19-20generics, 248-249, 257-268reference type operators, 23-25widening conversions, 13, 19

Coordinate class, 20-21Copy() method, 167copying objects, cloneable objects best

practices, 320-326CopyTo(), 205CorePlayer constructor, 232Count queries (LINQ to Objects), 381-382covariance, arrays, 199CreateClosedType(Of T)() method, 269CreateInstance(), 270critical finalizers, 148, 150-154CriticalFinalizerObject, 150CRLF (carriage return/line feed), line

termination, 29cross-language compatibility of assemblies,

95CRUD (Create, Read, Update, and Delete),

LINQ to SQLCreate, 411-412Delete, 414-415Read, 413Update, 413-414

CTS (common type system), 3-5CType, 20-21

overloading, 117-119, 130-131culture-neutral assemblies, 93-94CultureAndRegionInfoBuilder, 171-172CultureInfo, 169-172, 327

comparing strings, 180-181custom CultureInfo types, 171-172format strings, 173-174

CurrencyDecimalDigits property, 174CurrencyDecimalSeparator property, 174CurrencySymbol property, 174custom events, 232-233custom exception classes, creating, 155-158custom formatter (ICustomFormatter),

177, 180custom types, string formatting, 175-177

■INDEX426

■Ddata context (LINQ to SQL), 411data types. See typesdatabases, LINQ to SQL. See LINQ to SQLDateTimeFormatInfo, 170, 174DBG, 173, 177declarative mapping, 100declaring. See also defining

arrays, 197-198jagged arrays, 202-203multidimensional, 200-201

delegates, 218-220generic types, 237-238, 240-241interfaces, 98-100, 102-103properties, 78-80string literals, 168-169

Decrement(), Interlocked class, 286deep copies, 320-321default constructors, 36default field values, 84deferred evaluation, LINQ queries, 386-387defining

classes. See class definitionscollection types, 208-211contracts, 107generics, 237-238interfaces, 98-100, 102-103namespaces, 26-27value types. See value type definitions

Delegate keyword, 218Delegate.Combine() method, 233Delegate.Remove() method, 233delegates, 217

chaining, 220-222creating, 218-220events. See eventsgeneric, 244-248iterating through delegate chains, 222-224open-instance, 224-227relaxed, 233-235removing from delegate lists, 220Strategy pattern, 228-229

deleting table records (LINQ to SQL), 414-415deploying

private assemblies, 92shared assemblies, 94

derived classesEventArgs, 231overriding methods in, 75-77

design checklists for value types, 372design patterns

Non-Virtual Interface (NVI), 109Singleton, 109, 242

destroying objectsexception handling, 63finalizers, 62-63

destructor, 337deterministic destruction, 158-161deterministic finalization, 65dictionaries, 208Dimensions class, 325DirectCast, 22directly held resources, cleaning up, 337disassembler (IL DASM), 85-86, 88

boxing and, 56-57viewing

assembly header information, 88-89assembly manifests, 89-90, 92assembly metadata, 90-91

disposable objects, 63-67best practices, 334-336IDisposable interface, 63-65Using keyword, 65-67

Disposable pattern, 336Dispose() method, 63, 65, 158, 160, 162, 164,

215. See also IDisposablefinalization and, 340Using keyword, 65, 67

Distinct queries (LINQ), 374LINQ to XML, 401

DLLsassemblies. See assembliesDLL Hell, 95

Do Until, 32-33Do While, 32-33DoSomeWork method, 229DowngradeFromWriterLock(), 302

■Eearly binding, 3Ecma International, 85efficiency, generics, 238-240embedded expressions, LINQ to XML, 389Employee.ApplyRaiseOf method, 224encapsulation. See propertiesenclosing type, 119encoding, strings and, 181-183EncodingGetByteCount() method, 183EndInvoke(), 311-315EndProcessData(), 274Enter()

Monitor class, 291-296SpinLock class, 290

EntryPoint class, 422entry-point methods, 91-92enumerations, 16-17enumerators, creating, 211-215Environment.HasShutdownStarted, 340equality, 344

identity equality, 344-347overriding GetHashCode(), 350-353overriding Object.Equals(), 347-350

equality operators, 350

■INDEX 427

Equals(), 344, 350-353identity equality, 344-347Object keyword, 58overriding, 347-350, 363-367overriding Object.Equals(), 347-350

Event keyword, 231EventArgs derived class, 231EventHandler(Of T) class, 231events, 229-232

custom, 232-233end, 229, 235raising, 232relaxed delegates, 233-235synchronizing threads, 306-307

EventWaitHandle, transition to kernel mode,286

Excel spreadsheets, creating with LINQ, 403-405

Exception Assistant, 142NullReferenceException was unhandled

dialog, 141TypeInitializationException was

unhandled dialog, 142exception handling, 133-134

destroying objects, 63exception naming conventions and, 155Expert pattern, 133flow control and, 134inner exceptions, 138-142throwing exceptions, 136

exceptions thrown in finalizers, 140-141exceptions thrown in Finally blocks,

139-140exceptions thrown in shared

constructors, 141-142rethrowing, 137-139Throw statements, 136Try statement, 134-136

translating exceptions, 137-139unhandled exceptions in .NET 3.5, 136

exception-neutral code, 143constrained execution regions (CERs),

148-150critical finalizers and SafeHandle, 150-154rollback behavior, 162-165structure of, 143-148

