Fine, I'll jump on the "I hate Microsoft" bandwagon

[Richard Deeming]

No need to call Substring if the length is greater than (or equal to) the string's length. And you'll get a NullReferenceException if the string is null, whereas VB would return an empty string instead. Seems like an odd choice, but when you're pandering to these VB devs... :rolleyes:

public static string Left(this string theString, int length)
{
if (length < 0) throw new ArgumentOutOfRangeException(nameof(length));
if (theString == null || length == 0) return string.Empty;
if (theString.Length <= length) return theString;
return theString.Substring(0, length);
}

Now, let's hope he doesn't ask for a C# version of this VB6 abomination:

Dim s As String = "He11o"
Mid$(s, 3, 2) = "ll"

---

"These people looked deep within my soul and assigned me a number based on the order in which I joined." - Homer

[dandy72]

Well, he did mention VB. Which teaches everyone bad habits.

[Super Lloyd]

Oh my, you are the quick to hate type, are you not? One tiny method missing and *boom* I hate you MS! That escalated rather quickly! :O At any rate I give you here, free of charge, a solution to use for your own coding pleasure! No, no, no, there is no need to thank me!

public static class StringExtensions {
public static string Left(this string s, int n) {
if (n >= s.Length)
return "";
return s.Substring(s.Length - n);
}
}

All in one Menu-Ribbon Bar DirectX for WinRT/C# since 2013! Taking over the world since 1371!

[BillWoodruff]

While I cherish the myriad weirdnesses I am aware of in my long-term relationship with C#, the absence of 'Left would not qualify. Welcome to Linq: [^]. Unless there's something you just can't stand about the word: "Take" ? :) cheers, Bill

«There is a spectrum, from "clearly desirable behaviour," to "possibly dodgy behavior that still makes some sense," to "clearly undesirable behavior." We try to make the latter into warnings or, better, errors. But stuff that is in the middle category you don’t want to restrict unless there is a clear way to work around it.» Eric Lippert, May 14, 2008

[Marc Clifton]

These are the string extension methods I wrote ages ago (well, since extension methods have been around): (Note that some of this isn't very elegant, could be LINQ'ified, could be optimized, etc.)

	/// /// Returns a new string surrounded by single quotes.
	/// 
	public static string SingleQuote(this String src)
	{
		return "'" + src + "'";
	}

	/// /// Returns a new string surrounded by quotes.
	/// 
	public static string Quote(this String src)
	{
		return "\\"" + src + "\\"";
	}

	/// /// Exchanges ' for " and " for '
	/// Javascript JSON support, which must be formatted like '{"foo":"bar"}'
	/// 
	public static string ExchangeQuoteSingleQuote(this String src)
	{
		string ret = src.Replace("'", "\\0xFF");
		ret = ret.Replace("\\"", "'");
		ret = ret.Replace("\\0xFF", "\\"");

		return ret;
	}

	/// /// Returns the source string surrounded by a single whitespace.
	/// 
	public static string Spaced(this String src)
	{
		return " " + src + " ";
	}

	/// /// Returns a new string surrounded by brackets.
	/// 
	public static string Parens(this String src)
	{
		return "(" + src + ")";
	}

	/// /// Returns a new string surrounded by brackets.
	/// 
	public static string Brackets(this String src)
	{
		return "\[" + src + "\]";
	}

	/// /// Returns a new string surrounded by brackets.
	/// 
	public static string CurlyBraces(this String src)
	{
		return "{" + src + "}";
	}

	/// /// Returns everything between the start and end chars, exclusive.
	/// 
	/// The source string.
	/// The first char to find.
	/// The end char to find.
	/// The string between the start and stop chars, or an empty string if not found.
	public static string Between(this string src, char start, char end)
	{
		string ret = String.Empty;
		int idxStart = src.IndexOf(start);

		if (idxStart != -1)
		{
			++idxStart;
			int idxEnd = src.IndexOf(end, idxStart);

			if (idxEnd != -1)
			{
				ret = src.Substring(idxStart, idxEnd - idxStart);
			}
		}

		return ret;
	}

	public static string Between(this string src, string start, string end)
	{
		string ret = String.Empty;
		int idxStart = src.IndexOf(start);

		if (idxSta

[Marco Bertschi]

Mark_Wallace wrote:

money for nothing

And chicks for free.

[Jono Stewart]

Don't forget the null check! And a small tweak because I like doing it this way :P It's called Truncate in my library, but if you're from VB, I guess Left is ok... Or you could just reference the Microsoft.VisualBasic assembly!

public static string Left(this string target, int length)
{
if(string.IsNullOrEmpty(target) //could just do == null; condition below caters to empty (which is faster I wonder)
return target;

return target.SubString(0, Math.Min(target.Length, length));

}

[Jono Stewart]

Looks like a 'Right' to me, rather than a 'Left' :)

[Sander Rossel]

Yesterday I noticed one of our projects has a reference to Microsoft.VisualBasic. What the...? Upon closer inspection I found it was needed for new My.Computer.Devices.ComputerInfo().TotalPhysicalMemory(). Looked around on the web, and there really isn't an easy C# variant :sigh:

Read my (free) ebook Object-Oriented Programming in C# Succinctly. Visit my blog at Sander's bits - Writing the code you need. Or read my articles here on CodeProject.

