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Effective C#
If you're interested in, or currently working with, .NET and are tempted to skip past this book as Just Another C# Reference Book, think again. Wagner's book is a great resource because it covers concepts which run across the entire .NET Framework regardless of which language you're working with. While this book focuses on C#, VB.NET developers can benefit from some of the text within as well.
I also think this book speaks to a wide range of readers. Seasoned developers will blow through this content, fine-tuning their coding methods or starting new ones. Wagner specifically points out how practices experienced C++ developers may use aren't good practices in C#, such as avoiding function call overhead by writing longer C# methods with more convoluted loops. More on that later.
New developers also can greatly benefit from this book by using it to properly form development habits early in their careers. Examples of this might include following Wagner's recommendations for safe casting, strong use of interfaces, and knowledgeable resource management.
Wagner's writing style is clear and concise. He occasionally comes across as brusque, or as writing only to experienced developers ("I wouldn't write code like this and neither would you."), but those instances are few and far between. The rest of the book's voice is terrific. More important is the weight of Wagner's knowledge and experience.
One real drawback is a large number of typographical errors, sometimes several per chapter. Some sentences are missing content, and there are a large number of run-together words. These errors don't take away from the material, but it's an annoyance all the same. I would have expected better proofreaders at AW.
The book is well organized into six chapters, each hitting a specific area in C#. Within each chapter, Wagner covers six to ten items, each item focusing on one specific "minitopic," as Wagner calls them. Each item includes code snippets to demonstrate recommended approaches. Few of Wagner's snippets will function as standalone programs, but this is an advantage, as I see it. The book focuses on tight, specific examples, rather than weighing itself down with pages of extraneous fluff.
Often Wagner's recommended approach is contrasted against bad practices, or practices which might be optimal in other languages but work poorly in C#. An example of this would be Chapter 4's Item 31: "Prefer Small, Simple Functions," where Wagner shows how smaller functions are generally more efficient than larger functions with complex loops. This probably confounds experienced C++ developers, but it's a prime example of how valuable this book is. Wagner shows that .NET's Just-In-Time compiler pays less cost when calling functions than it does trying to wade through convoluted loop logic. His recommendation? Write "the clearest code you can create. Let the JIT compiler do the rest."
Chapter 1, "C# Language Elements", hits hard the topics "you must remember every day when you write C# code." This chapter discusses issues central to C#'s syntax, implementation and optimization. Wagner talks about basic Object Oriented concepts such as hiding class data members behind Properties (.NET's common access methods/fields via gets and sets), and why it's important to implement a ToString() method. Basic software engineering topics are also covered, like why it's important to differentiate between value and reference data types -- and the pitfalls of failing to do so. This chapter also thrashes out coverage on deep C# concepts like why developers should use foreach loops and why the GetHashCode() method will "practically always get you in trouble."
Chapter 2, ".NET Resource Management", has a lot of text on general patterns for constructing optimal code. Wagner's in-depth knowledge of the .NET Framework's underpinnings really shows through here. There's a very clear discussion of the performance ramifications of boxing (wrapping value type data into an object for method parameters) and unboxing. Minimizing extra garbage (unnecessary objects) and easing resource clean up via standard dispose patterns are also covered. This chapter's critical to ensuring you understand what's going on with resources in your .NET application.
Chapter 3, "Expressing Designs with C#", looks at object-oriented design in C#. While the discussion's specific to C#, there's a lot of great, practical information which applies to any object oriented development. Wagner gives some great examples with backup discussion regarding preferring the use of interfaces over inheritance and why it's a cleaner solution. (Java programmers who've read Alan Holub's "Why extends is Evil" in JavaWorld would enjoy this section.) There's also great treatment of using delegates for callbacks, and events for outgoing interfaces. Wagner also points out more pitfalls in a reference data type language: returning references to internal class objects via a read-only property (getter for Java folks).
Chapter 4, "Creating Binary Components", shows what critical topics you have to consider when creating even a moderately complex system for deployment. Wagner exposes some terrific details on how smaller is better when developing .NET assemblies for deployment. He also discusses why it's best to limit a class's exposure through public scope since this ends up advertising too much of your class's internals to potential users of that class. Wagner ties this back to interface discussions in earlier portions of the book, and makes a good case in this section for bad scope's impact on deployment.