Exception.InnerException property, 138-141exceptions

allocated resources, 158-161ArgumentOutOfRange, 135-136asynchronous, 148, 150custom exception classes, creating,

155-158exception-neutral code. See exception-

neutral codehandling. See exception handlingInvalidCastException, 239-240

InvalidOperationException, 200, 204KeyNotFoundException, 208NotSupportedException, 211NullReferenceException, 136ObjectDisposedException, 335RankException, 200rollback behavior, 162-165SynchronizationLockException

exceptions, 296system-generated exceptions, 136ThreadAbortException, 277-279ThreadInterruptedException, 279unhandled exceptions in .NET 3.5, 136

Exchange(), 288, 290EXE files. See assembliesExit For, 32Exit(), 291-296Expert pattern, 133explicit aliases, assigning to namespaces, 28explicit type conversion, 19-20extension methods, 9, 376-377

Contains, 384creating, 377Min, Max, and Count, 381-382

■Ffields, 80-84

Const, 82default value, 84initialization, 82-84instance fields, 80read only, 79-82shared, 80-81

Finalize(), 3destroying objects, 62-63Object keyword, 58

finalizers, 51, 62-63, 337best practices, 337-344critical, 148-154exceptions thrown in, 140-141versus destructors, 337

Finally blocksexception handling, 135-136, 159-161

exceptions thrown in Finally blocks,139-140

rethrowing exceptions, 137Try blocks, 134

rollback behavior, 164-165ThreadAbortException, 277

finding documents with LINQ, 385-386Finished state, threads, 275floating-point values, converting to strings, 171flow control

exception handling and, 134If . . . Then . . . Else, 29-30Select . . . Case, 30

For . . . Next, 32

■INDEX428

For Each . . . Next, 31-32For Each statement, 211-215

array iteration, 198collections, 206jagged arrays, 203multidimensional arrays, 201multidimensional jagged arrays, 202-203type safety and, 354-357

For loops, array iteration, 201-202foreground threads, 280-281format providers, 170-171format specifiers, strings, 169

comparing strings, 180-181Console.WriteLine(), 174-175CultureInfo, 169-172custom types, 175, 177format strings, 173-174ICustomFormatter, 177, 180IFormattable, 169-171Object.ToString(), 169-171String.Format(), 174-175

formattable objects, best practices, 326-329formatting strings. See format specifiers,

stringsFriend, 37Friend to Structure, 37From queries (LINQ), 374

LINQ to XML, 399-400From queries (LINQ to Objects), 379fully (strongly) named assemblies, 91Func type (LINQ), 378function pointers. See delegatesfunctions

CType, 20-21explicit type conversion, 19-20inline (LINQ), 378-379PrintCoordinates, 20-21

■GGAC (global assembly cache), 92-94gacutil.exe, 94garbage collector (GC), 3, 17, 62

finalizer performance impact on, 340-341reference types, 17-18

GC. See garbage collectorGC.SuppressFinalize(), 340GenerateNumbers(), 211generic comparer, 256generics, 237-238

closed types, 240-241constraints, 251-255efficiency, 238-240interfaces

using generic interfaces, 105-106using generic methods in interfaces,

106-107NonGeneric method, 240

open types, 240-241operators, 257-259, 261-268overloaded types, 241, 244system collections, 255-257type declaration, 237-238

open and closed types, 240-241type definitions and constructed types, 240

accessibility, 251classes and structures, 241-242creating constructed types dynamically,

268-270delegates, 244-248interfaces, 242methods, 243-245nullable types, 249-250type conversion, 248-249, 257-268

type parameters, 237type placeholder naming conventions, 240type safety, 238-240

genre data (LINQ to XML), 389-392adding elements to documents, 390-391creating documents, 389-390saving documents, 392

Get accessors, 78Get(), multidimensional arrays, 202GetEnumerator(), 212, 215GetFormat(), 177, 327-329GetHashCode(), 273

Object keyword, 58overriding, 350-353

GetInvocationList method, 222, 224GetLength(), 202GetLowerBound(), 202GetMinThreads(), 310GetNamedDataSlot(), 285GetString() method, 183GetType method, Object keyword, 57GetUpperBound(), 202global assembly cache (GAC), 92-94globalization, strings, 169

comparing strings, 180-181Console.WriteLine(), 174-175CultureInfo, 169-172format strings, 173-174ICustomFormatter, 177, 180IFormattable, 169-171Object.ToString(), 169-171string formatting in custom types, 175-177String.Format(), 174-175

GraphCoordinate class, 20-21grouping and searching strings, 187-191

■Hhalting threads, 279-280Handle property, 309handling exceptions. See exception handlingheader information in assemblies, 88-89

■INDEX 429

Hello World! program, 5hiding interface members, 102-103

■IIAsyncResult interface, 313ICloneable, 58, 167

reference types, 320-321value types, 362

ICollectionsynchronization

arrays, 200collections, 205

versus ICollection(Of T), 203-205ICollection(Of T), 208IComparable, 122, 125-126, 256

arrays, 200CompareTo(), 331-332, 368, 371System.Int32 and, 105

IComparer, 180, 256, 266IConvertible, 266

System.Int32 and, 105ToType(), 330

identity equality, 344-347IDictionary (Of TKey, TValue) interface, 208IDisposable, 63-65, 158, 162, 215, 334

destructor code and, 337Disposable pattern and, 336implementing, 335value types, 362WaitHandle type, 309

