A hw was given to us to change a previous hw in C# which used 2d arrays and instead of using 2d arrays we use an Array list with variables declared in an object called Students.
I would like to use a method to calculate a student best mark; however, the method is giving me an error and a warning which are the following:
Error:
CS0161 'Form1.Calc_HighestMarkOutput(int)': not all code paths return a value.
Warning:
CS0162 Unreachable code detected.
Inside the arraylist the user inputed (through use of an overload constructor):
Student Name, Maths Mark, English Mark, Maltese Mark, Email Address.
and since in the method I am returning 3 highest marks in 3 subjects attained by all students, I decided to return an array. which will be accessed by a temporary array inside the main program by selectedindex.
Please help me find the problem.
And thanks in advance.
public int[] Calc_HighestMarkOutput(int HighestMarkIndex)
{
int[] HighestMarkOutput = new int[3];
int HighestMarkMaths = 0;
int HighestMarkEnglish = 0;
int HighestMarkMaltese = 0;
int TMPHighestMarkMaths = 0;
int TMPHighestMarkEnglish = 0;
int TMPHighestMarkMaltese = 0;
for (int i = 0; i < myStudents.Count; i++) //a loop through an array list.
{
if (myStudents[HighestMarkIndex].Maths_Result > HighestMarkMaths)
{
TMPHighestMarkMaths = myStudents[HighestMarkIndex].Maths_Result;
HighestMarkMaths = TMPHighestMarkMaths;
}
if (myStudents[HighestMarkIndex].English_Result > HighestMarkEnglish)
{
TMPHighestMarkEnglish = myStudents[HighestMarkIndex].English_Result;
HighestMarkEnglish = TMPHighestMarkEnglish;
}
if (myStudents[HighestMarkIndex].Maltese_Result > HighestMarkMaltese)
{
TMPHighestMarkMaltese = myStudents[HighestMarkIndex].Maltese_Result;
HighestMarkMaltese = TMPHighestMarkMaltese;
}
HighestMarkOutput[0] = HighestMarkMaths;
HighestMarkOutput[1] = HighestMarkEnglish;
HighestMarkOutput[2] = HighestMarkMaltese;
return HighestMarkOutput;
}
You are getting an error, because the return-statement is inside the loop. If the list is empty, the return statement will never be executed. Also, you know the result only after the loop has finished. So, place the return-statement after the loop.
Since the purpose of this method is to find the highest marks, it makes no sense to pass such an index into the routine as a parameter.
Using foreach is easier than for because you don't have to deal with indexes.
Instead of returning an array, return an unnamed student containing the results. You can drop useless temporary variables.
public Student Calc_HighestMarkOutput()
{
var result = new Student(); // You also might have to add a default constructor.
foreach (Student student in myStudents) {
if (student.Maths_Result > result.Maths_Result) {
result.Maths_Result = student.Maths_Result;
}
if (student.English_Result > result.English_Result) {
result.English_Result = student.English_Result;
}
if (student.Maltese_Result > result.Maltese_Result) {
result.Maltese_Result = student.Maltese_Result;
}
}
return result;
}
You could also use Math.Max to simplify finding the maximum value
foreach (Student student in myStudents) {
result.Maths_Result = Math.Max(result.Maths_Result, student.Maths_Result);
result.English_Result = Math.Max(result.English_Result, student.English_Result);
result.Maltese_Result = Math.Max(result.Maltese_Result, student.Maltese_Result);
}
With these refactorings, the method shrinks from 22 lines (not counting empty lines and lines containing only a brace) to 7 lines.
I have a battleship like terminal game, the user enters a coordinate like e2, and the program checks one of the instance variables of my object Box, it checks whether hasShip is true, if its true then it will make the coordinate e2 false, and give the output "Ship destroyed"
The problem is that all my objects are called a1,a2,a3,a4,a5,b1,b2 and so on.
I have created 25 instances of the Box class. All names as such.
Once the program gets input, either e4 ,e5 etc. I want to convert that string into an object.
