Interfaces and Collections

Chapter - 6

Objectives
C# C# C# C# Interface basic concepts How to implement Interfaces in C#? Difference between Interfaces and Abstract base Classes Interface References: 'is', 'as', etc. Interfaces as Parameters Interfaces and Polymorphism Building Customized Types
IConvertible, IEnumerator, ICloneable, and IComparable, Interfaces

System.Collections Interface
ArrayList, Hashtable, Queue, SortedList, and Stack
2

Why Interfaces?
C# C# C# C#

They're great for putting together plug-n-play like architectures where components can be interchanged at will (example follows). Since all interchangeable components implement the same interface, they can be used without any extra programming. The interface forces each component to expose specific public members that will be used in a certain way.
3

Real World Example

C# C# C# C#
USB

Interface1 Interface2

Interface3

Interface Basic Concepts

C# C# C# C# Definition: An interface is nothing more than a named collection of semantically related abstract members Interface is to achieve polymorphism in another way Interfaces can have static members, nested types, and abstract, virtual members, properties, and events COM programmers lived only with interfaces, as the client can communicate only through interface pointers with COM classes (not through object references) Interfaces do not specify a base class (not even System.Object), and contain members do not take access modifiers. Interfaces do not implement any methods
5

Contd..
C# C# C# C#

Syntax: interface interfaceName { member declarations; } Here, interface is the keyword Eg: interface show { void display(); } Interface can also declare properties & events Eg: interface Ex1 { int Aproperty { get; } // behavior as a read-only property event SomEevent changed; void Display(); } Accessibility of an interface can be controlled by modifiers public, private, internal & protected
6

Extending an Interface
C# C# C# C#
Interface extension an interface can be subinterfaced from other interfaces. New subinterface will inherit all the members of the superinterface Eg1: interface Addition { int Add(int x, int y); } interface Compute:Addition { int sub(int x, int y); } Eg2: interface I1 { . } interface I2 { . } interface I3: I1,I2 // multiple inheritance { . } Subinterfaces cannot define the method declared in the superinterfaces. An interface cannot extend the classes.
7

Implementing an Interface
C# C# C# C#
A class that implements an interface can explicitly implement a member of that interface. i.e., interfaces are used as supeclasses whose properties are inherited by classes. Interfaces may be implemented by classes and structures
public interface ISomeInterface { // Members.. } public class SomeClass : ISomeInterface { // implementation details of the interface } public class AnotherClass : BaseClass, ISomeInterface { // derives from BaseClass and implents the interface }

Example
C# C# C# C#
// program to illustrate implentation of multiple interface Using System; interface Addition { int Add(); } Interface Multiplication { int mul(); }

Public computation (int x, int y) // constructor { this.x = x; this.y = y; } Public int Add ( ) { return (x+y); } Public int Mul ( ) { return (x*y); } }
9

Example
C# C# C# C#
Class InterfaceTest { public static void Main() { computation com = new computation (10,20); Addition add = (Addition) com; // casting CW(Sum = + add.Add()); Multiplication mul = (Multiplication) com; // casting CW(Product = + mul.Mul()); } } Note: Cannot instantiate an interface directly. i.e., Addition add= new Addition(); //error Always create an instance of the implementing class & then cast the object to the interface type.
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Interfaces Abstract base Classes

C# C# C# C# Abstract base classes permit more than the abstract methods private, public, protected member data and methods which could be accessed in derived classes In Interfaces, you can't define other than abstract methods and implementations for them
interface IPoints { int myint=0; // error, interfaces cant define data byte GetNumberOfPoints() { } // ERROR, only abstract members allowed }

Interfaced programming provides another way of polymorphism

11

Contd..
C# C# C# C#
An abstract base class can use an interface in the base class list. Eg: interface A { void Method(); } abstract class B:A { .. public abstract void method(); } Note: the class B does not implement the interface method, it simply redeclare as a public abstract method. We can convert an interface into an abstract class interface A { void Print(); } abstract class B { abstract public void Print(); } Note: a class can inherit from B instead of implementing the interface A.