IEnumerablecollection types, 203iteration, 211-215System.Array, 198

IEnumerable(Of T), 242defining collection types, 209-210iteration, 211-215collection types, 203

IEnumeratoriteration, 211-215type safety and, 354, 356

IEnumerator(Of T)defining collection types, 209-210iteration, 211-215

IEquatable(Of T), 350, 365If . . . Then . . . Else, 29-30IFormatProvider, 170-171

GetFormat(), 177replacement strings and, 175

IFormattable, 169-171, 175, 177, 327System.Int32 and, 105ToString method, 175ToString(), 328

IL (intermediate language), 1-2as assembly language, 86-87JIT compiling, 87-88VB compiler and, 85-87

IL Disassembler (IL DASM), 85-86, 88boxing and, 56-57viewing

assembly header information, 88-89assembly manifests, 89-90, 92assembly metadata, 90-91

IList interface, 200, 206-207IList(Of T) interface, 206-207, 239immediate evaluation, LINQ queries, 388-389immutable reference types, 358-360implementing

contractsclasses, 107-109classes vs. interfaces, 110-113interfaces, 109-110

ICloneable interface, 321IDisposable interface, 335interfaces

in structures, 103-105multiple interfaces, 101-102reference types, 97-98value types, 105

Implements, 39, 100IMPLEMENTS relationships, modeling, 113implicitly typed local variables, 6Imports statement, 27Increment(), 286Index(), 200indexers, 46-48IndexOf() method, 185IndexOutOfRangeException, 198inheritance, 39-42

interfaces, 101MustInherit classes, 42-43NotInheritable classes, 42overridden methods, 77

initialization of fields, 82-84initializer expressions, 61inline functions (LINQ), 8, 378-379inner exceptions, 138-142Insert() method, 184instance constructors, 36, 61-62instance fields, 80instance methods, 70-71IntelliSense, 9interfaces, 38-39, 51, 97

Class Library project type and, 421components of, 100contracts, 253DateTimeFormatInfo, 170, 174defining, 98-100

hiding members, 102-103generic, 242

using generic interfaces, 105-106using generic methods in interfaces,

106-107IAsyncResult, 313

■INDEX430

ICloneable, 58, 167, 362reference types, 320-321

ICollectionsynchronization, 200, 205versus ICollection(Of T), 203-205

IComparable, 122, 125-126, 256arrays, 200CompareTo(), 331-332, 368, 371System.Int32 and, 105

IComparer, 256, 266IConvertible

System.Int32 and, 105ToType(), 330

ICustomFormatter, 177, 180IDictionary (Of TKey, TValue), 208IDisposable, 63-65, 158, 162, 215, 334

destructor code and, 337Disposable pattern and, 336implementing, 335value types, 362

IEnumerablecollection types, 203iteration, 211-215System.Array, 198

IEnumerable(Of T), 242collection types, 203defining collection types, 209-210iteration, 211-215

IEnumeratoriteration, 211-215type safety and, 354-356

IEnumerator(Of T)defining collection types, 209-210iteration, 211-215

IEquatable(Of T), 350, 365IFormatProvider, 170-171

GetFormat(), 177replacement strings and, 175

IFormattable, 175, 177, 327System.Int32 and, 105ToString method, 175, 328

IList, 200, 206-207IList(Of T), 206-207, 239implementing

contracts, 109-113multiple interfaces, 101-102reference types, 97-98Strategy pattern, 228in structures, 103-105value types, 105

inheritance, 101IShape, 253methods and, 100NumberFormatInfo, 170-171, 174polymorphism, 114-115type-safe forms of interface members,

368, 371

Interlocked class, 148methods of, 285synchronization, 286-290

intermediate language (IL), 1-2as assembly language, 86-87JIT compiling, 87-88VB compiler and, 85-87

intern pool, 168Interrupt(), 275, 279IntToLongConverter method, 244, 246InvalidCastException, 239-240, 330InvalidOperationException, 200, 204invocation lists, 217

GetInvocationList method, 222, 224removing delegates, 220

Invoke method, 311IOException, 159IOU pattern, 310, 312Is operator

IsNot and, 25TypeOf keyword and, 23-24

is-a relationships, modeling, 113IsBackground property, 315IShape interface, 253IsInvalid property, 154IsNot operator, 25ISomeInterface, 238-239IsReadOnly property, 204iteration, 211-215

Continue, 33Do While and Do Until, 32-33For . . . Next, 32For Each . . . Next, 31-32For Each statement, 211-215modifying or passing iterator variables to

methods, 31multidimensional arrays, 201-202multidimensional jagged arrays, 202-203through delegate chains, 222-224

Iterator class, 45

■Jjagged arrays (multidimensional), 202-203JIT (just-in-time) compiler, 1-2, 87-88Join(), 275, 280

