Comment Switching

musefan

I have a static string which I am constantly switch to a known value for debugging. But now I have come up with something that saves me 3 key strokes!!! consider...

public static string MyString = "";//@"DEBUG VALUE";

...I was constantly deleting

"";//

and re-adding for each toggle. Now I have changed to this...

public static string MyString = "";//*/@"DEBUG VALUE";

...now I just need to add/remove

/*

each time to toggle the value...

public static string MyString = /*"";//*/@"DEBUG VALUE";

result! :laugh: ...and I don't want to hear about your #DEBUG comments

My opinions are right, and yours are wrong! (or at least that is my opinion)

Jorgen Sigvardsson

How about

public static string MyString =
#if USE_MY_SPECIAL_DEBUG_VALUE
@"DEBUG VALUE"
#else
""
#endif
;

Surely, this must be a lot more maintainable than a very cryptic looking comment that's going to make your successors wonder WTF?

-- Kein Mitleid Für Die Mehrheit

Reiss

Look at MSDN for the full list of C# Preprocessor Directives[^]

Jorgen Sigvardsson

Yes..?

-- Kein Mitleid Für Die Mehrheit

musefan

Firstly, class files are not limited to a single line of comment you know. I have extra comments explaining the need to use the debug value in some instances so successors can work it out fairly easy. Secondly, there is nothing clever or interesting about your code, it is a pretty standard if/else. And yes, I know you can say the same about mine, but I think it is a bit more out of the box thinking which is why I posted it. Of course, this forum is really only for people to mock other people anyway

My opinions are right, and yours are wrong! (or at least that is my opinion)

Reiss

You have pointed the user at the #if preprocessor (getting my 5), so I thought it might be useful to show the full listing - especially the #define and #undefine preprocessors as theses are commonly used with the #if

RobCroll

It would be even cleverer if you used string.Empty instead of "". :)

"You get that on the big jobs."

musefan

way too much typing

My opinions are right, and yours are wrong! (or at least that is my opinion)

Lost User

Nah, you debug it with Windbg and set the variable in the module directly, while its running.

============================== Nothing to say.

Jorgen Sigvardsson

Oh, ok!

-- Kein Mitleid Für Die Mehrheit

Brady Kelly

Are you using notepad to write code? OK, two key-presses vs. four is a win, but certainly not a lot of typing.

fjdiewornncalwe

The proper way is the right way. With intellisense and all the other editor enhancements that make life easier for developers, the "too much typing" excuse doesn't hold water. If you have issues typing, then you need to brush up on that because writing code incorrectly at the outset is just going to make a sustainment developer's job much more difficult.

I wasn't, now I am, then I won't be anymore.

gumi_r msn com

Actually that wouldn't compile I think.

string.Empty

is readonly so you can't initialize a static variable with it as it could theoretically change during runtime.

RobCroll

You had me worried there for a second. I've done find replace on "" on large projects (millions of lines) and never had any adverse affects, let alone a compile error. public static string MyString = string.Empty; compiles for me.

"You get that on the big jobs."

gumi_r msn com

Lol sorry, I actually misread and thought it was

public const string MyString = string.Empty

Sorry about that.

RobCroll

Obscure but still worth noting. I guess at the end of the day who would set a const to equal ""?

"You get that on the big jobs."

Lost User

Actually its a constant equal to string.Empty... which ahh is already what you should be using. Kinda like when you see

const bool TRUE = true;

Note: I have never actually seen this except in code horrors responding jokes.

Computers have been intelligent for a long time now. It just so happens that the program writers are about as effective as a room full of monkeys trying to crank out a copy of Hamlet.

puromtec1

String.Empty runs faster.

fjdiewornncalwe

RobCroll wrote:

I guess at the end of the day who would set a const to equal ""?

Have you been in the Q&A recently? :)

I wasn't, now I am, then I won't be anymore.

Ken Booth

I agree - not only more readable, but the line

#define USE_MY_SPECIAL_DEBUG_VALUE

can be commented or uncommented with one mouse click - no keystrokes required!

-- Regards, Ken I AM