12

Shapes Hierarchy
C# C# C# C#
Shapes Class Draw( )
Ipointy Ipointy

Triangle Class

Circle Class

Hexagon Class

Draw()

Draw()

Draw()

13

Invoking Interface Members at the Object Level

C# C# C# C#

The most straightforward way to interact with functionality supplied by a given interface is to invoke the methods directly from the object level. Eg: public interface IPointy { byte Points { get; } } // Hexagon implements IPointy public class Hexagon : Shape, IPointy { .. public byte Points { get {return 6;} } } Class Example { static void Main (string [ ] args) { Hexagon hex = new Hexagon(); CW (Points : {0}, hex.Points); } } In specific case it works fine.
14

Contd
C# C# C# C#
Assume if an array contains 50 shapes compatible types, only some of which support IPointy. Obviously, if you attempt to invoke the Points property on a type that has not implementes IPointy, then you receive a compiler error This problem can be solved by 3 ways 1. Explicit Cast 2. As Keyword 3. Is Keyword 1. Use an explicit cast of specific interface to determine at runtime. For this use structured exception handling Eg: static void Main(string [ ] args) { Circle C = new Circle ( L); Ipointy pt1; try { pt1 = (iPointy) C; CW (pt2.Points); } Catch (InvalidCastException e) { CW (OOPS! Not a pointy..); } }
15

Interface Reference through is & as

C# C# C# C#
Using "as" keyword, you can reference the interface members Hexagon h2 = new Hexagon(); IPoints ipts2; ipts2 = h2 as IPointy; If (ipts2 != null) Console.WriteLine(ipts2.Points); Else Console.WriteLine (OOPS! Not Pointy); ipts2 may be set to null if a given interface is not supported by the object You can also use "is" keyword Hexagon h2 = new Hexagon(); if (h2 is IPointy) Console.WriteLine(ipts2.GetNumberOfPoints()); else ERROR h2 may be set to false if a given interface is not supported by the 16 object

Another example for is

C# C# C# C# Shape[ ] s = {new Hexagon(), new Circle(), new Triangle("Joe"), new Circle("JoJo")}; for (int i = 0; i < s.Length; i++) { s[i].Draw();
// Who's points?

if (s[i] is IPointy)
Console.WriteLine("-> Points: {0}", ((IPoints)s[i]). Points);

else
Console.WriteLine("-> {0}\'s not points!", s[i].PetName);

}
17

Interfaces as Parameters
C# C# C# C#
Methods can take interfaces as parameters, as well as method return values Assume the following interface: public interface IDraw3D {

void Draw3D(); }
Now assume that the Circle subclass is revised to provide an additional implementation for IDraw3D public class Circle : Shape, IDraw3D { . public void Draw3D() { Console.WriteLine("Drawing a 3D Circle"); }
18

Interface as Parameter
C# C# C# C#
Public class Hexagon: Shape, Ipointy, IDraw3D { . public void Draw3D() { CW (Drawing Hexagon 3D); } } Public class ShapeApp { public static void DrawShape(IDraw3D objdraw) // parameter passing { Console.WriteLine("Drawing in 3D: compatible type"); if (objdraw is IDraw3D) return (IDraw3D)objdraw; // returning value else return null; }
19

Interface as Parameter
C# C# C# C#
Public static void Main() { Hexagon H=new Hexagon(); Circle C=new Circle(); IDraw3D Hobj=Drawshape(H); if (Hobj!=null) CW(It is a 3D Hexagon); else CW(Not 3D object); IPointy Cobj=Drawshape(C); If (Cobj!=null) CW(It is a 3D Circle); else CW(Not a 3D object); } }

Output Drawing IDraw 3D compatible type It is an 3D Hexagon

Drawing IDraw 3D compatible type

Not a 3D object

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Explicit interface Implementation

C# C# C# C# C# does not support multiple inheritance problem is name collision eg: interface I1 { void Display(); } interface I2 { void Display(); } class c1: I1,I2 { public void Display { } } Now, does c1.Display implement I1.Display or I2.Display? // compiler reports ambiguous To solve this use technique explicit interface implementation It allows a method to specify explicitly the name of the interface it is implementing.
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Example
Explicit Interface Implementation

C# C# C# C#

public interface IDimensions { float Length(); float Width(); }

class Box : IDimensions { float lengthInches; float widthInches;

public Box(float length, float width) { lengthInches = length; widthInches = width; }
22

Example
C# C# C# C#
// Explicit interface member implementation: float IDimensions.Length() { return lengthInches; } // Explicit interface member implementation: float IDimensions.Width() { return widthInches; }

