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Comparison, Array.Sort Examples
This page was last reviewed on Apr 10, 2024.
Dot Net Perls
Comparison. This .NET type enables custom sorting. In C# it is often used with Array.Sort or List.Sort. We implement Comparison using its constructor.
Constructor
Shows a lambda
The target is a method that receives 2 parameters of the appropriate type and returns an int. It determines sorting order of the parameters.
Generic
Lambda example. We do not need to use a static method for the Comparison implementation. We can instead use a lambda expression. Here we sort on string lengths with a lambda Comparison.
Lambda
Shows a lambda
using System; string[] array = { "4444", "1", "22", "333" }; // Use lambda to sort on length. Array.Sort(array, (a, b) => a.Length.CompareTo(b.Length)); // Write result. Console.WriteLine("RESULT: {0}", string.Join(";", array));
RESULT: 1;22;333;4444
Delegate example. In this program we create an array of strings. We create a new Comparison object using the CompareLength method as the target.
Info We use CompareTo with the lengths of both strings. CompareTo returns an integer value indicating the comparison result.
CompareTo
Result We sort the string array by each string's length in ascending order with the delegate CompareLength.
using System; class Program { static int CompareLength(string a, string b) { // Return result of CompareTo with lengths of both strings. return a.Length.CompareTo(b.Length); } static void Main() { // Source array. string[] array = { "bird", "elephant", "dog", "cat", "mouse" }; // Display array. foreach (string element in array) { Console.WriteLine(element); } Console.WriteLine(); // Create Comparison instance and use it. Comparison<string> comparison = new Comparison<string>(CompareLength); Array.Sort(array, comparison); // Display array. foreach (string element in array) { Console.WriteLine(element); } } }
bird elephant dog cat mouse cat dog bird mouse elephant
Requirements. The Comparison type requires that you specify a method that receives two parameters of type T and then returns an int. You pass the method name to the constructor.
Tip You can often implicitly use the Comparison delegate by just passing the target method name.
Notes, target method. How do you implement the code inside the target method (like CompareLength)? Use the CompareTo method on a property, field, or other value from each type.
Discussion. There are many other examples of using Comparison. You can use Comparison without specifying the constructor explicitly. It is compatible with the lambda expression syntax.
Sort KeyValuePair List
Tuple
Also A Comparison can be used with the List.Sort or Array.Sort methods. Try caching the lambda for a small speedup.
Sort List, Lambda
Array.Sort
Summary. We looked at the Comparison type. We provided an example of the Comparison constructor. And we pointed out that it is not necessary to provide in all cases.
Dot Net Perls is a collection of tested code examples. Pages are continually updated to stay current, with code correctness a top priority.
Sam Allen is passionate about computer languages. In the past, his work has been recommended by Apple and Microsoft and he has studied computers at a selective university in the United States.
This page was last updated on Apr 10, 2024 (edit).
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