LINQ, 375, 402-403

■Kkernel

kernel mode objects, 306transitions to kernel mode, avoiding via

Threading.Interlocked class, 286KeyNotFoundException, 208keywords

As, 254ByRef, 72Class, 17, 35

■INDEX 431

Const, 82Delegate, 218DirectCast, 22Event, 231Implements, 39Me, 50-51

instance methods and, 71locking objects, 294-295unboxing, 57

MustInherit, 42-43MyBase, 39-40MyClass, 40-42Narrowing, 131New, 58-59, 245NotInheritable, 42Object, 12, 57-58Of, 237ParamArray, 73Partial, 48Structure, 15, 35SyncLock, 200, 205-206, 293, 296TryCast, 22TypeOf, 21, 23-24Using, 65, 67, 336

exception handling and, 161-162value, 233Widening, 131

■LLambda expressions, 8, 378-379

Count, 382Language-Integrated Query. See LINQLastIndexOf() method, 185, 200LastIndexOfAny() method, 185late binding, 2-3LDML (Locale Data Markup Language) file,

171Let queries (LINQ to Objects), 383line termination, 29LINQ (Language-Integrated Query), 373-379

extension methods, 376-377Contains, 384creating, 377Min, Max, and Count, 381-382

Lambda expressions, 378-379Count, 382

query comprehensions, 373-374syntax, 374-375type inference, 375-376

LINQ to Objects, 8, 379-389finding documents, 385-386queries, 379-385

Contains, 384From, 379Let, 383Min, Max, and Count, 381-382

Order By, 380-381subqueries, 384-385Where, 380

query evaluation, 386-389LINQ to SQL, 405-416

Create, Read, Update, and Delete (CRUD)Create, 411-412Delete, 414-415Read, 413Update, 413-414

creating databases/tables, 406-408data context, 411database operations, 411-416

adding data to tables, 411-412deleting table records, 414-415reading tables, 413reviewing generated SQL, 415-416updating table records, 413-414

mapping tables to mapping/entity classesGenre class, 408-409Musician class, 410-411

LINQ to XML, 7, 389-405creating Excel spreadsheets, 403-405genre data, 389-392

adding elements to documents, 390-391creating documents, 389-390saving documents, 392

musician data, 393adding elements to documents, 394-395adding elements to specific locations,

395-397creating documents, 393saving documents, 398-399

queries, 399-403Distinct, 401From, 399-400Join, 402-403Select, 400-401Where, 401-402

List(Of T), 242lists, 206-207ListSwap() method, 147-148, 150loading assemblies (probing), 94-95Locale Data Markup Language (LDML) file,

171locks. See also synchronizing threads

locking objects, 300-306Mutex, 305-306ReaderWriterLock, 301-303ReaderWriterLockSlim, 303-305

Me keyword, 294-295spin locks, 288-290SpinLockManager, 290, 293SynchronizationLockException

exceptions, 296SyncLock keyword, 293, 296

■INDEX432

loopingContinue, 33Do While and Do Until, 32-33For . . . Next, 32For Each . . . Next, 31-32

■MMain() method, 5, 71, 244-245MakeGenericType(), 269-270managed applications, 85managed assemblies, 91managed code, 1managed threads, 271, 275-277manifests, assemblies, 89-90, 92ManualResetEvent, 306-307mapping multidimensional arrays to

mathematical concepts, 202Match() method, 187, 194MatchEvaluator delegate, 192-193Max queries (LINQ to Objects), 381-382Me, 50-51

instance methods and, 71locking objects, 294-295unboxing, 57

Me.New(), 36-37MemberwiseClone(), 321

Object keyword, 57metadata, 95

assemblies, 90-91reflection, 95

method overloading, 74methods, 69. See also specific methods

Add, parameter arrays, 74base class version of, calling, 76Clone, 324-325Console.WriteLine(), 177Dispose(), 63-65

Using keyword, 65-67EncodingGetByteCount(), 183extension methods, 9, 376-377

Contains, 384creating, 377Min, Max, and Count, 381-382

field initialization, 84Finalize(), 62-63generic, 243-245

using in interfaces, 106-107GetString(), 183instance, 70-71interfaces and, 100Main, 71MustOverride, 74-77naming, 98NonGeneric, 240Object keyword, 57-58overloading, 74

Overridable, 74-77cautions when using, 77NotInheritable classes, 317NotInheritable modifier, 77Overrides and Shadows modifiers, 75-77

parameters, 71-74ByRef arguments, 71-73ByVal arguments, 71ParamArray keyword, 73-74

PassByRef, 72-73PassByValue, 72Public Shared Operator, 118shared, 69-70SomeFunction, 70SomeOperation, 71String.Compare(), 180String.Intern(), 169StringComparer.Create(), 181ToString(), 169-170type-safe forms of derive methods, 368,

371versus indexers, 46

Microsoft Intermediate Language (MSIL)Assembler, 2

Min queries (LINQ to Objects), 381-382mirror overloads, 120modifying iterator variables, 31Module construct, 422Module1.vb file, 421modules, 95, 422Monitor class, 285

synchronizing threads, 291-295boxing, 295-296Pulse() and Wait(), 296-300

versus Mutex, 291Wait(), 275

MoveNext(), 215MulticastDelegate class, 217-218multidimensional arrays, 200-203

declaring, 200-201jagged, 202-203mapping to mathematical concepts, 202

multithreading. See threadingmusician data (LINQ to XML), 393

adding elements to documents, 394-395adding elements to specific locations, 395-

397creating documents, 393saving documents, 398-399

MustInherit classes, 42-43MustOverride method, 74-77mutating operands, 119Mutex class, 285

lock objects, 305-306transition to kernel mode, 286versus Monitor, 291

■INDEX 433

My namespace, 5My.Application.UnhandledException, 136MyBase identifier, 76MyBase keyword, 39-40MyBase.New(), 36-37MyClass keyword, 40-42MyCollection(Of Integer), 238MyCollection(Of Long), 238MyCollection(Of T), 237MyContainer(Of Integer), 244MyContainer(Of T), 244