23

Example
C# C# C# C#
public static void Main() { // Declare a class instance "myBox": Box myBox = new Box(30.0f, 20.0f); // Declare an interface instance "myDimensions": IDimensions myDimensions = (IDimensions) myBox; // Print out the dimensions of the box: /* The following commented lines would produce compilation errors because they try to access an explicitly implemented interface member from a class instance: */ //Console.WriteLine("Length: {0}", myBox.Length()); //Console.WriteLine("Width: {0}", myBox.Width()); /* Print out the dimensions of the box by calling the methods from an instance of the interface: */ Console.WriteLine("Length: {0}", myDimensions.Length()); Console.WriteLine("Width: {0}", myDimensions.Width()); } }
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Building Interface Hierarchies

C# C# C# C#
Possible to build inheritance relationships among interfaces Top most interface defines general behavior and most derived interface defines more specific behavior Eg: public interface Ibase { void Draw(); } public interface Iderv1: Ibase { void Print(); } public interface Iderv2: Iderv1 { void Render(); } // A class derives from nth-most interface public class Super :Iderv2 { void Draw() { CW(Basic drawing logic); } void Print() { CW(Draw to printer); } void render() { CW(Render to derive file); }

}
25

Building Interface Hierarchies

C# C# C# C# Class Samp { static void Main(string[ ] srgs)

Super Si=new Super(); Ibase b1=(Ibase)Si; b1.Draw(); if (b1 is Iderv2) { Iderv2 d2 = (Iderv2) b1; d2.Render(); d2=Print(); }
} }
26

Interfaces with multiple Base Interfaces

C# C# C# C#

Permissable to creat an interface that derives from multiple base interfaces Eg: public interface IYCar { void Drive(); } public interface IXCar IXCarderv1: Ibase { void Dive(); } public interface Iderv2: IYCar, IYCar { void Turbo(); } public class Car:IZCar { void Drive() { CW(Speeding up); } void Dive() { CW(Submerging); } void Turbo() { CW(Blast off); } } . Static Void Main(string[ ] args) { . Car C1=new Car(); C1.Drive(); C1.Turbo(); C1.Dive(); }
27

Implementing Interfaces using Visual Studio 2005

C# C# C# C#

Assume, implement the ICar interface on a new class names MiniVan The first letter is underlined [ smart tag ] Click on smart tag provides selection to implement the interface explicitly or implicitly Built automatically stub code wrapped in a #region/#endregion

28

Undestanding the IConvertible Interface

C# C# C# C#
Allows to dynamically convert b/w data types It is defined as follows: Public interface IConvertible { TypeCode GetTpeCode(); bool ToBoolean (IFormatProvider Provider); byte ToByte (IFormatProvider Provider); char ToChar (IFormatProvider Provider); DateTime ToDateTime (IFormatProvider Provider); double ToDouble (IFormatProvider Provider); short ToShort (IFormatProvider Provider); int ToInt32 (IFormatProvider Provider); float ToSingle (IFormatProvider Provider); string ToStrring (IFormatProvider Provider); Object ToType (Type ConversionType IFormatProvider Provider); } 29

Undestanding the IConvertible Interface . .

C# C# C# C#

To access each member of IConvertible interface, explicitly request access to the interface Eg: bool myBool=true IConvertible Conv = (IConvertible) myBoll;

30

The IConvertible.ToXXXX() members

C# C# C# C#

IConvertible defines a number of methods of the form ToXXXX(), it provides a way to convert from one type into another System types throw an InvalidCaseException if the conversion is semantically error. Eg: bool myBool = true; Iconvertible Conv =(IConvertible) myBool; try { Conv.ToSingle(); } catch (InvalidCastException e) { CW (e); }
31

IFormatProvider

C# C# C# C#

all ToXXXX() methods take a parameter of type IFormatProvider Objects that implement this interface are able to format their contents based on culture-specific information (eg. Float fomatted in various currencies) Definition: public interface IFormatProvider { Object GetFormat(Type formatType); } Custom type IFormatProvider implementation necessary System type - call from System.Globalization.CultureInfo

IConvertible Conv = (IConvertible) theInt; byte theByte = Conv.ToByte(CultureInfo.CurrentCulture); CW(Type code int converted to byte is :{0} , theByte.GetTypeCode()); CW(Value of converted int :{0}, theByte);

32

IConvertible.GetTypeCode()
C# C# C# C#

Available to any class or structure implemeting IConvertible Allows to programmatically discover a value that represents the typecode of the type, which is represented by the following enumeration: public enum TypeCode { Boolean, Byte, Char, DateTime, DBNull, Decimal, Double, Empty, Int16, Int32, Int64, object, SByte, Single, String, UInt16, UInt32, UInt64 }

