Starting out with Visual C#

Sixth Edition

Chapter 6
Modularizing Your Code
with Methods

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Topics

6.1 Introduction to Methods

6.2 void Methods
6.3 Passing Arguments to Methods
6.4 Passing Arguments by Reference
6.5 Value-Returning Methods
6.6 Debugging Methods

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6.1 Introduction to Methods
• Methods can be used to break a complex program into
small, manageable pieces
– This approach is known as divide and conquer
– In general terms, breaking down a program to smaller
units of code, such as methods, is known as
modularization
• Two types of methods are:
– A void method simply executes a group of statements
and then terminates
– A value-returning method executes a group of
statements and then returns a value to the statement
that called it

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Example (1 of 2)
Using one long sequence of statements to perform a task

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Example (2 of 2)
Using methods to divide and conquer a problem

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6.2 void Methods
• A void method simply executes the statement it contains
and then terminates. It does not return any value to the
statement that called it.
• To create a method, you write its definition
• A method definition has two parts:
– header: the method header appears at the beginning
of a method definition to indicate the access mode,
return type, and method name
– body: the method body is a collection of statements
that are performed when the method is executed

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 The Method Header (1 of 2)
• The book separates a method header into four parts :
– Access modifier: keyword that defines the access control
▪ private: a private method can be called only by code
inside the same class as the method
▪ public: a public method can be called by code that is
outside the class.
– Return type: specifies whether or not a method returns a value
– Method name: the identifier of the method; must be unique in a
given program. This book uses Pascal case (aka camelCase)
– Parentheses: A method's name is always followed by a pair of
parentheses

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The Method Header (2 of 2)

Access Return Method Parentheses

Modifier Type Name

private void DisplayMessage()

{
MessageBox.Show("This is the DisplayMessage method.");
}

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Declaring Method Inside a Class (1 of 2)

• Methods usually belong to a class

• All Visual C# methods typically belong to the application’s
default Form1 class (GUI Apps)
• In this book, methods are created inside the Form1 class

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 Declaring Method Inside a Class (2 of 2)
namespace Example
{
public partial class Form1 : Form
{
public Form1()
{
InitializeComponent();
}

// Your method definitions will appear here, inside Form1 class.

}
}

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Calling a Method (1 of 2)
• A method executes whenever it is called
• Event handlers are called when specific events take
place when events occur (e.g., a click). However,
methods are executed by method call statements.
• A method call statement is the name of the method
followed by a pair of parentheses.
• For example: (see next slide)

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Calling a Method (2 of 2)
private void goButton_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
MessageBox.Show("This is the goButton_Click method.");
DisplayMessage();
}

private void DisplayMessage()

{
MessageBox.Show("This is the DisplayMessage method.");
}

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Concept of Return Point

• When calling a method, the system needs to know where

the program should return after the method ends
• The system saves the memory address of the location,
called the return point, to which it should return
• The system jumps to the method and executes the
statements in its body
• When the method ends, the system jumps back to the
return point and resumes execution

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Top-Down Design
• To modularize a program, programmers commonly use a
technique known as top-down design
• It breaks down an algorithm to methods
• The process is performed in the following manner:
– The overall task that the program is to perform is broken
down into a series of subtasks
– Each subtask is examined to determine whether it can be
further broken down into more subtasks. This step is
repeated until no more subtasks can be identified
– Once all the subtasks have been identified, they are
written in code as methods

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6.3 Passing Arguments to Methods
• An argument is any piece of data that is passed into a method when the
method is called
– In the following, the statement calls the MessageBox.Show method
and passes the string "Hello" as an argument:

MessageBox.Show("Hello");

• A parameter is a variable that receives an argument that is passed into a

method
– In the following, value is an int parameter:

private void DisplayValue(int value)

{
MessageBox.Show(value.ToString());
}

– An example of a call to the DisplayValue method with 5 as the argument is:

DisplayValue(5);

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Contents of Variables as Arguments
• You can pass the contents of variables as arguments. For example,
private void DisplayValue(int value)
{
MessageBox.Show(value.ToString()); int x = 5;
} DisplayValue(x);
DisplayValue(x * 4);

• value is an int parameter in the DisplayValue method

• In this example, x is an int variable with the value 5. Its contents are
passed as an argument.