■Nnamespaces, 25-28

CompilerServices, 148defining, 26-27My, 5Object Browser, 28System, 13-14System.Activator, 270System.Collection.ObjectModel, 208-211System.Collections, 239, 255System.Globalization, 171System.Object, 57-58System.Threading, 148System.Type, 269using, 27-28

namingassemblies, 91cultures, 171for exceptions, 155generic type placeholders, 240methods, 98

narrowing conversions, 13, 128-131nested classes, 43-46.NET 3.5, unhandled exceptions, 136.NET Framework, threading, 271-272.NET runtime, 1-2. See also CLR (common

language runtime)New constraint, 254New constructor, 17new features in VB 2008, 5-10

anonymous types, 9array initializers, 7extension methods, 9implicitly typed local variables, 6IntelliSense, 9lambda expressions (inline functions), 8LINQ to Objects, 8LINQ to XML, 7nullable types enhancement, 9object initializers, 6Option Infer, 10query comprehensions, 6relaxed delegates enhancement, 10

New, 58-59, 245non-nested classes, 43-45

Non-Virtual Interface (NVI) pattern, 109,318-320

Collection(Of T), 208nondeterministic destruction, 65NonGeneric method, 240Nothing, default field values, 84NotInheritable classes, 42

defaulting to, 317-318NotInheritable methods, 77NotOverridable modifier, 77NotSupportedException, 211nullable types, 249-250

enhancement in VB 2008, 9generics, 249-250

NullReferenceException, 136, 232NumberFormatInfo, 170-171, 174NVI (Non-Virtual Interface) pattern, 109,

318-320Collection(Of T), 208

■OObject, 12, 57-58Object Browser, 28object initializers, 6Object.Equals(), 344, 350-353

identity equality, 344-347overriding, 347-350overriding Object.Equals(), 347-350

Object.ToString(), 169-171format strings, 173

ObjectDisposedException, 335objects. See also reference types

boxing objects, 52cloning, reference-type best practices,

320-326 . See also ICloneableconvertible, 329-331creating, 58-62

instance constructors, 61-62New keyword, 58-59Shared constructor, 60-61

CultureInfo, 327destroying, 62-63disposable, 63-67

best practices, 334-336IDisposable interface, 63-65Using keyword, 65-67

equality, 344identity equality, 344-347overriding GetHashCode(), 350-353overriding Object.Equals(), 347-350

fields. See fieldsFinalize destructor, 3finalizers, 337-344formattable, reference-type best practices,

326-329kernel mode objects, 306LINQ to Objects, 8

■INDEX434

locking, 300-306Mutex, 305-306ReaderWriterLock, 301-303ReaderWriterLockSlim, 303-305

locking. See locking objectsordering, best practices, 331-334properties. See propertiesSystem.Object namespace, 57-58System.Thread, 272thread-hot, 338Timer, 315-316versus values, 18Win32 synchronization, 307-309

Of keyword, 237OnOPENBRACKETeventCLOSEBRACKET

method, 232OnPlay() method, 232open types, 240-241open-instance delegates, 224-227operands, mutating, 119operations, creating exception-neutral code,

147operator overloading, 117

addition (+) operator, 121-122comparison operators, 122, 125-126

Boolean, 126-129conversion operators, 129-130

CType, 130-131CType conversion operator, 130-131disadvantages, 117mirror overloads, 120mutating operands, 119operators that can be overloaded, 117-118parameter order, 120types and formats of overloaded

operators, 118-119unary, binary, and conversion operators,

117-118operators

AddressOf, 220equality, 350generic types, 257-268overloading. See operator overloadingreference types, 23-25

Option Explicit, 12-13Option Infer, 10Option Strict, 13Option Strict Off, 126-128Order By

LINQ, 375LINQ to Objects, 380-381

order of execution in multithreadedprograms, 283

ordering objects, 331-334OutOfMemoryException, 148

CERs (constrained execution regions), 150overloaded instance constructors, 36

overloaded types, 241, 244overloading methods, 74overloading operators. See operator

overloadingOverloads modifier, 102-103Overridable method, 74-77, 317

cautions when using, 77NotInheritable modifier, 77Overrides and Shadows modifiers, 75-77

Overrides modifier, 75-77overriding

Equals(), 363-367GetHashCode(), 350-353Object.Equals(), 347-350

■PP/Invoke layer, 307-308ParamArray, 73-74parameter order, overloaded operators, 120parameters of methods, 71-74

ByRef arguments, 71-73ByVal arguments, 71ParamArray, 73-74

partial classes, 48Partial keyword, 48partially named assemblies, 91PassByRef method, 72-73PassByValue method, 72passing variables

by reference (ByRef), 71-73variable numbers of parameters

(ParamArray), 73-74patterns

BeginInvoke()/EndInvoke(), 315BeginProcessData()/EndProcessData(), 310Collection(Of T), 208Disposable, 336IOU, 310, 312Non-Virtual Interface (NVI), 208ordering objects best practices, 331-334

placeholders in strings, 175PlayerUI class, 232-233PlayEvent identifier, 231PlayEventArgs class, 231pointers, 344polymorphism, interfaces, 114-115PrepareConstrainedRegions() method, 148primary constraints, 254PrintCoordinates function, 20-21Private, 37private assemblies, 92probing, 94-95ProcessResults type, 219properties, 77-80

accessors, 78declaring, 78-80indexers, 46, 48

■INDEX 435

read-only, write-only, and read-write, 79-80value variable, 78

Protected, 37-38Protected Friend, 37-38Protected Overridable method, 232Public, 37-38Public access modifier, 36Public Shared Operator methods, 118-119.