For example( I want to do something like this )
target = Console.ReadLine();
target.hasShip == true;
I want to convert target into an object, then use target to use the methods of the Box class.
Because the other approach requires me to make loads of if statements, which isn't clean code, doesn't look good, and is a waste if you ask me.
Thanks in advance,
New Answer: use an Array
I am slow. I did not pay attention that you are making a battleship-like game, and that we know that the "boxes" make a rectangle. We can store this efficiently in an array.
Why I did not catch up to this fact earlier? I guess I need to wake up properly.
So, use an array:
var board = new Box[5, 5];
Now, to populate it, we can do a double for loop:
for(var indexRow = 0; indexRow < 5; indexRow++)
{
for(var indexCol = 0; indexCol < 5; indexCol++)
{
board[indexRow, indexCol] = new Box();
}
}
Note: pay attention that the indexes go from 0 to 4. For a total of 5 values: {0, 1, 2, 3, 5}.
And to query from it, we will need the indexes...
Addendum on populating the array
In comments, OP has said that each Box has an id and the ship positions are picked at random.
We can give the id in the loop:
for(var indexRow = 0; indexRow < 5; indexRow++)
{
for(var indexCol = 0; indexCol < 5; indexCol++)
{
var box = new Box();
box.vhID = (((char)(((int)'a') + indexRow))).ToString() + ((char)(((int)'1') + indexCol)).ToString();
board[indexRow, indexCol] = box;
}
}
What I am doing here is constructing the id from the indexes. Basically taking the value of 'a' and adding the indexRow will give us 'a' when indexRow is 0, 'b' when it is 1 and so on. Similarly, we get the digit that represents the column.
Note: We convert the char to int, do the addition, then convert back to char... and then from char to string. Once we have string, we can concatenate them.
I do not think we need this id. But, hey, you can do it like this.
OP also mentions that he will pick 4 ship positions at random. Fair enough:
var random = new Random();
for (var ships = 0; ships < 4; ships++)
{
board[random.Next(0, 4), random.Next(0, 4)].hasShip = true;
}
Since the user inputs an string, I suggest to create a function to convert it to the index pair:
var input = Console.ReadLine();
if (TryGetCoordinates(input, out int irow, out int icol))
{
var target = board[irow, icol];
}
else
{
Console.WriteLine("The cell {0} does not exist.", input);
}
// ...
bool TryGetCoordinates(string cell, out int indexRow, out int indexCol)
{
// ...
}
Start by validating null:
bool TryGetCoordinates(string cell, out int indexRow, out int indexCol)
{
indexRow = -1;
indexCol = -1;
if (cell == null)
{
return false;
}
// ...
}
Note: Feel free to use Trim, ToUpper or ToUpperInvariant.
We know that must be a letter followed by a digit, we can validate the length:
bool TryGetCoordinates(string cell, out int indexRow, out int indexCol)
{
indexRow = -1;
indexCol = -1;
if (cell == null)
{
return false;
}
if (cell.Length != 2)
{
return false;
}
// ...
}
We extract the characters and from them the coordinates. Noting that the first one is a letter, and the other a digit. We can also validate they are withing bounds.
bool TryGetCoordinates(string cell, out int indexRow, out int indexCol)
{
indexRow = -1;
indexCol = -1;
if (cell == null)
{
return false;
}
if (cell.Length != 2)
{
return false;
}
indexRow = (int)cell[0] - (int)'a';
indexCol = (int)cell[1] - (int)'1';
return indexRow < 5 && indexRow >= 0 && indexCol < 5 && indexCol >= 0;
}
And of course, you can do a loop of the validation similar to what was explained in the old answer.
Note: the issue with value types I describe in the old answer still applies with the array.
Old Answer: Use a Dictionary
I believe you do not want to convert the string to an object (the string is an object by the way), you want to pick the Box object you previously created based on the string. And you want to do it without using if statements. What you need is a dictionary.
So, you would have Dictionary<string, Box> meaning that it is a dictionary that you can query by string and stores Box.
