📓 Class Fields and Constructors
We know a lot about classes and namespaces at this point, but our Shape Tracker application doesn't do much at all. Let's update our Triangle class to have fields and a constructor.
Adding Fields​
In JavaScript we often added properties to the objects we created. Well in C#, we add fields. In very simple terms, a C# field is exactly what a JavaScript property is. In more technical terms, a C# field is a variable of any type that is declared directly in a class.
Let's see what these look like.
namespace ShapeTracker.Models
{
public class Triangle
{
public int Side1;
public int Side2 = 4;
public int Side3;
}
}
We've created three fields: Side1, Side2, and Side3. These are meant to hold the three integer values that we'll use to determine the type of a triangle.
As we can see, Side1, Side2, and Side3 look like variables declared within a C# class. Well that's what a field is in C#.
We can also describe these fields as members of the Triangle class, since they belong to the Triangle class.
Notice that Side2 looks different from the other fields. That's because we've assigned Side2 an initial value of 4. We can give initial values to any class field we create.
Also notice the keyword public. This is one of many access level modifiers. As modifiers, keywords like public specify the level of protection this data has in our application. As public, our three fields can be accessed from anywhere in our application.
As far as naming conventions, public fields should be in Pascal case, or "UpperCamelCase". We are using Side1, but we could also use SideOne.
Let's look at that next — how to access these fields.
Accessing Fields​
Let's update our code in Program.cs to access one of these fields to get a sense of how that works. Update your code as follows:
using System;
using ShapeTracker.Models;
namespace ShapeTracker
{
public class Program
{
static void Main()
{
Triangle testTriangle = new Triangle();
Console.WriteLine(testTriangle.GetType());
// new code below
testTriangle.Side1 = 65;
testTriangle.Side3 = 88;
Console.WriteLine($"Side one of the triangle: {testTriangle.Side1}");
Console.WriteLine($"Side two of the triangle: {testTriangle.Side2}");
Console.WriteLine($"Side three of the triangle: {testTriangle.Side3}");
}
}
}
The first two lines of the Main() method are the same. Below that is new code.
Similar to JavaScript, we use dot notation to access fields, like testTriangle.Side1. Note that we cannot use brackets [] to access fields like we were able to with JavaScript properties. In C# brackets are used to apply indexing, like accessing an array element by its index location.
Take note that all of the fields we created are instance fields, which means that we access them on an instance of the Triangle class, specifically testTriangle, and not the class itself.
Within the new Console.WriteLine() statements, notice that we're using string interpolation to combine strings with variables.
We can now run our program with dotnet run in the ShapeTracker project directory and we'll get the following output:
ShapeTracker.Models.Triangle
Side one of the triangle: 65
Side two of the triangle: 4
Side three of the triangle: 88
We now have a Triangle with three sides.
Adding a Constructor​
Let's improve our lives as developers and add a custom constructor that sets the values of the three sides when the triangle is created.
A constructor is a method that is called when a new instance of a class is created. Any information regarding the initial setup of a new object can be included in a constructor.
Here's how we'll update Triangle.cs:
namespace ShapeTracker.Models
{
public class Triangle
{
public int Side1;
public int Side2; // no longer setting a default value
public int Side3;
public Triangle(int length1, int length2, int length3)
{
Side1 = length1;
Side2 = length2;
Side3 = length3;
}
}
}
To create a class constructor, we simply need to define a method of the same name as the class.
The access modifier public means this method is available anywhere in our application.
Our constructor can take none or multiple parameters. Each of these parameters (length1, length2, and length3) correspond to the fields a Triangle object should have (Side1, Side2, Side3). We can see within the curly braces of the constructor method that we assign each parameter as the value of a field.
Between the two curly braces { } is the body of our constructor method — any code that we want the constructor to execute. Here, we're setting the values of our three fields, but we could perform other actions as well.
Note that the class's fields are in Pascal case while the constructor's parameters are lowerCamelCase. That's because the parameters are variables.
Using the Constructor​
Constructors create new instances of a class when the new keyword is used. new denotes that we're creating a new instance of this class:
Triangle coolTriangle = new Triangle(100, 010, 001);
When we call our constructor, we need to pass in an argument for each parameter, or else we'll get a compiler error. For example, if we put no arguments into our Triangle() constructor call, we'll get this error:
/Users/staff/Desktop/ShapeTracker.Solution/ShapeTracker/Program.cs(10,35): error CS7036: There is no argument given that corresponds to the required formal parameter 'length1' of 'Triangle.Triangle(int, int, int)' [/Users/staff/Desktop/ShapeTracker.Solution/ShapeTracker/ShapeTracker.csproj] The build failed. Fix the build errors and run again.
Let's update the user interface code in Program.cs to use the constructor we created:
using System;
using ShapeTracker.Models;
namespace ShapeTracker
{
class Program
{
static void Main()
{
Triangle testTriangle = new Triangle(3,4,5);
Console.WriteLine($"Side one of the triangle: {testTriangle.Side1}");
Console.WriteLine($"Side two of the triangle: {testTriangle.Side2}");
Console.WriteLine($"Side three of the triangle: {testTriangle.Side3}");
}
}
}
Now when we run our console app, we'll get this output:
Side one of the triangle: 3
Side two of the triangle: 4
Side three of the triangle: 5
Up next, we'll add a method that determines what type of triangle we have: isosceles, equilateral, scalene, or not a triangle.