See also operator overloadingpublish-subscribe design pattern, 233publish-subscribe usage pattern, 230Pulse(), 296-300

■Qqueries

LINQ to Objects, 379-385Contains, 384From, 379Let, 383Min, Max, and Count, 381-382Order By, 380-381query evaluation, 386-389subqueries, 384-385Where, 380

LINQ to SQL, Create, Read, Update, andDelete (CRUD), 411-415

LINQ to XML, 399-403Distinct, 401From, 399-400Join, 402-403Select, 400-401Where, 401-402

query comprehensions, 6, 373-374query expressions, 6query operators, 6Queue.Clear(), 204QueueProcessor class, 274QueueUserWorkItem(), 310

■RR identifier, 242RaiseEvent statement, 233raising events, 232RankException, 200read-only fields, 81-82read-only properties, 79-80read-write properties, 79-80ReaderWriterLock, 301-303ReaderWriterLockSlim, 303, 305ReadOnlyCollection(Of T), 211real arrays versus indexers, 48reference types, 4-5, 17-18

arrays. See arraysinterfaces, 97-98New keyword, 59operators, 23-25versus value types, 18

reference-type best practices, 317checklist, 361-362cloneable objects, 320-326defaulting to NotInheritable classes,

317-318disposable objects, 334-336finalizers, 337-344formattable objects, 326-331immutable reference types, 358-360NVI pattern, using, 318-320object equality, 344

identity equality, 344-347overriding Object.Equals(), 347-350

ordering objects, 331-334overriding GetHashCode(), 350-353type safety, 353-357

reflection, 95Regex class, 186Regex.Replace method, 191-194RegexOptions type, 194-195RegionInfo, 171Register() method, 172registering custom CultureInfo types,

171-172regular expressions

searching strings, 185grouping and, 187-191Regex class, 186-187Regex.Replace method, 191-194RegexOptions type, 194-195

substitutions, 193relaxed delegates

enhancement in VB 2008, 10events, 233-235

ReleaseHandle() method, 154ReleaseMutex(), 305ReleaseReaderLock(), 302ReliabilityContractAttribute (ListSwap()

method), 150Remove() method, 221-222, 233RemoveAll() method, 221-222RemoveHandler statement, 232-233Replace() method, 187, 194replacing text for searching strings, 191-194Reset(), 215ResetAbort(), 277, 279resources

allocated, exceptions, 158-161directly held, cleaning up, 337unmanaged, 341VB

articles, 418books, 417-418web sites, 418-419

Resume(), 280, 286rethrowing exceptions, 137-139RndThreadFunc method, 287

■INDEX436

rollback behavior, 162-165Rollback() method, 162rude thread aborts, 277running console applications, 422Running state, threads, 275runtime

common language runtime. See CLR(common language runtime)

.NET runtime, 1-2RuntimeHelpers class, 148

■Ssafe points, 280SafeHandle, 150-154SafeHandle-derived types, 309safety, types

reference-types, 353-357value-types, 368, 371

saving LINQ to XML documents, 392, 398-399sealing classes, NotInheritable methods, 77searching arrays, 200searching strings with regular expressions,

185grouping and, 187-191Regex class, 186-187Regex.Replace method, 191-194RegexOptions type, 194-195

Select (LINQ), 374Select . . . Case, 30Select queries, LINQ to XML, 400-401semantics, operator overloading and, 117Semaphore, transition to kernel mode, 286SerializableAttribute, 155Set accessors, 78Set(), multidimensional arrays, 202SetMinThreads(), 310Shadows modifier, 75-77shallow copies, 320-321shared assemblies, 92-94Shared constructor, 60-61shared constructors, exceptions thrown in,

141-142shared fields, 80-81shared methods, 69-70sharing assemblies across multiple

languages, 95Shutdown method, 300shutting down threads, 300

rude thread aborts, 277Singleton pattern, 109, 242Sleep(), 275, 279, 286, 288SomeFunction method, 70SomeOperation method, 71sorting

arrays, 200objects, 331-334

SortStrategy delegate signature, 229

spin locks, 288-290SpinLockManager, 290, 293SQL. See LINQ to SQLStack.Clear(), 204StackOverflowException, 148starting threads, 272-274StartsWith() method, 185state, threads, 275-277statements, 29StaticCompute method, 222Strategy pattern

delegates and, 228-229generics, 249

StreamWriter, 290string literals, declaring, 168-169String.Clone() implementation, 324String.Compare() method, 180String.Format(), 174-177String.Intern() method, 169StringBuilder class, 184-185StringBuilder.AppendFormat(), 177StringComparer class, 180StringComparer.Create() method, 181StringComparison enumeration, 180strings, 167-168

comparing, 180-181composite, 184converting floating-point values to, 171DateTimeFormatInfo, 170, 174DBG, 173, 177format specifiers and globalization, 169

comparing strings, 180-181Console.WriteLine(), 174-175CultureInfo, 169-172custom types, 175-177format strings, 173-174ICustomFormatter, 177, 180IFormattable, 169-171Object.ToString(), 169-171String.Format(), 174-175

