.NET Gotchas

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.NET Gotchas

75 Ways to Improve Your C# and VB.NET Programs

By: Venkat Subramaniam
Publisher:: O'Reilly Media
Released:: May 2005
Pages:: 396

Description

The ultimate guide for pain-free coding, .NET Gotchas from O'Reilly contains 75 common .NET programming pitfalls--and advice on how to avoid them. Now you can steer away from application performance problems, or tainted code that just doesn't work right. It's the ideal resource for .NET developers yearning for a more productive, stress-free existence.

Full Description

Table of Contents

Chapter 1 CLR/Framework Gotchas
1. GOTCHA #1 Type alias size doesn't match what you're familiar with
2. GOTCHA #2 struct and class differ in behavior
3. GOTCHA #3 Returning value types from a method/property is risky
4. GOTCHA #4 You can't force calls to your value-type constructors
5. GOTCHA #5 String concatenation is expensive
6. GOTCHA #6 Exceptions may go unhandled
7. GOTCHA #7 Uninitialized event handlers aren't treated gracefully
8. GOTCHA #8 Division operation isn't consistent between types
9. GOTCHA #9 Typeless ArrayList isn't type-safe
10. GOTCHA #10 Type.GetType() may not locate all types
11. GOTCHA #11 Public key reported by sn.exe is inconsistent
Chapter 2 Visual Studio and Compiler Gotchas
1. GOTCHA #12 Compiler warnings may not be benign
2. GOTCHA #13 Ordering of catch processing isn't consist across languages
3. GOTCHA #14 Type.GetType() might fail at run-time
4. GOTCHA #15 rethrow isn't consistent
5. GOTCHA #16 Default of Option Strict (off) isn't good
6. GOTCHA #17 Versioning may lead to Serialization headaches
7. GOTCHA #18 Creating Web apps can be painful
8. GOTCHA #19 Naming XML documentation for IntelliSense support isn't intuitive
Chapter 3 Language and API Gotchas
1. GOTCHA #20 Singleton isn't guaranteed process-wide
2. GOTCHA #21 Default performance of Data.ReadXML Data.ReadXML Data.ReadXML
3. GOTCHA #22 enum lacks type-safety
4. GOTCHA #23 Copy Constructor hampers exensibility
5. GOTCHA #24 Clone() has limitations
6. GOTCHA #25 Access to static/Shared C# code examples Shared members isn't enforced consistently
7. GOTCHA #26 Details of exception may be hidden
8. GOTCHA #27 Object initialization sequence isn't consistent
9. GOTCHA #28 Polymorphism kicks in prematurely
10. GOTCHA #29 Unit testing private methods testing private methods testing private methods
Chapter 4 Language Interoperability Gotchas
1. GOTCHA #30 Common Language Specification Compliance isn't the default
2. GOTCHA #31 Optional parameters break interoperability
3. GOTCHA #32 Mixing case between class members breaks interoperability
4. GOTCHA #33 Name collision with keywords breaks interoperability
5. GOTCHA #34 Defining an array isn't consistent
Chapter 5 Garbage Collection Gotchas
