Quick way to create a list of values in C#?

Question

I'm looking for a quick way to create a list of values in C#. In Java I frequently use the snippet below:

List<String> l = Arrays.asList("test1","test2","test3");

Is there any equivalent in C# apart from the obvious one below?

IList<string> l = new List<string>(new string[] {"test1","test2","test3"});

Answer 1

Check out C# 3.0's Collection Initializers.

var list = new List<string> { "test1", "test2", "test3" };

Answer 2

If you're looking to reduce clutter, consider

var lst = new List<string> { "foo", "bar" };

This uses two features of C# 3.0: type inference (the var keyword) and the collection initializer for lists.

Alternatively, if you can make do with an array, this is even shorter (by a small amount):

var arr = new [] { "foo", "bar" };

Answer 3

In C# 3, you can do:

IList<string> l = new List<string> { "test1", "test2", "test3" };

This uses the new collection initializer syntax in C# 3.

In C# 2, I would just use your second option.