• The expression X * 4 also produces an int result, which can be

passed as an argument

• Another example is: DisplayValue(int.Parse("700"));

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Argument and Parameter Data Type
Compatibility
• An argument’s data type must be assignment compatible with the
receiving parameter's data type
• Basically,
– You can pass only string arguments into string parameters
– You can pass int arguments into int parameters, but you
cannot pass double or decimal arguments into int
parameters
– You can pass either double or int arguments to double
parameters, but you cannot pass decimal values to double
parameters
– You can pass either decimal or int arguments to decimal
parameters, but you cannot pass double arguments into
decimal parameters

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Passing Multiple Arguments
• To accept multiple arguments, a method must have multiple
parameters
• The following method accepts two arguments:

private void Add(int num1, int num2)

{
int sum = num1 + num2;
MessageBox.Show(sum.ToString());
}

• The following statement calls the Add method, passing 10 and 20 as

arguments:
Add(10, 20);

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Passing Multiple Arguments
• In this example, the argument 10 is passed to the num1
parameter and the argument 20 is passed to the num2
parameter
Add(10, 20);

private void Add(int num1, int num2)

{
int sum = num1 + num2;
MessageBox.Show(sum.ToString());
}

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Named Arguments
• In the method call, you can specify which parameter an argument
should be passed into. The syntax is:

parameterName : value

• Look at the following method:

private void ShowName(string firstName, string lastName)
{
MessageBox.Show(firstName + " " + lastName);
}

• The following statements call the method with named arguments:

ShowName(firstName: "Kiran", lastName: "Sharma");

ShowName(lastName: "Sharma", firstName: "Kiran");

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Default Arguments
• You can provide a default argument for a parameter in the method
header:
private void ShowTax(decimal price, decimal taxRate = 0.07m)
{
decimal tax = price * taxRate;
MessageBox.Show("The tax is " + tax.ToString("c"));
}

• The value of taxRate is defaulted to 0.07m. You can simply call the
method by passing only the price
ShowTax(100.0m); // taxRate will assume the default value of 0.07m

• You can also override the default argument

ShowTax(100.0m, 0.08m);

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6.4 Passing Arguments by Reference (1 of 2)
• A reference parameter is a special type of parameter that does not
receive a copy of the argument’s value
• It becomes a reference to the argument that was passed into it
• When an argument is passed by reference to a method, the method
can change the value of the argument in the calling part of the
program
• In C#, you declare a reference parameter by writing the ref keyword
before the parameter variable's data type
private void SetToZero(ref int number)
{
number = 0;
}

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6.4 Passing Arguments by Reference (2 of 2)
• To call a method that has a reference parameter, you also use the
keyword ref before the argument

int myVar = 99;

SetToZero(ref myVar);

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 Using Output Parameters (1 of 2)
• An output parameter works like a reference parameter with the
following differences:
– An argument does not have to be a value before it is passed into
an output parameter
– A method that has an output parameter must set the output
parameter to some value before it finishes executing
• In C#, you declare an output parameter by writing the out keyword
before the parameter variable’s data type:

private void SetToZero(out int number)

{
number = 0;
}

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Using Output Parameters (2 of 2)
• To call a method that has an output parameter, you also use the
keyword out before the argument

int myVar;
SetToZero(out myVar);

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6.5 Value-Returning Methods
• A value-returning method is a method that returns a value to the
part of the program that called it
• A value-returning method is like a void method in the following
ways:
– It contains a group of statements that performs a specific task
– When you want to execute the method, you call it
• .NET provides many value-returning methods. For example, the
int.Parse method accepts a string and returns an int value

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Write Your Own Value-Returning
Functions
• In C# the generic format for writing a value-returning function is:

• AccessModifier: private or public

• DataType: int, double, decimal, string, bool, etc.