33

Building a custom Enumerator (IEnumerable & IEnumerator)

C# C# C# C#
IEnumerable & IEnumerator are defined by System.Collection namespace Eg: assume a class Cars that contains a set of individual Car types stored in System.Array Public class Cars { Private Car[ ] CarArray; public Cars() { CarArray = new Car[4]; CarArray[0] = new Car(Rashu, 30); CarArray[1] = new Car(Charan, 55); CarArray[2] = new Car(Zohra, 20); CarArray[3] = new Car(Hema, 30); } } Public class Program { static void Main(string[] args) { Cars CarLot=new Cars(); foreach(Car C in CarLot) CW({0} is going {1} MPH, C.PetName, P.CurrSp); } 34 }

Contd
C# C# C# C#

When tried for execution gives error the Cars class does not implement a method GetEnumerator() GetEnumerator defined by IEnumberable interface IEnumerable informs- objects subitems can be enumerated. Formal definition of IEnumerable is: public interface IEnumerable { IEnumerator GetEnumerator(); }
35

Contd
C# C# C# C# GetEnumerator() returns a referance to another interface names System.Collections.IEnumerator. IEnumerator interface allow to traverse the internal objects contained by the IEnumerable compatible type. public interface IEnumerator { bool MoveNext(); // Advance the internal position of the cursor object Current{ get; } // Get the current item void Reset(); // Reset the cursor before the first member } So update the program as follows.
36

Contd
C# C# C# C#
using System.Collections; . public Class Cars:IEnumerable { private car[ ] CarArray; public Cars() { CarArray = new Car[4]; CarArray[0] = new Car(Rashu, 30); CarArray[1] = new Car(Charan, 55); CarArray[2] = new Car(Zohra, 20); CarArray[3] = new Car(Hema, 30); } Public IEnumerator GetEnumerator() { //return the array objects IEnumerator return CarArray.GetEnumerator(); } } Now safely use the type within the c# foreach construct.
37

Advantage : Reducing the Code Size

C# C# C# C#

Since the System.Array type already implements IEnumerator, you need not add this interface to Cars class
public class Cars : IEnumerable //, IEnumerator { private car[ ] carArray; .. public IEnumerator GetEnumerator() { return carArray.GetEnumerator( ); } .. }

With this, there is no need to implement manually MoveNext(), Reset(), etc.

38

Shapes Hierarchy
C# C# C# C#
Shapes Class Draw( )

Triangle Class

Circle Class

Hexagon Class

Draw()

Draw()

Draw()

39

Example-1 : Shapes Hierarchy

C# C# C# C#

public interface IPoints { byte Points{get;} }

public abstract class Shape { protected string petName; // Constructors. public Shape(){petName = "NoName";} public Shape(string s) { this.petName = s; }

public abstract void Draw();

}
40

Circle SubClass
C# C# C# C#

The Circle subclass does not implement the interface IPoints!

public class Circle : Shape { public Circle() { } // Call base class constructor. public Circle(string name): base(name) { } public override void Draw() {
Console.WriteLine("Drawing " + PetName + " Circle");

} }
41

Hexagon SubClass
C# C# C# C#
public class Hexagon : Shape, IPoints { public Hexagon(){} public Hexagon(string name): base(name){} public override void Draw() { Console.WriteLine("Drawing " + PetName + "Hexagon"); } // Implements IPoints public byte Points { get{ return 6; } } }
42

Example-1
C# C# C# C# public static int Main(string[] args) {
Circle c = new Circle("Red"); c.Draw(); Hexagon h = new Hexagon("Blue"); h.Draw(); //IPoints MyShape = (IPoints) h; //Console.WriteLine(MyShape.GetNumberOfPoints()); Console.WriteLine(h.GetNumberOfPoints()); return 0;

ERROR

43

Example - 2
C# C# C# C#

Interfaces can contain named properties Person Example:

public interface IAge { int Age {get; } string Name {get;} }

44

Example 2
C# C# C# C#
class Person : IAge { private string firstName; private string lastname = "......"; private int yearBorn; public int Age { get { return DateTime.Now.Year - yearBorn; } set { yearBorn = value; } } public string Name { get { return firstName + " " + lastname; } set { firstName = value; } }
45

Example 2
C# C# C# C# static void Main(string[] args) { Person p = new Person(); p.Name = "Geetha"; p.Age = 1986; Console.WriteLine("Name = {0}",p.Name); Console.WriteLine("Age = {0}",p.Age); IAge[ ] AgeArray = new IAge[2]; // ..