Addendums:
In this case, string is the key type, by which we will access the dictionary. When we add an object to the dictionary we identify it with a key, and when we retrieve it, we also use the key. The key does not have to be string, you can choose a different type. string is convenient in this case because it is what you get from Console.ReadLine().
You can create the dictionary to store whatever type you need. If you do not need Box, you can create a dictionary that stores something else.
Creating and populating the Dictionary
Then, you add to the Dictionary all your Box objects, like this:
var dict = new Dictionary<string, Box>();
// ...
dict.Add("a1", CreateBoxA1());
Where CreateBoxA1 represents whatever means you have to create the object. No, you do not need to create a method for each Box... you can do it like this:
dict.Add("a1", new Box());
Or whatever. I do not know how you create them, so consider that a placeholder, ok? ok.
Querying and retrieving values from the Dictionary
Once you have all your Box instances in your dictionary, you can get the one you need using the string:
Console.WriteLine("Enter the name of the Box:");
var name = Console.ReadLine();
var target = dict[name];
Addendum: The value you get from dict[name] is the value that you added to the dictionary with that key. So, if the user typed "a1" it dict[name] will be the value that we added with "a1" (dict.Add("a1", new Box());). Again, if what you need is not Box you can create a dictionary to store a different type.
Input validation
You can also use the Dictionary to validate if the string corresponds to a Box that exists, for example:
Console.WriteLine("Enter the name of the Box:");
var name = Console.ReadLine();
if (dict.KeyExists(name))
{
var target = dict[name];
// ...
}
else
{
Console.WriteLine("The Box {0} does not exist", name);
}
It goes without saying, but... you can make a loop based on that, for example:
Box target = null;
while(true)
{
Console.WriteLine("Enter the name of the Box:");
var name = Console.ReadLine();
if (dict.KeyExists(name))
{
target = dict[name];
break;
}
Console.WriteLine("The Box {0} does not exist", name);
}
Also, it goes without saying, but... you can add your own validations and sanitation steps. For example using ToUpper, ToUpperInvariant or Trim. And I would remind you that changing strings to lower or upper case is culture sensitive.
See also: Best Practices for Using Strings in .NET.
Editing an removing objects from the dictionary
Once you have the object you retrieved from the Dictionary...
var target = dict[name];
We can use it, and even modify it:
var target = dict[name];
if (target.hasShip) // no need for "== true" if hasShip bool
{
target.hasShip = false;
Console.WriteLine("Ship Destroyed");
}
An special note must be done if Box is value type. For a custom type that means that it is not a class but a struct. The problem with value types is that they are copied on assignment, meaning that when you do var target = dict[name]; with a value type, you get a copy. You must then update the dictionary once you manipulated it:
var target = dict[name];
if (target.hasShip) // no need for "== true" if hasShip bool
{
target.hasShip = false;
dict[name] = target;
Console.WriteLine("Ship Destroyed");
}
Note: As I said above, this is only needed for value types.
And you can even remove the Box from the dictionary if that is necesary:
dict.Remove(name);
I have this code today:
MyListView.Items[index].Selected = true;
And I want to control that the value of index is valid. How do I check within the ListViewItemCollection if that element exists?
You would have to check if index is within the range of the collection before trying to access it if you do not wish for an IndexOutOfRangeException to be thrown.
This can be done something like this:
if (index < MyListView.Items.Count()){
MyListView.Items[index].selected = true;
} else {
// handle the index being outside the collection
}
I have the following method that checks if I have object in the first index and add to it if empty
private void GetRestriction(TableRow[] RistrictionsArgs)
{
var restrictionList = new List<Restriction>();
foreach (var restriction in RistrictionsArgs)
{
var Id = int.Parse(restriction.Values.ElementAt(1));
var test = restrictionList[Id - 1];
if (test == null)
{
restrictionList[Id - 1] = new Restriction()
{
SequenceID = Id.ToString(),
};
test = restrictionList[Id - 1];
}
}
}
The problem I am having is when it reaches the line var test = restriction[Id-1]; it throws 'Index was out of range. Must be non-negative and less than the size of the collection.'