ICustomFormatter, 177, 180IFormatProvider, 170-171NumberFormatInfo, 171NumberFormatInfo interface, 170, 174from outside sources, working with,

181-183placeholders, 175searching with regular expressions, 185

grouping and, 187-191Regex class, 186-187Regex.Replace method, 191-194RegexOptions type, 194-195

ToString() method, 169-170strong typing, 11-13strongly (fully) named assemblies, 91structure constraints, 254Structure keyword, 15, 35

■INDEX 437

structuresClass Library project type and, 421generic, 241-242implementing interfaces, 103-105

SubmitWorkItem(), 300subqueries (LINQ to Objects), 384-385Suspend(), 277, 280, 286Suspended state, threads, 277SuspendRequested state, threads, 277sync events, 306synchronization

arrays, 200collections, 205-206

Synchronized(), 206synchronizing threads, 285-286

events, 306-307Interlocked class, 286-290kernel mode objects, 306locking objects, 300-306

Mutex, 305-306ReaderWriterLock, 301-303ReaderWriterLockSlim, 303-305

Monitor class, 291-295boxing, 295-296Pulse() and Wait(), 296-300

transitions to kernel mode, 286Win32 synchronization objects and

WaitHandle class, 307-309SyncLock keyword, 200, 205-206, 293, 296syntax

class definition. See class definitioncontrol flow constructs

If . . . Then . . . Else, 29-30Select . . . Case, 30

enumerations, 16-17iteration and looping

Continue, 33Do While and Do Until, 32-33For . . . Next, 32For Each . . . Next, 31-32

namespaces, 25-28defining, 26-27Object Browser, 28using, 27-28

reference types, 18statements, 29types, 11

converting, 19-25reference types, 17-18strong typing, 11-13type categories, 13-14value types, 14-17

value type definition. See value typedefinition

sysglobl.dll assembly, 172System, built-in types, 13-14system-generated exceptions, 136

System.Activator, 270System.Array, 197, 202System.Attribute, 95System.Char, 167System.Collections, 239, 255System.Collections.ObjectModel, 208-211System.Delegate, 220System.Exception

constructors, 155-158exception handling, 135inner exceptions, 138, 141

System.Globalization, 171System.Int32 value type, 105System.Int32.MaxValue, 184System.Monitor, 200System.Object, 12, 57-58, 197System.Reflection, 95System.String, 167

ICloneable.Clone method, 324System.Text.Encoding, 168, 181-183System.Thread, 272-273System.Threading, 148System.Type, 269System.TypeInitializationException, 141-142

■TT identifier, 241tables, LINQ to SQL . See LINQ to SQLterminating threads, 277-279TestForEquality(), 345-346thread pool, 306-310

asynchronous method calls, 311-315IOU pattern, 310-312timers, 315-316

thread-hot objects, 338thread-local storage, 281-285Thread.Abort(), 277-279Thread.AllocateDataSlot(), 283Thread.AllocateNamedDataSlot method, 283Thread.Interrupt(), 275, 279Thread.Join(), 275, 280Thread.Priority property, 274Thread.ResetAbort(), 277, 279Thread.Resume(), 280, 286Thread.Sleep(), 275, 279, 286, 288Thread.Suspend(), 277, 280, 286ThreadAbortException, 136, 148, 277-279ThreadFunc method, 273threading, 271

managed threads, 271.NET Framework, 271-272order of execution in multithreaded

programs, 283primary threads, 271worker threads, 271

Threading.Interlocked class, 286ThreadInterruptedException, 275, 279

■INDEX438

ThreadPool class. See thread poolthreads

background, 280-281, 315foreground, 280-281halting and waking, 279-280rude thread aborts, 277safe points, 280shutting down, 300starting, 272-274states, 275-277synchronizing, 285-286

events, 306-307Interlocked class, 286-290kernel mode objects, 306locking objects, 300-306Monitor class, 291, 293-300transitions to kernel mode, 286Win32 synchronization objects and

WaitHandle class, 307-309terminating, 277-279ThreadPool class. See thread poolwaiting for threads to exit, 280

ThreadStart delegate, 272-273ThreadState enumeration, 275ThreadStaticAttribute attribute, 281Throw statements, 136

exception-neutral code and, 143rethrowing exceptions, 137-139throwing exceptions, 136

throwing exceptions, 136exceptions thrown in Finally blocks,

139-140rethrowing, 137-139Throw statements, 136

timers, 315-316TInput placeholder identifier, 245TLSClass, 282TLSFieldClass, 282ToString(), 169-170, 326-329

Object keyword, 58String.Format(), 175

ToType(), 330TOutput placeholder identifier, 245transitions to kernel mode, avoiding via