}
}
46

Part - II
C# C# C# C#

IConvertible
Dynamic conversion of data types

IEnumerator and IEnumerable

Standard interface implemented by classes that support iteration over contained objects

ICloneable
To provide a standard way to create copies of existing objects

IComparable and IComparer

For oredering purpose (string and numeric)

IDictionary
To map keys to values Associative arrays

IList
Access to individual items, removal, and insertion at any point
47

IConvertible Interface
C# C# C# C# Allows dynamic conversion of data types through interface based programming technique What are the methods defined in IConvertible Interface?
public interface IConvertible { bool ToBoolean(IFormatProvider provider); char ToChar(IFormatProvider provider); UInt64 ToUInt64(IFormatProvider provider); }
48

Accessing Members
C# C# C# C# To gain access to each member of IConvertible interface, you must explicitly request access to the interface
// uses explicit interface implementation bool myBoll = true; IConvertible i = (IConvertible) myBool;

Now i is convertible to any valid type IConvertible.ToXXXX() Methods

These methods provide a way to convert from one type into another (is it always?!!!) From char to DateTime possible? No If attempted, InvalidCastException will be raised
49

Type Conversions
C# C# C# C#
Integer using System.Globalization; int theInt = 65; Console.WriteLine("Type code of int is: ",theInt.GetTypeCode()); Int to Char using Type Casting char theChar = (char)theInt; Console.WriteLine("Type code int converted to char is: {0}", theChar.GetTypeCode()); Console.WriteLine("Value of converted char: {0}", theChar); Int to Byte using IConvertible IConvertible itfConvert = (IConvertible)theInt; byte theByte = itfConvert.ToByte(CultureInfo.CurrentCulture); Console.WriteLine("Type code int converted to byte is: {0}", theByte.GetTypeCode()); Console.WriteLine("Value of converted int: {0}", theByte);

50

Type Conversion
C# C# C# C# Convert a System.String into a System.Boolean using System.Convert
string theString = "true"; bool theBool = Convert.ToBoolean(theString); Console.WriteLine("Type code string converted to bool is: {0}", theBool.GetTypeCode()); Console.WriteLine("Value of converted string: {0}", theBool);

Add two integers

int a = Convert.ToInt32(Console.ReadLine()); int b = Convert.ToInt32(Console.ReadLine()); Console.WriteLine("a + b = {0}", a+b);
51

Invalid Type Conversion

C# C# C# C#
// Exception bool myBool = true; IConvertible i = (IConvertible) myBool; try { DateTime t = i.ToDateTime(CultureInfo.CurrentCulture); } catch (InvalidCastException e) { Invalid type Console.WriteLine(e.Message); conversion }

Objects that implement this interface are able to format their contents based on culture specific information
52

Building a Custom Enumerator

C# C# C# C# IEnumerable: Exposes the enumerator, which supports a simple iteration over a collection
GetEnumerator(): Public method that returns an enumerator that can iterate through a collection
Defined in System.Collections namespace

IEnumerator: Supports a simple iteration over a collection

MoveNext(): Public method which advances the enumerator to the next element of the collection

There are several classes which implement IEnumerable and IEnumerator interfaces. For example, Array, ArrayList, Stack, Queue, etc. are the classes that implement IEnumerable interface
53

Example Car Class

C# C# C# C#
Cars class is a collection of Car objects using Array type public class Cars { // This class maintains an array of cars. private Car[ ] carArray; // Current position in array. // int pos = -1; public Cars() { carArray = new Car[4]; carArray[0] = new Car("FeeFee", 200, 0); carArray[1] = new Car("Clunker", 90, 0); carArray[2] = new Car("Zippy", 30, 0); carArray[3] = new Car("Fred", 30, 0); } }
54

Iterating thro' the Collection

Can we write the following code to iterate through the collection?