1. GOTCHA #35 Writing Finalize() is rarely a good idea
2. GOTCHA #36 Releasing managed resources in Finalize() can wreak havoc
3. GOTCHA #37 Rules to invoke base.Finalize() aren't consistent
4. GOTCHA #38 Depending on Finalize() can tie up critical resources
5. GOTCHA #39 Using Finalize() on disposed objects is costly
6. GOTCHA #40 Implementing IDisposable isn't enough
7. GOTCHA #41 Using the Dispose Design Pattern doesn't guarantee cleanup
Chapter 6 Inheritance and Polymorphism Gotchas
1. GOTCHA #42 Runtime Type Identification can hurt extensibility
2. GOTCHA #43 Using new/shadows causes "hideous hiding"
3. GOTCHA #44 Compilers are lenient toward forgotten override/overrides
4. GOTCHA #45 Compilers lean toward hiding virtual methods
5. GOTCHA #46 Exception handling can break polymorphism
6. GOTCHA #47 Signature mismatches can lead to method hiding
Chapter 7 Multithreading Gotchas
1. GOTCHA #48 The Thread class Thread class Thread class
2. GOTCHA #49 Foreground threads may prevent a program from terminating
3. GOTCHA #50 Background threads don't terminate gracefully
4. GOTCHA #51 Interrupt () kicks in only when a thread is blocked
5. GOTCHA #52 ThreadAbortException—a hot potato
6. GOTCHA #53 Environment.Exit() brings down the CLR
7. GOTCHA #54 ResetAbort() may lead to surprises
8. GOTCHA #55 Abort() takes time to clean up
9. GOTCHA #56 Calling Type.GetType() may not return what you expect
10. GOTCHA #57 Locking on globally visible objects is too sweeping
11. GOTCHA #58 Threads from the thread pool are scarce
12. GOTCHA #59 Threads invoked using delegates behave like background threads
13. GOTCHA #60 Passing parameters threads parameters to threads is tricky
14. GOTCHA #61 Exceptions thrown from threads in the pool are lost exceptions lost
15. GOTCHA #62 Accessing WinForm controls from arbitrary threads is dangerous
16. GOTCHA #63 Web-service proxy may fail when used for multiple asynchronous calls
17. GOTCHA #64 Raising events lacks thread-safety
Chapter 8 COM-Interop and Enterprise Services Gotchas
1. GOTCHA #65 Release of COM object is confusing
2. GOTCHA #66 Using interface pointers after calling ReleaseComObject() will fail
3. GOTCHA #67 Cross-apartment calls are expensive
4. GOTCHA #68 Default apartment of main thread is inconsistent across languages
5. GOTCHA #69 STAThread attribute may have no effect on your methods
6. GOTCHA #70 Spattering access to COM components makes code hard to maintain
7. GOTCHA #71 Auto-generating GUID generating GUID for your classes leads to versioning woes
8. GOTCHA #72 All but one of the ClassInterface options are ineffective
9. GOTCHA #73 Simply tur ning the switch for COM interop is dangerous
10. GOTCHA #74 ServicedComponents implemented inconsistently on XP and 2003
11. GOTCHA #75 AutoComplete comes with undesirable side effects

