How do I make a Control Array in C# 2010.NET?

Question

I recently moved from Visual Basic 6 to C# 2010 .NET.

In Visual Basic 6 there was an option to put how many control arrays you would like to use by changing the "index" on it.

I am wondering if this is possible in C#, if so how would I go about doing it with a class like:

func fc = new func();

But with more than just one array in fc, is this possible?

And to be more clarified,

Visual Basic 6 when you load a control like a text box or user control it has in the properties window a option for "Index" and if you change that to 0, 1, etc... it'll allow you to use all of those indexes, without loading multiple controls 50 times.

I think it might have something to do with an arraylist but I'm not entirely sure.

Thanks for any help.

Answer 1

That code snippet isn't going to get you very far. Creating a control array is no problem, just initialize it in the form constructor. You can then expose it as a property, although that's generally a bad idea since you don't want to expose implementation details. Something like this:

public partial class Form1 : Form {
    private TextBox[] textBoxes;

    public Form1() {
        InitializeComponent();
        textBoxes = new TextBox[] { textBox1, textBox2, textBox3 };
    }

    public ICollection<TextBox> TextBoxes {
        get { return textBoxes; }
    }
}

Which then lets you write:

var form = new Form1();
form.TextBoxes[0].Text = "hello";
form.Show();

But don't, let the form manage its own text boxes.

Answer 2

In .NET you would create an array of controls, then you would instance a TextBox control for each element of the array, setting the properties of the control and positioning it on the form:

    TextBox[] txtArray = new TextBox[500];
    for (int i = 0; i < txtArray.length; i++)
    {
      // instance the control
      txtArray[i] = new TextBox();
      // set some initial properties
      txtArray[i].Name = "txt" + i.ToString();
      txtArray[i].Text = "";
      // add to form
      Form1.Controls.Add(txtArray[i]);
      txtArray[i].Parent = Form1;
      // set position and size
      txtArray[i].Location = new Point(50, 50);
      txtArray[i].Size = new Size(200, 25);
    }
.
.
.
Form1.txt1.text = "Hello World!";

Unless your layout is more simplistic (i.e. rows and columns of textboxes) you may find using the designer to be easier, less time consuming and more maintainable.

Answer 3

Not exactly like VB6, but it is quite easy to write the code your self in c#.

If you create a control, like a Button in the designer you can copy the code from the *.Designer.cs file

It typically looks like this

private System.Windows.Forms.Button button1;
...
this.button1.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(40, 294);
this.button1.Name = "button1";
this.button1.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(75, 23);
this.button1.TabIndex = 14;
this.button1.Text = "Button1";
this.button1.UseVisualStyleBackColor = true;
this.button1.Click += new System.EventHandler(this.button1_Click);
...
this.Controls.Add(this.button1);

Cut that code out and paste in a method instead, returning the Button

private Button CreateButton()
{
    private System.Windows.Forms.Button button1;

    this.button1.Location = new System.Drawing.Point(40, 294); // <-- change location for each
    this.button1.Name = "button1";
    this.button1.Size = new System.Drawing.Size(75, 23);
    this.button1.TabIndex = 14; // <-- increase tab index or remove this line
    this.button1.Text = "Button1";
    this.button1.UseVisualStyleBackColor = true;
    this.button1.Click += new System.EventHandler(this.button1_Click);

    this.Controls.Add(this.button1);
    return button;
}

then call this method like this

List<Button> buttons = new List<Button>();
for(int i = 0; i < 10; i++)
{
    buttons.Add(CreateButton());
}