Chapter 5, "Working with the Framework", delves into the .NET Framework Class Library. The FCL is a huge library and Wagner's insistent that too many developers are writing custom code for functionality which already exists in the FCL. This section helps to avoid having "developers reinvent the wheel." There are very useful discussions on using .NET runtime diagnostics, .NET's validation capabilities, and standard configuration mechanisms. Wagner also shows why .NET's reflection capability (one component dynamically discovering another component's capabilities at runtime) can be overused - but he also shows how to best use it in the appropriate cases.
Chapter 6, "Miscellaneous", is the catch-all section. Security and exceptions are covered here, as is the pain of working with COM interoperability - and why you should avoid it if at all possible. Just as importantly, Wagner points to several tools which should be in any C# developer's belt. He also identifies terrific resources available online.
What makes this book so useful is that Wagner constantly talks about the reasons behind why specific choices in C# should be made. For example, in Item 3, "Prefer the as and is Operator to Casts" Wagner moves through the rationale of why a developer should (when possible) avoid casting in C# and use the as and is operators instead. Casting can lead to headaches with data loss when casting a long data type to an integer one, or more headaches with the extra lines of code to ensure the cast was to a proper type. Sure, casts are sometimes necessary, and it's another value point for this book that Wagner gives clear examples of when his techniques don't apply -- and he also shows recommended alternatives for those cases.
It's just this kind of discussion from an experienced developer that makes this book so valuable. Good developers need to understand the ramifications of choices they make designing and implementing a system. Wagner's book is outstanding for exactly this kind of detailed, clear exposition.
An additional bonus: Wagner has a blog dedicated to discussion of items from his book. Erata are also listed there. See Bill Wagner's Effective C# blog.
The bottom line: this book really is a critical addition to a serious C# or .NET developer's bookshelf. It deserves a place right alongside books from McConnell, Macguire, Kernighan and Pike.
You can purchase Effective C#: 50 Specific Ways to Improve Your C# from bn.com. Slashdot welcomes readers' book reviews -- to see your own review here, read the book review guidelines, then visit the submission page.
"..in the same class as Code Complete"
But do we really need a "programming good C#" book? Isn't good programming all about, well, good programming? If I remember Code Complete correctly, it used pascal and C, I think. It definitely was one of the best books I've read, but how many times can you say the same thing over and over again?
Languages come and go. But good coding techniques don't dependent on a certain vendor or technology.
Maybe this is a good book if you don't know much of any programming language and want to pick up C#. Speaking as a C# developer who does Java, C, C++, and VB, I just read some of the rags and jumped in. Then when I wanted to do something else, like create a custom web control, I got a book in C#. Presto/Bingo, I'm coding in C#. OOP as a concept is going to have similar constructs, no matter what the language, right?
Sorry for the rant. It's probably a great book. I just don't understand how good coding practice is dependent on the flavor-of-the-week. Perhaps in his comparisons the reviewer does a disservice to the intent of the work.
Click on this link for the blog.
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The review is missing something important. Effective C# is of the same mold as the Scott Meyers' Effective C++ franchise - known by many C++ programmers as a great resource of best practices. Bill has Meyer's approval to publish an "Effective" book, and even announced its publication on his mailing list.
tbh, I'm not sure that that is a recommendation. We have been going over cc in a reading group at work for the better part of a year now (chapter a week takes a while!), and overall, while he does have a lot of worthwhile stuff to say, the book is mostly dross, coupled with misleading stats, poor editing (and occasionally worse writing) lack of direction and bad analogies. .net knowledge will pretty much provide that anyway)
On the other hand, it has proved useful as a talking point in our reading group (a mix of professional programmers ranging from fresh grads to seasoned vets). As for the C# book, well we could do with a good reference for the language (although a decent c++ book and a little java and
"Success is based on knowing how far to go in going too far"
I rarely use Microsoft's suites, but the fact that I knew what the first reply (and probably the second, third, and fourth) to this article would be annoys me.
.NET and C#? Fine, don't use it. I use Dev-Cpp for all my C/C++ work on Windows. But that doesn't mean I have to be an ass (or reply in such a partisan manner that I look like one)to people who do.
