C# Assigning to strings from a public class and list

Question

so far my code does the following.

Ask user for a numeric amount for 'players'
Then asks for names for each of the players which is added to a list and class

I'd like to call those names from the list or class (not really sure how class works) and assign it to a new string. Here's what I got so far:

public class NameVariable
{
    public int ID { get; set; }
    public string Name { get; set; }
}

class Program
{
    static void Main(string[] args)
    {
        bool IsUserWrong = false;

        Console.WriteLine("Write amount of players");

        while (!IsUserWrong)
        {
            int TotalPlayers;
            while (!Int32.TryParse(Console.ReadLine(), out TotalPlayers))
            {
                Console.WriteLine("Value must be numeric.");
            }

            if (TotalPlayers >= 12 && TotalPlayers <= 16)
            {
                List<NameVariable> PlayerList = new List<NameVariable>();

                for (int index = 0; index < TotalPlayers; index++)
                {
                    Console.WriteLine("Enter player {0}'s name:", index + 1);
                    PlayerList.Add(new NameVariable
                    {
                        Name = Console.ReadLine(),
                        ID = index
                    });
                }

                // string player1 = ???
                // string player2 = ???
                // and so on for 12-16 players
            } 
            else
            {
                Console.WriteLine("Please enter a value between 12 and 16.");
            }
        }
    }
}

I know that a foreach loop can be used to display all of the variables in the NameVariable class. Would just like to know how to assign each variable to a different string.

Before using the class I just used the list which worked by using

string player1 = PlayerList[0];
string player2 = PlayerList[1];
// and so on for the remaining players

Thanks in advance!

Collections are supposed to replace numbered variables like that; no need for them now. — BradleyDotNET
– BradleyDotNET, Commented Sep 19, 2017 at 20:30

oopsdazie · Accepted Answer · 2017-09-20 13:04:13Z

2

it's just

string player1 = PlayerList[0].Name;
string player2 = PlayerList[1].Name;
...

Essentially your list contains NameVariable objects. PlayerList[index] gives you the object, and .Name gives you the property value of the object.

If you want a specific player name by a specific ID number, you can use LINQ (just to give you a hint)

string player = PlayerList.Where(p => p.ID == WhateverIDNumber).First().Name;

edited Sep 20, 2017 at 13:04

answered Sep 19, 2017 at 20:38

oopsdazie

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1 Comment

mason Over a year ago

While this is all true, it should be pointed out that hardcoding it based on certain indexes defeats the purpose of using a collection in the first place.

Sach · Accepted Answer · 2017-09-19 21:21:46Z

While the answer to your immediate question, i.e., how to access properties of a class object, is as others have shown, I feel like this code has a bigger problem. That is you're trying to do too much in one function, namely, Main(). So I advice to in fact try and refactor your code so that one function does one thing. Something like:

public static int GetNumberOfPlayers()
{
    Console.Write("Enter number of players: ");
    int totalPlayers;
    while (!Int32.TryParse(Console.ReadLine(), out totalPlayers))
    {
        Console.WriteLine("Value must be numeric.");
    }
    return totalPlayers;
}

public static List<NameVariable> GetPlayerList(int num)
{
    var list = new List<NameVariable>();
    for (int i = 0; i < num; i++)
    {
        Console.WriteLine("Enter player {0}'s name:", i + 1);
        list.Add(new NameVariable
        {
            Name = Console.ReadLine(),
            ID = i
        });
    }
    return list;
}

public static void DisplayPlayers(List<NameVariable> list)
{
    foreach(var player in list)
    {
        Console.WriteLine("Player {0}, Name: {1}", player.ID, player.Name);
    }
}

public static void CantThinkOfAGoodName()
{
    while (true)
    {
        int totalPlayers = GetNumberOfPlayers();
        if (totalPlayers > 16 || totalPlayers < 12)
        {
            Console.WriteLine("Please enter a value between 12 and 16.");
        }
        else
        {
            var playerList = GetPlayerList(totalPlayers);
            DisplayPlayers(playerList);
            break;
        }
    }
}

public static void Main()
{
    CantThinkOfAGoodName();
    Console.ReadLine();
}

I've taken your advice and split up the sections in main to separate parts! Helps with using the same code over and over too.

Daniel Manta · Accepted Answer · 2017-09-28 10:42:09Z

0

Not sure if it helps but you can use an indexer to get players by name.

public NameVariable this[string name]

Let's say you create a class for the colection

public class NameColection : List<NameVariable>
{
    public NameVariable this[string name]
    {
        get
        {
            return this.FirstOrDefault(n => n.Name == name);
        }
    }
}

Then you access players by name

var players = new NameColection()
{
    new NameVariable() { ID = 1 , Name = "John" },
    new NameVariable() { ID = 2 , Name = "Paul" },
    new NameVariable() { ID = 3 , Name = "George" },
    new NameVariable() { ID = 4 , Name = "Ringo" }
};
var player1 = players["John"];

As NameColection inhertits from List, you will be able to add, remove or modify items the usual way.

edited Sep 28, 2017 at 10:42

answered Sep 19, 2017 at 22:06

Daniel Manta

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