C# C# C# C#

public class CarDriver { public static void Main() { Cars carLot = new Cars(); Console.WriteLine("Here are the cars in your lot"); foreach (Car c in carLot) { Console.WriteLine("-> Name: {0}", c.PetName); Console.WriteLine("-> Max speed: {0}", c.MaxSpeed); Console.WriteLine(); } } }
This code issues an error for not implementing the GetEnumerator() method
55

Implementing GetEnumerator()
To get around the problem of compilation error, we must use public class Cars : IEnumerable { .. // GetEnumerator() returns IEnumerator public IEnumerator GetEnumerator() { // ??????? } .. } IEnumerable.GetEnumerator() returns an object implementing IEnumerator public interface IEnumerator { bool MoveNext(); object Current { get; } void Reset(); }
56

C# C# C# C#

Updating Cars Type

C# C# C# C#
public class Cars : IEnumerable, IEnumerator { .. public IEnumerator GetEnumerator() { return (IEnumerator) this; } .. }

57

Implementation of MoveNext().
C# C# C# C#
public bool MoveNext() { if(pos < carArray.Length) { pos++; return true; } else return false; } public void Reset() { pos = 0; } public object Current { get { return carArray[pos]; } }

58

Advantages
C# C# C# C#

User types can be iterated through 'foreach' loop When the IEnumerator members are explicitly implemented, we provide an alternate method of accessing the objects in the container

59

Reducing the Code Size

C# C# C# C#

Since the System.Array type already implements IEnumerator, you need not add this interface to Cars class
public class Cars : IEnumerable //, IEnumerator { private car[ ] carArray; .. public IEnumerator GetEnumerator() { return carArray.GetEnumerator( ); } .. }

With this, there is no need to implement manually MoveNext(), Reset(), etc. (refer ObjEnum folder)

60

Building Cloneable Objects

C# C# C# C#

Recall System.Object has a member MemberwiseClone() which does shallow copy Object users can call this method with an instance for cloning process

Implementing ICloneable interface using a Point Class

Let us make things clear

61

Example
C# C# C# C#
public class Point { public int x, y; public Point(){} public Point(int x, int y) { this.x = x; this.y = y; } public override string ToString() { return "X: " + x + " Y: " + y; } }

The following piece of code makes two references pointing to the same copy of the objects in heap
Point p1 = new Point(50, 50); Point p2 = p1; p2.x = 0;

Notice that by modifying p2, the object p1 also gets modified.

62

ICloneable Interface
C# C# C# C# To avoid the shallow copy problem we must implement the ICloneable interface
public interface ICloneable { object Clone(); }

This means the Clone() method need to be redefined to suit the customer type. This ensures deep copy semantics
public class Point : ICloneable { .. public object Clone() { return new Point(this.x, this.y); } . }
63

Calling Clone() Method

C# C# C# C#
Point p1 = new Point(50, 50); // p2 will point to the copy of p1 Point p2 = (Point)p1.Clone(); p2.x = 0; // will not affect p1 Console.WriteLine(p1); Console.WriteLine(p2); The above WriteLine commands will print two different objects If a type does not contain references to other internal reference types, then we can write public object Clone() { return this.MemberwiseClone(); }

What happens if the Point type contains references to other internal reference types? [it becomes a shallow copy] If we wish to support a true deep copy, we need to create a new instance of any reference type variables during the cloning process.
64

Building Comparable Objects

C# C# C# C#
IComparable interface defines a generalized comparison method that a value type or class implements to create a typespecific comparison method CompareTo(object o) - Compares the current instance with another object of the same type public interface IComparable { int CompareTo(object o); } Recall, the System.Array class defines a method Sort() which sorts int, float, char, etc. However, if the array contains a set of Cars, it fails. Array.Sort(intArr); // OK Array.Sort(myCars); // ArgumentException will be thrown So the advantage of IComparable is to provide a way to sort your own types

65

Example Student Class

C# C# C# C#
public class Student : IComparable { private int USN; public Student() {USN = 0; } public Student(int USN) { this.USN = USN; } public int RegNo CompareTo() return Value: { < 0 : comes before the specified object get 0 : equal to specified object { return USN; } } > 0 : comes after the specified object

int IComparable.CompareTo(object o) { Student temp = (Student) o; if(this.USN > temp.USN) return 1; if(this.USN < temp.USN) return -1; else return 0; }
}
66

Sorting the Objects

C# C# C# C#
static void Main(string[] args) { Student[] cseStd = new Student[3]; cseStd[0] = new Student(111); cseStd[1] = new Student(100); cseStd[2] = new Student(45); try { Array.Sort(cseStd); } catch(Exception e) { Console.WriteLine(e.StackTrace); } Console.WriteLine("Array after sorting"); foreach(Student s in cseStd) Console.WriteLine(s.RegNo); }
67

Sorting Order (IComparer)

C# C# C# C# Suppose if you wish to sort the student objects based on USN and also Name how do we solve this problem? This could be solved by using another interface called IComparer
public interface IComparer { int Compare(object o1, object o2) }