You don't like
Often Wagner's recommended approach is contrasted against bad practices, or practices which might be optimal in other languages but work poorly in C#. An example of this would be Chapter 4's Item 31: "Prefer Small, Simple Functions," where Wagner shows how smaller functions are generally more efficient than larger functions with complex loops. This probably confounds experienced C++ developers, but it's a prime example of how valuable this book is. Wagner shows that
I don't know how he got the impression that experienced C++ developers would be confounded by short functions. By using short inlined functions, C++ developers don't pay any cost by breaking up large routines.
I know you were trying to be funny, but from a C# programmer's perspective, you're just being ignorant.
.NET platform, it's easy, flexible, and powerful. Academia was pretty quick to gobble up Java but I've seen more and more schools replacing VB/Java courses with C# lately.
;)
C# is an advanced, well thought-out OOP language. When coupled with the
It's an open standard, despite what people may think, and as Windows.Forms becomes implemented on other operating systems, adoption will spread. Microsoft even released the source code to a FreeBSD CLR implementation called "Rotor".
Remember, just because it's from Microsoft doesn't automatically negate it
If you say "here goes my karma" I will bite you!!!
Hmmmm, I barely knew the name of the FreeBSD specific CLR implamentation. I don't think anyone seriously uses Rotor or has developed it in the past 2.5 years.
;)
(This brought to you by one of FreeBSD's Mono port maintainers.
C# is a GREAT language, this is coming from a long history in Oracle/Unix/Linux. I don't understand where people got the idea that it won't work on Linux either. We're coding 3-monitor full screen 3d MRI analysis applications in it, and I can assure you that it has accelerated our developement time over the last iteration created with Borland C++ Builder. Ironically, it took 8 years to write the last version of our software in Builder, and 6 months to completely rewrite it with enhancements in c#. That, consequently, was with both the lead developers having no experience with the language (I was a C++ folk, and he'd been using Delphi, so we settled on C# since it was essentially the next evolution of Delphi).
It's no joke, and I'll be buying this book just to have it. I've also picked up most of the Deitel series of books on c#, and of course the O'reilly books. The c# cookbook is another GREAT reference. Anyone interested in starting with C# should check www.codeproject.com for examples. Also, along with a rude admonishment to the MS haters for not having researched the topic (MS dependant indeed), check www.omnicore.com for a native crossplatform compiler for c#. It's cheap too, but doesn't do forms support just yet (when it does, I'll probably move from VS just to get free cross-platform compatability).
-chitlenz
Imagination is the silver lining of Intelligence.
Take a look at this:
Sapir-Whorf and programming languages
Actually the Mono team encourages you to stay away from Rotor as if it was the plague, because it's the infamous shared source license. It's all MS code, not open source at all. So if you have looked at the source for Rotor, you shouldn't (or can't? I don't really know) contribute to the Mono framework (or Portable.NET or any other one if there are more implementations) because in the future it might bring patent or copyright issues from MS against those projects. It also supposedly runs on Mac OS X. But you need 1GB free disk space to build the thing. Why? I don't know. Mono doesn't use as much space, and it includes the CLR and the class libraries.
Go hug some trees.
There are also tons of other problems I have run into with the .Net framework over the last few years. Here is a _major_ problem for me that I just posted about.
If Tyranny and Oppression come to this land,
it will be in the guise of fighting a foreign enemy. -James Madison
With regards to the HTML problem, have you considered that it might be because of an outdated segment in your web or machine.config files?
.NET framework will generate two different kinds of html one for "uplevel" browsers (by default i think this is only MSIE 5+ and posibly netscape 6 but don't quote me on that last part).
I myself am a C# developer (win forms and web forms), and I initiall had a huge problem trying to test and use any sort of aspx web application in firefox. After poking around for a bit, it turns out that the
Anyway, there is a section that you can place in you web.config or machine.config files (i assume you know the difference between the two) that details the browser capabilities of various browsers hence the name browsercaps. By default this section of the file is pretty useless, it will detect IE, some netscape and that more or less it. Maybe some mobile browsers for PocketPC as well. This can be updated, and i find that the information at This Link is extremley helpful. I have used the browsercap information from this site on a few production servers to get rid of some ugly issues with AbleCommerce and Firefox, and i have it on my development machine as well; the difference in rendering will suprise you. In short, I highly reccomend that every ASP.NET developer check this information out, and keep your browsercaps section up to date. It may not be a 100% effective solution but it does do an excellent job of getting rid of most of the problems you will have when using a non MS browser.
Look out honey cause I'm usin' technology
Ain't got time to make no apologies