LINQ Unleashed for C#

by Kimmel, Paul

• ISBN13: 9780672329838
• ISBN10: 0672329832
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2008-08-19
• Publisher: Sams Publishing

Summary

Foreword by Darryl Hogan, Architect Evangelist, Microsoft Corporation Microsoftrs"s highly anticipated LINQ query technology makes it easy to retrieveanyinformation programmatically fromanydata source, no matter where it comes from or how itrs"s stored. Using LINQ, developers can query objects, relational databases, XML documents, and ADO.NET datasets--and do it all directly from C# 3.0, leveraging the powerful capabilities of LINQ. This is a definitive guide to getting real-world results with LINQ, using C# 3.0 and Visual Studio 2008. InLINQ Unleashed, Microsoft MVP Paul Kimmel covers every facet of LINQ programming, showing how LINQ can help you dramatically improve your productivity and build more reliable, maintainable applications. Kimmel begins by reviewing the state-of-the-art C# programming techniques LINQ uses, including anonymous types, partial methods, and Lambda expressions. Next, using realistic examples and easy-to-adapt sample code, he details the most powerful new LINQ techniques for accessing objects, databases, and XML. Yours"ll gain a deep and practical understanding of how LINQ works "under the hood"--and learn how to do everything from selecting data through integrating XML with other data models. Build efficient LINQ queries to .NET objects, SQL databases, and XML content Utilize anonymous types to reduce design time, coding effort, and debugging time Automatically generate .NET state machines with the new yield return construct Master LINQ query syntax, operators, extension methods, sorting, grouping, aggregate and set operations, and more Make the most of select--and use it in the business layer of your n-tier applications Query relational data stored in Microsoft SQL Server Use nullable types to eliminate unnecessary database access plumbing code Use LINQ with ADO.NET 3.0 and Microsoftrs"s powerful new Entity Framework Extract XML data without the hassles or complexity of XPath Automatically construct XML from CSV files and other non-XML data Query Active Directory by extending LINQ Introduction 1 Part I Getting Ready for LINQ 1 Programming with Anonymous Types 5 2 Using Compound Type Initialization 29 3 Defining Extension and Partial Methods 61 4 yield return : Using .NETrs"s State Machine Generator 85 5 Understanding Lambda Expressions and Closures 97 6 Using Standard Query Operators 121 Part II LINQ for Objects 7 Sorting and Grouping Queries 137 8 Using Aggregate Operations 151 9 Performing Set Operations 167 10 Mastering Select and SelectMany 185 11 Joining Query

Author Biography

Paul Kimmel is a four-time Microsoft MVP, the author of over a dozen books on object oriented programming and UML, including three books on Microsoft .NET, a columnist for codeguru.com, developer.com, informit.com, devsource.com, and devx.com, a cofounder of the Greater Lansing Area .NET Users Group (glugnet.org, East Lansing and Flint), a full-time software developer, and sometimes pilot. Paul still lives and works in the greater Lansing, Michigan, area (and hasn’t given up on the economy). After 15 years of independent consulting, Paul now works for EDS as an application architect.

Table of Contents

Introduction	p. 1
Getting Ready for LINQ
Programming with Anonymous Types	p. 5
Using Compound Type Initialization	p. 29
Defining Extension and Partial Methods	p. 61
yield return : Using .NETrsquo;s State Machine Generator	p. 85
Understanding Lambda Expressions and Closures	p. 97
Using Standard Query Operators	p. 121
LINQ for Objects
Sorting and Grouping Queries	p. 137
Using Aggregate Operations	p. 151
Performing Set Operations	p. 167
Mastering Select and SelectMany	p. 185
Joining Query Results	p. 211
Querying Outlook and Active Directory	p. 239
LINQ for Data
Querying Relational Data with LINQ	p. 265
Creating Better Entities and Mapping Inheritance and Aggregation	p. 289
Joining Database Tables with LINQ Queries	p. 309
Updating Anonymous Relational Data	p. 349
Introducing ADO.NET 3.0 and the Entity Framework	p. 383
LINQ for XML
Extracting Data from XML	p. 415
Comparing LINQ to XML with Other XML Technologies	p. 437
Constructing XML from Non-XML Data	p. 453
Emitting XML with the XmlWriter	p. 463
Combining XML with Other Data Models	p. 469
LINQ to XSD Supports Typed XML Programming	p. 485
Index
Table of Contents provided by Publisher. All Rights Reserved.

Excerpts

Introduction IntroductionBy the time you are holding this book in your hands, I will have 30 years in since the first time I wrote some code. That code was ROM-BASIC on a TRS-80 in Washington grammar school in Owosso, Michigan, and I was in the fifth grade. Making the "tank" slide back and forth shooting blips across the screen was neat. Changing the code to change blip speeds and numbers of targets was exhilarating. Three decades later and I get more excited each passing year. There are great technologies on the horizon like Microsoft Surface, Popfly, and LINQ. This book is about LINQ, or Language INtegrated Query.LINQ is a SQL-like language for C#. When I first saw it, I didn't like it. My first impression was that someone had glommed on a bastardization of C# and it was ugly like SQL can get. I didn't like it because I didn't understand it. However, I gave LINQ a second chance (as I want you to do) and discovered that LINQ is thoroughly integrated, tremendously powerful, and almost as much fun as a Tesla Roadster or doing hammerheads in an Extra 300L.The query capabilities of LINQ are extended to objects, SQL, DataSets, XML, XSD, entities, and can be extended to other providers like Active Directory or SharePoint. This means that you can write queries--that are similar in syntax--against objects, data, XML, XSD, entities, or Active Directory (with a little work) much like you would a SQL query in a database. And, LINQ is actually engineered artfully and brilliantly on top of generics as well as some new features in .NET 3.5, such as extension methods, anonymous types, and Lambda Expressions. Another very important characteristic of LINQ is that it clearly demonstrates Microsoft's willingness to innovate and take the best of existing technologies like Lambda Calculus--invented in the 1930s--and if it's good or great, incorporate these elements into the tools and languages we love.LINQ and its underpinnings are powerfulandchallenging, and in this book you will get what you need to know to completely understand all that makes LINQ work and begin using it immediately. You will learn about anonymous methods, extension methods, Lambda Expressions, state machines, how generics and the CodeDOM play a big role in powerful tools like LINQ, and writing LINQ queries and why you will want to do it in the bigger, grander scheme of things. You will also learn how to save a ton of time and effort by not hard-coding those elements that you will no longer need or want to hard-code, and you will have a better grasp of how LINQ fits into n-tier architectures without breaking guidelines that have helped you succeed to date.Brought to you by a four-time Microsoft MVP and columnist for over a decade,LINQ Unleashed for C#will teach you everything you need to know about LINQ and .NET 3.5 features and how to be more productive and have more fun than ever before. Conventions Used in This BookThe following typographic conventions are used in this book:Code lines, commands, statements, variables, and text you see onscreen appear in a monospace typeface.Occasionally in listings bold is used to draw attention to the snippet of code being discussed.Placeholders in syntax descriptions appear in an italic monospace typeface. You replace the placeholder with the actual filename, parameter, or whatever element it represents.Italicshighlight technical terms when they're being defined.A code-continuation icon is used before a line of code that is really a continuation of the preceding line. Sometimes a line of code is too long to fit as a single line on the page. If you see before a line of code, remember that it's part of the line immediately above it.The book also contains Notes,