Recall, the IComparable interface was implemented using the type name (Student). But, IComparer is implemented using some helper classes, one for each sort order (USN, Name, etc).
68

Modified Student Class

C# C# C# C#
using System.Collections; public class Student { public int USN; public string Name; public Student() {USN = 0; Name = null;} public Student(int USN, string Name) { this.USN = USN; this.Name = Name; } public class SortName : IComparer // helper class { public SortName() {} int Compare(object o1, object o2) { Student s1 = (Student) o1; Student s2 = (Student) o2; return String.Compare(s1.Name, s2.Name); } }

69

Using Multiple Sort Order

C# C# C# C#

System.Sort has a number of overloaded methods. One of them is to take an object implementing IComparer static void Main(string[] args) { Student[] cseStd = new Student[3]; cseStd[0] = new Student(111,"Scott"); cseStd[1] = new Student(100,"Allen"); cseStd[2] = new Student(45,"John"); try { Array.Sort(cseStd, new SortName()); } catch(Exception e) { Console.WriteLine(e.StackTrace); } Console.WriteLine("Array after Sorting by Name:"); foreach(Student s in cseStd) Console.WriteLine(s.USN + " " + s.Name); } } 70

Static Helper Class

C# C# C# C#

The helper classes may be static public class car : IComparable { public static IComparer class SortName { . } } // Calling program Array.Sort(cseStd, Student.SortName());
71

Interfaces of System.Collections Namespace

C# C# C# C# Sytem.Collections defines a no. of interfaces like
ICollection
IEquality Comparer IDictionary

Defines generic characterstics.

Defines method to support the comparison of objects for equality Allows an object to represent its contents using name/value pairs

IDictionaryEnumerat or
IEnumerable IEnumerator IHashCodeProvider

Enumerates the contents of a type supporting IDictionary

Return the IEnumerator interface for a given object Generally support foreach style Returns hash code

IKeyComparer

Combines the functionality of IComparer & IHashcodePRovider to allow object to be compared in a hash-code-compatible manner
Provides behavior to Add, Remove, & Index items in a list 72 of objects.

IList

Contd
C# C# C# C#
Many of these interfaces are related by an interface hierarchy & some are stand alone entities.
IDictionary
interface

IEnumerable
interface

IList
interface

ICollection
interface

IEnumerator
interface

IDictionary IEnumerator
interface

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The Role of ICollection

C# C# C# C#
This defines a behavior supported by a collection type This provides a small set of properties that allows to determine a. the no. of items in the container b. the thread safety of the container & c. the ability to copy the contents into a System.Array type Icollection extends IEcnumerable Formal definition public interface ICollection:IEnumerable { int count { get; } bool IsSynchronized { get; } object SyncRoot { get; } void CopyTo(Array array, int index); } 74

The Role of IDictionary

C# C# C# C#
A Dictionary is a collection that maintains a set of name/value pairs IDictionary interface defines a keys & values property as well as Add(), Remove() & Contains() methods Formal definition public interface IDictionary:ICollection,IEnumerable { bool IsFixedSize { get; } . ICollection keys { get; } ICollection values { get; } void Add (object key, object value); void clear(); bool Contains (object key); void Remove( object key); 75 }

The Role of IDictionaryEnumerator

C# C# C# C#
IDictionary.GetEnumerator() returns an instance of the IDictionaryEnumerator IDictionaryEnumerator is a strongly typed enumerator, it extends IEnumerator Formal definition public interface IDictionaryEnumerator:IEnumerator { Dictionary Entry { get; } object key { get; } object value { get; } } Also able to traverse the name/value pairs using the ke/value properties.

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The Role of IList

C# C# C# C#
It provides ability to insert, remove & index items into ( or out of ) a container Formal definition public interface IList:IEnumerable { bool IsFixedSize { get; } int Add (object value); int IndexOf(object value); void Insert( int index, object value)l void Remove(object value); Void RemoveAt(int index); }
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System.Collections Namespace
C# C# C# C# Sytem.Collections has many classes
ArrayList
Hashtable Queue SortedList

Dynamic array of objects

IList, ICollection, IEnumerable, & ICloneable

collection of objects IDictionary, ICollection, identified by keys IEnumerable, & ICloneable FIFO ICollection, IEnumerable, & ICloneable

Same as Dictionary, IDictionary, ICollection, but accessed by IEnumerable, & ICloneable index LIFO ICollection and IEnumerable