Appendix A Resources
1. Bibliography
2. On the Web
Colophon

Product Details

Title:

.NET Gotchas

By:

Venkat Subramaniam

Publisher:

O'Reilly Media

Formats:

Print
Safari Books Online

Print Release:

May 2005

Pages:

396

Print ISBN:

978-0-596-00909-0

| ISBN 10:

0-596-00909-7

Customer Reviews

About the Author

Venkat Subramaniam

Dr. Venkat Subramaniam (venkats@agiledeveloper.com) is the founder of Agile Developer, Inc. (a software training, mentoring and development firm), and a co-founder of DuraSoft. Working with .NET since its Beta 2 pre-release, he's used the platform extensively on commercial projects for his clients. Venkat offers several courses on developing applications using .NET, and has trained and mentored more than 3,000 software developers in the US and Europe. A frequent speaker at software development conferences, he is also an adjunct professor for the practice of computer science at University of Houston, and teaches at Rice University's School for Continuing Studies. Venkat holds a BS in Computer Engineering, an MS in Electrical Engineering, and PhD in Computer Science. He is recipient of the 2004 UH Computer Science Department Teaching Excellence award.

View Venkat Subramaniam's full profile page.

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.NET Gotchas

75 Ways to Improve Your C# and VB.NET Programs

Chapter 1 CLR/Framework Gotchas

GOTCHA #1 Type alias size doesn't match what you're familiar with

GOTCHA #2 struct and class differ in behavior

GOTCHA #3 Returning value types from a method/property is risky

GOTCHA #4 You can't force calls to your value-type constructors

GOTCHA #5 String concatenation is expensive

GOTCHA #6 Exceptions may go unhandled

GOTCHA #7 Uninitialized event handlers aren't treated gracefully

GOTCHA #8 Division operation isn't consistent between types

GOTCHA #9 Typeless ArrayList isn't type-safe

GOTCHA #10 Type.GetType() may not locate all types

GOTCHA #11 Public key reported by sn.exe is inconsistent

Chapter 2 Visual Studio and Compiler Gotchas

GOTCHA #12 Compiler warnings may not be benign

GOTCHA #13 Ordering of catch processing isn't consist across languages

GOTCHA #14 Type.GetType() might fail at run-time

GOTCHA #15 rethrow isn't consistent

GOTCHA #16 Default of Option Strict (off) isn't good

GOTCHA #17 Versioning may lead to Serialization headaches

GOTCHA #18 Creating Web apps can be painful

GOTCHA #19 Naming XML documentation for IntelliSense support isn't intuitive

Chapter 3 Language and API Gotchas

GOTCHA #20 Singleton isn't guaranteed process-wide

GOTCHA #21 Default performance of Data.ReadXML Data.ReadXML Data.ReadXML

GOTCHA #22 enum lacks type-safety

GOTCHA #23 Copy Constructor hampers exensibility

GOTCHA #24 Clone() has limitations

GOTCHA #25 Access to static/Shared C# code examples Shared members isn't enforced consistently

GOTCHA #26 Details of exception may be hidden

GOTCHA #27 Object initialization sequence isn't consistent

GOTCHA #28 Polymorphism kicks in prematurely

GOTCHA #29 Unit testing private methods testing private methods testing private methods

Chapter 4 Language Interoperability Gotchas

GOTCHA #30 Common Language Specification Compliance isn't the default

GOTCHA #31 Optional parameters break interoperability

GOTCHA #32 Mixing case between class members breaks interoperability

GOTCHA #33 Name collision with keywords breaks interoperability

GOTCHA #34 Defining an array isn't consistent

Chapter 5 Garbage Collection Gotchas

GOTCHA #35 Writing Finalize() is rarely a good idea

GOTCHA #36 Releasing managed resources in Finalize() can wreak havoc

GOTCHA #37 Rules to invoke base.Finalize() aren't consistent

GOTCHA #38 Depending on Finalize() can tie up critical resources

GOTCHA #39 Using Finalize() on disposed objects is costly

GOTCHA #40 Implementing IDisposable isn't enough

GOTCHA #41 Using the Dispose Design Pattern doesn't guarantee cleanup

Chapter 6 Inheritance and Polymorphism Gotchas

GOTCHA #42 Runtime Type Identification can hurt extensibility

GOTCHA #43 Using new/shadows causes "hideous hiding"

GOTCHA #44 Compilers are lenient toward forgotten override/overrides

GOTCHA #45 Compilers lean toward hiding virtual methods

GOTCHA #46 Exception handling can break polymorphism

GOTCHA #47 Signature mismatches can lead to method hiding

Chapter 7 Multithreading Gotchas

GOTCHA #48 The Thread class Thread class Thread class

GOTCHA #49 Foreground threads may prevent a program from terminating

GOTCHA #50 Background threads don't terminate gracefully

GOTCHA #51 Interrupt () kicks in only when a thread is blocked

GOTCHA #52 ThreadAbortException—a hot potato

GOTCHA #53 Environment.Exit() brings down the CLR

GOTCHA #54 ResetAbort() may lead to surprises

GOTCHA #55 Abort() takes time to clean up

GOTCHA #56 Calling Type.GetType() may not return what you expect

GOTCHA #57 Locking on globally visible objects is too sweeping

GOTCHA #58 Threads from the thread pool are scarce

GOTCHA #59 Threads invoked using delegates behave like background threads

GOTCHA #60 Passing parameters threads parameters to threads is tricky

GOTCHA #61 Exceptions thrown from threads in the pool are lost exceptions lost

GOTCHA #62 Accessing WinForm controls from arbitrary threads is dangerous

GOTCHA #63 Web-service proxy may fail when used for multiple asynchronous calls

GOTCHA #64 Raising events lacks thread-safety

Chapter 8 COM-Interop and Enterprise Services Gotchas

GOTCHA #65 Release of COM object is confusing

GOTCHA #66 Using interface pointers after calling ReleaseComObject() will fail

GOTCHA #67 Cross-apartment calls are expensive

GOTCHA #68 Default apartment of main thread is inconsistent across languages

GOTCHA #69 STAThread attribute may have no effect on your methods