Threading.Interlocked class, 286translating exceptions, 137-139Try statements

exception handling, 134-136, 159-161exception-neutral code and, 143-146

Try/Finally blocksdisposable objects, 65iteration, 215Using statements, 67

TryCast, 22type arguments, 105-106type conversion, 248-249, 257-268type inference (LINQ), 375-376

type parameters, 105-106, 237type safety

reference-types, 353-357value-types, 368, 371

TypeConverter, 331TypeInitializationException, 141-142, 155TypeOf, 21, 23-24types, 11

anonymous types, 9arrays. See arrayscategories, 13-14closed, 240-241collections. See collectionscommon type system (CTS), 3constructed, generics, 240, 251, 268-270converting, 19-20

boxing conversions, 22-23Convert class, 20CType, 20-21DirectCast and TryCast, 22explicit conversion, 19-20reference type operators, 23-25widening conversions, 13, 19

custom CultureInfo types, 171-172custom types, string formatting, 175, 177enclosing type, 119Func (LINQ), 378generic

accessibility of types, 251classes and structures, 241-242collections, 255-257constraints, 251-255creating constructed types dynamically,

268-270declaring, 237-240delegates, 244-248interfaces, 242methods, 243-245nullable types, 249-250type conversion, 248-249, 257-268type definitions and constructed types,

240type placeholder naming conventions,

240type safety, 238-240

ISomeInterface, 238-239nullable, 249-250

enhancement in VB 2008, 9open, 240-241overloaded, 241, 244ProcessResults, 219reference types, 1-5, 17-18

New keyword, 59versus value types, 18

reference-type best practices, 317checklist, 361-362cloneable objects, 320-322, 324-326

■INDEX 439

convertible objects, 329-331defaulting to NotInheritable classes,

317-318disposable objects, 334-336finalizers, 337-344formattable objects, 326-329immutable reference types, 358-360NVI pattern, using, 318-320object equality, 344-350ordering objects, 331-334overriding GetHashCode(), 350-353type safety, 353-357

SafeHandle-derived types, 309strong typing, 11-13value types, 1-5, 14-16

enumerations, 16-17New keyword, 58versus reference types, 18

value-type best practices, 362-372checklist, 371-372implementing type-safe forms, 368, 371overriding Equals(), 363, 365, 367

■Uunary operators, overloading, 117-118unboxing, 52-57

efficiency of, 56-57generics, 239

undeclared variables, 12unhandled exceptions in .NET 3.5, 136UnhandledExceptionEventArgs, 136Unicode character arrays, 181-183Unicode UTF-16 character arrays, 181unmanaged resources, 341unsafe code in C# 3.0, 2Unstarted state, threads, 275untyped variables, 12updating table records (LINQ to SQL), 413-

414UpgradeToWriterLock(), 302user-defined value types, 15Using keyword, 65, 67, 336

exception handling, 161-162utilities

gacutil.exe, 94IL Disassembler. See IL Disassembler (IL

DASM)

■Vvalue keyword, 233value type definitions, 48-51

constructors, 49-50definitions. See value type definitionsfinalizers, 51interfaces, 51Me, 50-51

value types, 4-5, 14-16boxing/unboxing, 52-57design checklist, 372enumerations, 16-17implementing interfaces, 105New keyword, 58versus reference types, 18

value variable, 78value-type best practices, 362-372

checklist, 371-372implementing type-safe forms, 368, 371overriding Equals(), 363-367

valuesconverting floating-point values to strings,

171versus objects, 18

variables. See also typesimplicitly typed local variables, 6iterator variables, 31Option Explicit, 12-13Option Strict, 13passing

by reference (ByRef), 71-73variable numbers of parameters

(ParamArray), 73-74reference, equality between, 344-345strong typing, 11-13undeclared, 12untyped, 12

VB 2008CLR garbage collection, 3common type system, 3-5Hello World! program, 5new features, 5-10

anonymous types, 9array initializers, 7extension methods, 9implicitly typed local variables, 6IntelliSense, 9lambda expressions (inline functions), 8LINQ to Objects, 8LINQ to XML, 7nullable types enhancement, 9object initializers, 6Option Infer, 10query comprehensions, 6relaxed delegates enhancement, 10

versusC# 3.0, 2-3VB6, 3

VB 2008.NET runtime, 1-2VB compiler, 85-87versioning assemblies, 95

■INDEX440

■WWaitAll(), 307WaitAny(), 307WaitHandle class, 306-309waiting (threads), 280, 306. See also Monitor

classavoiding race conditions, 285EventWaitHandle, 286Monitor.Wait(), 275, 296-298, 300reentrant wait mechanisms, 290Thread.Join(), 275, 277, 280transition to kernel mode, 286WaitHandle class, 306-309waiting for exit, 280WaitSleepJoin state, 275-277

WaitOne(), 305-306WaitSleepJoin state, threads, 275waking threads, 279-280Where (LINQ), 375Where queries

LINQ to Objects, 380LINQ to XML, 401-402

widening conversions, 13, 19, 129-131Win32 functions, 153Win32 Synchronization objects, 307-309Win32Heap example

modified, 341, 343with finalizer, 338-340

write-only properties, 79-80WriteLine(), 174-175writing exception-neutral code, 143

constrained execution regions (CERs),148-150

critical finalizers and SafeHandle, 150-154rollback behavior, 162-165structure of, 143-148

writing exception-safe code, 133

■XXCopy deployment, 92XML

axis properties, 390LINQ to XML. See LINQ to XML

■INDEX 441