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pradeep
VB.Net Array Basics

May 6th, 2007 11:56 PM

The ability to work with arrays is important in any programming language. VB.NET offers a simple way of grouping data into the array struc tures similarly to other languages. In this artic le, I will look at array declaration and usage.

Purpose of the arrays

Arrays are generally used for storing similar types of values or objec ts. They allow grouping variables together and allow referring to them by using an index. Arrays have an upper bound and a lower bound, which simply refer to the starting index and the ending index of a given array structure. Additionally, the data in the array c an be sorted. Simple arrays are one-dimensional; however, you c an also use multi-dimensional arrays in VB.NET. You can loop through an array to determine and to modify the values stored in the array.

Declaring and initialising arrays

There are two ways of initialising the arrays: to dec lare and initialise them in one statement, or to dec lare an array and choose to initialise it later. When dec laring and initialising arrays in the same statement, you must spec ify the type of the array elements and the number of the elements the array will hold. In VB.NET, arrays are zero based, whic h means that the index of the first element is zero. The elements are numbered sequentially. You must specify the number of array elements by indicating the upper bound of the array. The upper bound is the number that spec ifies the index of the last element in the array. Snippet A shows the dec laration and initialisation of an array of integers. Snippet A
C ode: VB.Net

Dim arrNumbers(4) As Integer 'Dec lares & initialises an array of 5 integers, with indexes ranging from 0 to 4

Another way to declare and initialise arrays is to perform these operations in two separate steps. If you declare an array without spec ifying a number of elements on one line, you have to provide the values for each item of the array when you initialise it. The initial values are provided enclosed in the {} braces, using a comma as a separator. Snippet B shows the declaration and initialisation of an array in two separate steps. Snippet B
C ode: VB.Net

Dim arrNumbers() As Integer 'Declares the array of integers arrNumbers = New Integer() {0,1,2,3,4} 'Initialises the array to five members & sets their values

Onc e an array is declared and initialised, it's possible to change the size of an array in run time by redefining it. You can use the ReDim statement to c hange the number of items in an array struc ture. Snippet C shows dec laration, initialisation, and then re-sizing of an array struc ture. Snippet C
C ode: VB.Net

Dim arrNumbers(32) As Integer' Declares & Initialises an array of integers

Dim arrNumbers(32) As Integer' Declares & Initialises an array of integers ReDim arrNumbers(45) As Integer' Re-initialises the array

By default, the data stored in an array is lost whenever an array is re-initialised. However, you can use the ReDim statement with the Preserve keyword in order to keep the existing data in the array when it's being re-initialised. Snippet D re-initialises an array structure using the Preserve statement to keep the data already stored in the array. Snippet D
C ode: VB.Net

Dim arrNumbers () As Integer = {0,1,2,3,4}' Declares & initialises the array ReDim Preserve arrNumbers (25) 'Resizes the array, but retains the data in elements 0 through 4

There are two types of multidimensional arrays: rec tangular or jagged. In rec tangular arrays, every member of eac h dimension is extended into the other dimensions by the same length. In jagged arrays, individual members of one dimension can be extended into other dimensions by different lengths. The more dimensions an array has, the more complex it bec omes to work with it.

kiddo
Re: VB.Net Array Basics The keywords 'ReDim' & 'Preserve' are really helpful! Coz I just knew to use the Array in Snippet A & B. Thx

Aug 28th, 2009 12:49 PM

kiddo
Re: VB.Net Array Basics in the snippet D, is it just 'ReDim Preserve arrNumbers (25)'? no '...As Integer'?

Aug 28th, 2009 12:55 PM

chyssa
Re: VB.Net Array Basics Thanks for dharing your ideas to us...

Oct 23rd, 2009 04:45 PM

naqiali
Re: VB.Net Array Basics

May 4th, 2010 11:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by kiddo (Post 56338) the keywords 'redim' & 'preserve' are really helpful!

Quote:

Originally Posted by kiddo (Post 56338) coz i just knew to use the array in snippet a & b. thx

JohnRD
Re: VB.Net Array Basics

Oct 9th, 2010 05:24 PM

I would like to learn how to use arrays to store sentenc es, then use a label or a button to show each one.

0702R55795
Re: VB.Net Array Basics

Apr 14th, 2011 11:40 AM

similiar to this topic , my idea here is to take a string of c haracters from .dat file and store in a variable. When i initialise the array like this Dim array(42) As Integer = {abc } where abc is the variable that stores the string of c haracters from the .dat file. How can I read the file, do I use StreamReader or something else? Is my logic here correc t or wrong. I am planing the flow out before I start this project. Thanks in advance though. Smile

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