Stack

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ArrayList Basics
C# C# C# C#
The ArrayList is not guaranteed to be sorted. You must sort the ArrayList prior to performing operations (such as BinarySearch) that require the ArrayList to be sorted. The capacity of a ArrayList is the number of elements the ArrayList can hold. The default initial capacity for an ArrayList is 0. As elements are added to a ArrayList, the capacity is automatically increased as required through reallocation. The capacity can be decreased by calling TrimToSize or by setting the Capacity property explicitly. Elements in this collection can be accessed using an integer index. Indexes in this collection are zero-based. ArrayList accepts a null reference as a valid value and allows duplicate elements.
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Example
C# C# C# C#
myAL Count: 3 using System; using System.Collections; Capacity: 16 public class SamplesArrayList { Values: Hello World ! public static void Main() { // Creates and initializes a new ArrayList. ArrayList myAL = new ArrayList(); myAL.Add("Hello"); myAL.Add("World"); myAL.Add("!"); // Displays the properties and values of the ArrayList. Console.Write( "myAL" ); Console.WriteLine( " Count: {0}", myAL.Count ); Console.WriteLine( " Capacity: {0}", myAL.Capacity ); Console.Write( " Values:" ); PrintValues( myAL ); } public static void PrintValues( IEnumerable myList ) { foreach ( Object obj in myList ) Console.Write( " {0}", obj ); Console.WriteLine(); }

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System.ArrayList
C# C# C# C#

AddRange() populates the array with Cars

// Create ArrayList and fill with some initial values. Console.WriteLine("***** Fun with ArrayList *****"); ArrayList carArList = new ArrayList(); carArList.AddRange(new Car[ ] { new Car("Fred", 90, 10), new Car("Mary", 100, 50), new Car("MB", 190, 0)}); Console.WriteLine("Items in carArList: {0}", carArList.Count); // Print out current values. foreach(Car c in carArList) { Console.WriteLine("Car pet name: {0}", c.PetName); }

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System.ArrayList.
C# C# C# C#

Index() is used to plug a new Car at any position/index

// Insert a new item. Console.WriteLine("-> Inserting new item"); carArList.Insert(2, new Car("TheNewCar", 0, 0)); Console.WriteLine("Items in carArList: {0}", carArList.Count);
// Get object array from ArrayList & print again. object[] arrayOfCars = carArList.ToArray(); for(int i = 0; i < arrayOfCars.Length; i++) { Console.WriteLine("Car pet name: {0}", ((Car)arrayOfCars[i]).PetName); }
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System.Collections.Queue
C# C# C# C#
Dequeue() Delete and return first object from the Queue Enqueue() Insert an object into the Queue Peek() Return the first object without deleting Console.WriteLine("\n***** Queue Demo *****"); // Now make a Q with three items Queue carWashQ = new Queue(); carWashQ.Enqueue(new Car("FirstCar", 0, 0)); carWashQ.Enqueue(new Car("SecondCar", 0, 0)); carWashQ.Enqueue(new Car("ThirdCar", 0, 0));

// Peek at first car in Q Console.WriteLine("First in Q is {0}", ((Car)carWashQ.Peek()).PetName);

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System.Collections.Queue
C# C# C# C#
// Remove each item from Q WashCar((Car)carWashQ.Dequeue()); WashCar((Car)carWashQ.Dequeue()); WashCar((Car)carWashQ.Dequeue()); // Try to de-Q again? try { WashCar((Car)carWashQ.Dequeue()); } catch(Exception e) { Console.WriteLine("Error!! {0}", e.Message);}
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System.Collections.Stack
C# C# C# C#
Stack stringStack = new Stack(); stringStack.Push("One"); stringStack.Push("Two"); stringStack.Push("Three"); // Now look at the top item. Console.WriteLine("Top item is: {0}", stringStack.Peek()); Console.WriteLine("Popped off {0}", stringStack.Pop()); Console.WriteLine("Top item is: {0}", stringStack.Peek()); Console.WriteLine("Popped off {0}", stringStack.Pop()); Console.WriteLine("Top item is: {0}", stringStack.Peek()); Console.WriteLine("Popped off {0}", stringStack.Pop()); try { Console.WriteLine("Top item is: {0}", stringStack.Peek()); Console.WriteLine("Popped off {0}", stringStack.Pop()); } catch(Exception e) { Console.WriteLine("Error!! {0}\n", e.Message);}
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C# C# C# C#

End of Chapter 6

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