Simplicity is prerequisite for reliability. — Edsger W. Dijkstra

Regards, Sander

[Wastedtalent]

I found music. I raided my parents Vinyl collection. Love that warm crackly sound of old LP records.

[den2k88]

We've got to install microwave ovens!

GCS d--- s-/++ a- C++++ U+++ P- L- E-- W++ N++ o+ K- w+++ O? M-- V? PS+ PE- Y+ PGP t++ 5? X R++ tv-- b+ DI+++ D++ G e++>+++ h--- ++>+++ y+++*      Weapons extension: ma- k++ F+2 X If you think 'goto' is evil, try writing an Assembly program without JMP. -- TNCaver When I was six, there were no ones and zeroes - only zeroes. And not all of them worked. -- Ravi Bhavnani

[Super Lloyd]

Ahem.. you know what? You could even be right! :rolleyes: :laugh:

All in one Menu-Ribbon Bar DirectX for WinRT/C# since 2013! Taking over the world since 1371!

[den2k88]

Excuse me but: Several GB worth of Framework, poorly documented, with an inextricable Hell of dependencies and Assembly idiosyncrasies and seemingly duplicated functionality which should live in the same ecosystem but are as incompatible as coffe and salt... and I have to write my farking own version of a function that existed 20 years ago to do the easiest and stupidest thing on Earth? So much for The Framework™.

GCS d--- s-/++ a- C++++ U+++ P- L- E-- W++ N++ o+ K- w+++ O? M-- V? PS+ PE- Y+ PGP t++ 5? X R++ tv-- b+ DI+++ D++ G e++>+++ h--- ++>+++ y+++*      Weapons extension: ma- k++ F+2 X If you think 'goto' is evil, try writing an Assembly program without JMP. -- TNCaver When I was six, there were no ones and zeroes - only zeroes. And not all of them worked. -- Ravi Bhavnani

[Super Lloyd]

I am still wondering if you are really throwing a tantrum for a "missing 2 lines function" or it is in fact a joke!? Haha! :laugh: Your seemingly deep anger make it all the more laughable! haha! :wtf: :rolleyes: :laugh:

All in one Menu-Ribbon Bar DirectX for WinRT/C# since 2013! Taking over the world since 1371!

[den2k88]

My tantrum is directeed to the pile of sunshine that is the .NET framework, in fact I usually make my own libraries anyway. Still for a "framework" so bloated not having a simple and fundamental function is basically an indication of utter failure.

GCS d--- s-/++ a- C++++ U+++ P- L- E-- W++ N++ o+ K- w+++ O? M-- V? PS+ PE- Y+ PGP t++ 5? X R++ tv-- b+ DI+++ D++ G e++>+++ h--- ++>+++ y+++*      Weapons extension: ma- k++ F+2 X If you think 'goto' is evil, try writing an Assembly program without JMP. -- TNCaver When I was six, there were no ones and zeroes - only zeroes. And not all of them worked. -- Ravi Bhavnani

[ZurdoDev]

Super Lloyd wrote:

you are the quick to hate type, are you not?

No.

Super Lloyd wrote:

One tiny method missing and boom I hate you MS!

I'm trying to fit in with the Lounge crowd. :-\

Super Lloyd wrote:

public static class StringExtensions { public static string Left(this string s, int n) { if (n >= s.Length) return ""; return s.Substring(s.Length - n); } }

You tried to sneak that one there. return "". How dare you. :mad:

There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

[Member 10952144]

While MS gave you the power of Linq in C#....this gives you an infinite amount of possibilities. That combined with extensions, and you are so much better off than with VB! It's true, you'll have to spend 2 minutes of your personal precious time to write this code once, and to remember to add this extension 'lib' to all your projects where you might need them....boohoo. Sth like this... one line of code...

public static string Left(this string inputString, int length) { return new string((from ch in inputString select ch).Take(length).ToArray()); }

Now you can just Left a string by doing string.Left(5)....so easy but 1000 times more powerful (and prob as many times more performant) than VB....

[ZurdoDev]

Member 10952144 wrote:

you'll have to spend 2 minutes of your personal precious time to write this code

Exactly!

There are only 10 types of people in the world, those who understand binary and those who don't.

[Slow Eddie]

Since when is increasing programmer/developer (Whatever the term hipsters are using these days...) "teaching bad habits" ?:confused:

[Member 10952144]

Well it'll be less now if you just copy/paste the code....I think 30 secs will do now. Is prob just about as much as VB would need to show you its 'intellisense' info on the Left function ;-)