How to inherit constructors?

Question

Yes, you will have to implement the constructors that make sense for each derivation and then use the base keyword to direct that constructor to the appropriate base class or the this keyword to direct a constructor to another constructor in the same class.

If the compiler made assumptions about inheriting constructors, we wouldn't be able to properly determine how our objects were instantiated. In the most part, you should consider why you have so many constructors and consider reducing them to only one or two in the base class. The derived classes can then mask out some of them using constant values like null and only expose the necessary ones through their constructors.

Update

In C#4 you could specify default parameter values and use named parameters to make a single constructor support multiple argument configurations rather than having one constructor per configuration.

387 constructors?? That's your main problem. How about this instead?

public Foo(params int[] list) {...}

Yes, you have to copy all 387 constructors. You can do some reuse by redirecting them:

  public Bar(int i): base(i) {}
  public Bar(int i, int j) : base(i, j) {}

but that's the best you can do.

Too bad we're kind of forced to tell the compiler the obvious:

Subclass(): base() {}
Subclass(int x): base(x) {}
Subclass(int x,y): base(x,y) {}

I only need to do 3 constructors in 12 subclasses, so it's no big deal, but I'm not too fond of repeating that on every subclass, after being used to not having to write it for so long. I'm sure there's a valid reason for it, but I don't think I've ever encountered a problem that requires this kind of restriction.

Don't forget that you can also redirect constructors to other constructors at the same level of inheritance:

public Bar(int i, int j) : this(i) { ... }
                            ^^^^^

Another simple solution could be to use a structure or simple data class that contains the parameters as properties; that way you can have all the default values and behaviors set up ahead of time, passing the "parameter class" in as the single constructor parameter:

public class FooParams
{
    public int Size...
    protected myCustomStruct _ReasonForLife ...
}
public class Foo
{
    private FooParams _myParams;
    public Foo(FooParams myParams)
    {
          _myParams = myParams;
    }
}

This avoids the mess of multiple constructors (sometimes) and gives strong typing, default values, and other benefits not provided by a parameter array. It also makes it easy to carry forward since anything that inherits from Foo can still get to, or even add to, FooParams as needed. You still need to copy the constructor, but you always (most of the time) only (as a general rule) ever (at least, for now) need one constructor.

public class Bar : Foo
{
    public Bar(FooParams myParams) : base(myParams) {}
}

I really like the overloaded Initailize() and Class Factory Pattern approaches better, but sometimes you just need to have a smart constructor. Just a thought.