Comparison Between Properties and Indexers

Comparison Between Properties and Indexers

by: mosessaur

Indexers permit instances of a class or struct to be indexed in the same way as arrays. Indexers are similar to properties. Except for the differences shown in the following table, all of the rules defined for property accessors apply to indexer accessors as well.

Property:

-Identified by its name.

-Accessed through a simple name or a member access.

-Can be a static or an instance member.

-A get accessor of a property has no parameters.

-A set accessor of a property contains the implicit value parameter.

Indexer: -Identified by its signature.

-Accessed through an element access.

-Must be an instance member.

-A get accessor of an indexer has the same formal parameter list as the indexer.

-A set accessor of an indexer has the same formal parameter list as the indexer, in addition to the value parameter.

Indexer Declaration:

General:

accessModifier returnType this[IndexType1 indexName1,
          IndexType2 indexName2, IndexType3 indexName3, .....]
{
    get
    {
        //use indexName1, indexName2, indexName3 .. to get data
    }
    set
    {
        //use indexName1, indexName2, indexName3 .. to set data
    }
}

How to Create an indexer from VS.Net:

-right click on your class name or any class you want to add an indexer inside it.

-From the (Add->) menu item choose (Add Indexer []), "Add->Add Indexer"

-Then provide your Indexer information like accessModifier, returnType & parameter List.

For more information & examples use the keyword "indexers" to search in side MSDN

The Code: Indexers Project