C# - BASIC SYNTAX
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C# is an object-oriented prog ramming lang uag e. In Object-Oriented Prog ramming methodolog y, a prog ram
consists of various objects that interact with each other by means of actions. T he actions that an object may take
are called methods. Objects of the same kind are said to have the same type or, more often, are said to be in the
same class.
For example, let us consider a Rectang le object. It has attributes like leng th and width. Depending upon the
desig n, it may need ways for accepting the values of these attributes, calculating area and display details.
Let us look at an implementation of a Rectang le class and discuss C# basic syntax, on the basis of our
observations in it:
using System;
namespace RectangleApplication
{
class Rectangle
{
// member variables
double length;
double width;
public void Acceptdetails()
{
length = 4.5;
width = 3.5;
}
public double GetArea()
{
return length * width;
}
public void Display()
{
Console.WriteLine("Length: {0}", length);
Console.WriteLine("Width: {0}", width);
Console.WriteLine("Area: {0}", GetArea());
}
}
class ExecuteRectangle
{
static void Main(string[] args)
{
Rectangle r = new Rectangle();
r.Acceptdetails();
r.Display();
Console.ReadLine();
}
}
}
When the above code is compiled and executed, it produces the following result:
Length: 4.5
Width: 3.5
Area: 15.75
The using Keyword
T he first statement in any C# prog ram is
using System;
T he using keyword is used for including the namespaces in the prog ram. A prog ram can include multiple using
statements.
The class Keyword
T he c lass keyword is used for declaring a class.
Comments in C#
Comments are used for explaining code. Compilers ig nore the comment entries. T he multiline comments in C#
prog rams start with /* and terminates with the characters */ as shown below:
/* This program demonstrates
The basic syntax of C# programming
Language */
Sing le-line comments are indicated by the '//' symbol. For example,
}//end class Rectangle
Member Variables
Variables are attributes or data members of a class, used for storing data. In the preceding prog ram, the
Rectangle class has two member variables named length and width.
Member Functions
Functions are set of statements that perform a specific task. T he member functions of a class are declared within
the class. Our sample class Rectang le contains three member functions: AcceptDetails, GetArea and Display.
Instantiating a Class
In the preceding prog ram, the class ExecuteRectangle is used as a class, which contains the Main() method and
instantiates the Rectangle class.
Identifiers
An identifier is a name used to identify a class, variable, function, or any other user-defined item. T he basic rules
for naming classes in C# are as follows:
A name must beg in with a letter that could be followed by a sequence of letters, dig its (0 - 9) or
underscore. T he first character in an identifier cannot be a dig it.
It must not contain any embedded space or symbol like ? - +! @ # % ^ & * ( ) [ ] { } . ; : " ' / and \. However,
an underscore ( _ ) can be used.
It should not be a C# keyword.
C# Keywords
Keywords are reserved words predefined to the C# compiler. T hese keywords cannot be used as identifiers;
however, if you want to use these keywords as identifiers, you may prefix the keyword with the @ character.
In C#, some identifiers have special meaning in context of code, such as g et and set, these are called contextual
keywords.
T he following table lists the reserved keywords and contextual keywords in C#:
Reserved Keywords
abstract as base bool break byte case
catch char checked class const continue decimal
default deleg ate do double else enum event
explicit extern false finally fixed float for
foreach g oto if implicit in in (g eneric int
modifier)
interface internal is lock long namespace new
null object operator out out override params
(g eneric
modifier)
private protected public readonly ref return sbyte
sealed short sizeof stackalloc static string struct
switch this throw true try typeof uint
ulong unchecked unsafe ushort using virtual void
volatile while
Contextual Keywords
add alias ascending descending dynamic from g et
g lobal g roup into join let orderby partial
(type)
partial remove select set
(method)