• MethodName: the identifier of the method; must be unique in a program

• ParameterList: an optional list of parameter

• Expression: can be any value, variable, or expression that has a value

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The return Statement
• There must be a return statement inside the method. It is
usually the last statement of the method. This return
statement is used to return a value to the statement that called
the method. For example:

private int Sum(int num1, int num2)

{
return num1 + num2;
}

• Notice that the returned value and the method’s type must
match
– In the above example, the method is an int method, so it
can only return int value

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Sample Code
// int type
private int Sum(int num1, int num2)
{
return num1 + num2;
}

// double type
private double Sum(double num1, double num2)
{
return num1 + num2;
}

// decimal type
private decimal Sum(decimal num1, decimal num2)
{
return num1 + num2;
}

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Returning Values to Variables
• A value-returning method returns a value with specific type.
However, the method no longer keeps the value once it is
returned.
• You can declare a variable to hold the returned value to use
the value over and over again
int combinedAge = Sum(userAge, friendAge);

private int Sum(int num1, int num2)

{
return num1 + num2;
}

• After execution, the value is kept in the combinedAge

variable

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Boolean Methods (1 of 2)
• A Boolean method returns either true or false. You
can use a Boolean method to test a condition
private bool IsEven(int number)
{
bool numberIsEven;

if (number % 2 == 0)
{
numberIsEven = true;
}
else
{
numberIsEven = false;
}

return numberIsEven;
}

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Boolean Methods (2 of 2)
• With this code, an int value assigned to the number
parameter will be evaluated by the if statement
• The return statement will return either true or false
private bool IsEven(int number)
{
bool numberIsEven;

if (number % 2 == 0)
{
numberIsEven = true;
}
else
{
numberIsEven = false;
}

return numberIsEven;
}

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Returning a String from a Method
• string is a primitive data type. A C# value-returning method
can return a string to the statement that called it. For
example,
private string FullName(string first, string middle, string last)
{
return first + " " + middle + " " + last;
}

• A sample statement to call this method is:

string fullName = FullName("Martina", "Isabella", "Gomez");

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6.6 Debugging Methods

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Rubber Duck Debugging - How to Solve a Problem

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6.6 Debugging Methods (1 of 4)
• The Step Into command allows you to single-step
through a called method.
• Execute the Step Into command in any of the following
ways:
– Press the F11 key
– Select Debug from the menu bar, and then select
Step Into from the Debug menu
– Click the Step Into button on the Debug Toolbar, if
the toolbar is visible
• Tutorial 6-6 demonstrates the Step Into command.
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6.6 Debugging Methods (2 of 4)
• The Step Over command allows you to call a method
without single-stepping through its statements.
• Execute the Step Over command in any of the following
ways:
– Press the F10 key
– Select Debug from the menu bar, and then select
Step Over from the Debug menu
– Click the Step Over button on the Debug Toolbar, if
the toolbar is visible
• Tutorial 6-7 demonstrates the Step Over command.

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6.6 Debugging Methods (3 of 4)
• When single-stepping through a method, the Step Out
command causes the rest of the method's statements to
execute without single-stepping.
• Execute the Step Out command in any of the following ways:
– Press the Shift + F11 keys
– Select Debug from the menu bar, and then select Step
Out from the Debug menu
– Click the Step Out button on the Debug Toolbar, if the
toolbar is visible

• Tutorial 6-8 demonstrates the Step Out command.

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6.6 Debugging Methods (4 of 4)
• Visual Studio can be configured in different ways.
– Under some configurations, the Step Into command
from the Debug menu might be activated by the F8
function key.
– Under some configurations, the Step Over command
may be activated by the Shift + F8 keys.
– Under some configurations, the Step Out command
might be activated by the Ctrl + Shift + F8 keys.
• To find out which keys are used, look carefully at these
commands when you click on the Debug menu.

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Copyright

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