What am I missing? how can check the first element is empty and then add element to it?
No items exist in restrictionList (the length is 0), so trivially restrictionList[anyIndex] is invalid and will throw the reported exception. Lists do not automatically grow on an index operation.
To check if the the collection is empty, use restrictionList.Length == 0 (or other check as appropriate to see if a particular Id is in range). Then use Add to add a new element - not another index which will also throw an exception for the same reason as above.
Showing the actual ID's and explaining the algorithm and expected result will likely lead to better answers, as the above notes say what is currently wrong, and not necessarily "how write it correctly".
I have some problem with this line of code:
if(String.IsNullOrEmpty(m_nameList[index]))
What have I done wrong?
EDIT: The m_nameList is underlined with red color in VisualStudio, and it says "the name 'm_nameList' does not exist in the current context"??
EDIT 2: I added some more code
class SeatManager
{
// Fields
private readonly int m_totNumOfSeats;
// Constructor
public SeatManager(int maxNumOfSeats)
{
m_totNumOfSeats = maxNumOfSeats;
// Create arrays for name and price
string[] m_nameList = new string[m_totNumOfSeats];
double[] m_priceList = new double[m_totNumOfSeats];
}
public int GetNumReserved()
{
int totalAmountReserved = 0;
for (int index = 0; index <= m_totNumOfSeats; index++)
{
if (String.IsNullOrEmpty(m_nameList[index]))
{
totalAmountReserved++;
}
}
return totalAmountReserved;
}
}
}
If m_nameList is null, that will still blow up, because it will try to find the element to pass to String.IsNullOrEmpty. You'd want:
if (m_nameList == null || String.IsNullOrEmpty(m_nameList[index]))
That's also assuming that index is going to be valid if m_nameList is non-null.
Of course, this is checking if the element of an array is null or empty, or if the array reference itself is null. If you just want to check the array itself (as your title suggests) you want:
if (m_nameList == null || m_nameList.Length == 0)
EDIT: Now we can see your code, there are two problems:
As Henk showed in his answer, you're trying to use a local variable when you need a field
You're also going to get an ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException (once you've used a field) due to this:
for (int index = 0; index <= m_totNumOfSeats; index++)
That will perform m_totNumOfSeats + 1 iterations because of your bound. You want:
for (int index = 0; index < m_totNumOfSeats; index++)
Note that m_nameList[m_totNumOfSeats] is not valid, because array indexes
start at 0 in C#. So for an array of 5 elements, the valid indexes are 0, 1, 2, 3, 4.
Another option for your GetNumReserved method would be to use:
int count = 0;
foreach (string name in m_nameList)
{
if (string.IsNullOrEmpty(name))
{
count++;
}
}
return count;
Or using LINQ, it's a one-liner:
return m_nameList.Count(string.IsNullOrEmpty);
(Are you sure you haven't got it the wrong way round though? I would have thought reservations would be the ones where the name isn't null or empty, not the ones where it is null or empty.)
If it's the wrong way round, it would be this instead in LINQ:
return m_nameList.Count(name => !string.IsNullOrEmpty(name));
After Edit2:
You are defining m_nameList as a local variable of the constructor.
The rest of your code needs it as a field:
class SeatManager
{
// Fields
private readonly int m_totNumOfSeats;
private string[] m_nameList;
private double[] m_priceList;
// Constructor
public SeatManager(int maxNumOfSeats)
{
m_totNumOfSeats = maxNumOfSeats;
// Create arrays for name and price
m_nameList = new string[m_totNumOfSeats];
m_priceList = new double[m_totNumOfSeats];
}
....
}
To avoid the error you can perform some pre conditions in the if, like these :
if(m_nameList == null || index < 0 || m_nameList.Length < index || String.IsNullOrEmpty(m_nameList[index]))
This should works fine(without causing error) in almost any conditions ...