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Maximizing Help System and Object Browser Efficiency

Explore Visual Studio Help system, Object Browser navigation, Help filters, and application types. Learn to access, navigate, search, and filter help topics efficiently for enhanced productivity. A guide for effective utilization.

zephr-hoffman
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Maximizing Help System and Object Browser Efficiency

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  1. Chapter 2 Part C – More on the Help System and The Object Browser (scan quickly for future reference)

  2. Objectives • Learn more about the parts of the Help system and how to access them • Use the Visual Studio Object Browser • Learn about Types of Visual Studio Applications (This is a continuation of Lecture Set 2B)

  3. Class Help Pages (Inheritance Hierarchy Section) • All types inherit from the superclass named System.Object • The inheritance hierarchy section shows the inheritance hierarchy for a particular type • For example, System.Console inherits directly from System.Object

  4. Console Class Help Page – Inheritance Section

  5. Class Help Pages (Other Sections) • The Thread Safety section describes how a type works with multiple processes • The Platforms section describes which versions of Windows support the class or other type • The Version Information section describes which versions of Visual Studio and the .NET Framework support the class or other type

  6. Navigating Through the Help System • The Help system can be navigated in the following ways: • Using a table of contents • Using an index • Searching by keyword • Task-based Help using the How Do I tab • Dynamic Help • Favorites

  7. Introduction to Help Filters • The Help system is quite complex and voluminous • In all, the Help system is over 3 gigabytes in size • Helpfilters restrict the Help displayed to a functional group of topics • The available Help filters differ based on the Visual Studio or Visual Basic edition installed

  8. Common Help Filters • The .NET Framework filter displays topics related to the .NET Framework class library • The Visual Basic filter restricts topics to both Visual Basic and the .NET Framework • Other filters apply to other .NET languages • The Web Development (.NET) filter includes documentation for Web development • The Windows Forms development filter includes documentation for desktop applications • The Visual Basic filter includes these topics too

  9. Using the Table of Contents • The Help table of contents works similar the table of contents in a book • Drill-down folders can be expanded or collapsed • Help topics are organized along functional boundaries • Use the Table of Contents for tutorial-based learning

  10. Selected Contents Topics • The Development Tools and Languages folder describes how to use Visual Studio and Visual Basic • The .NET Development folder and .NET Framework SDK folders contain the reference to the .NET Framework itself

  11. Contents Window

  12. Using the Help Index • The Help index works like an alphabetical book index • Select a filter as desired • Type the name of the desired Help topic • Matching entries appear in the list box in the lower part of the window • Double-click a topic to select it • The search for topics is made in a case-insensitive way • Many topics appear organized by namespace, class, and member name

  13. Help Index Window

  14. The Help Search Window • Selected words in the Help pages are marked as keywords • The same keyword can appear in several Help pages • Custom filters can be applied to the search • The Help Search window contains two sections • The top section contains search parameters • The bottom section displays matching topics • Click a topic to display the matching Help page

  15. Help Search Window

  16. Using “How Do I” Help • How Do I Help is task-based rather than feature-based • Help topics are organized hierarchically • Each topic contains a hands-on tutorial • Most examples are introductory

  17. “How Do I” Help Window

  18. Introduction to the Object Browser • The Object Browser is used to examine the types that make up the .NET Framework class library and the types in developer-created applications • The Object Browser has a drill-down interface • Namespaces and types appear in the left pane • Members appear in the top right pane • Syntax appears in the lower right pane

  19. Object Browser – My Solution Component Selected

  20. Types of Visual Studio Applications • Templates are used to create different types of applications • The supported templates vary based on the installed Visual Studio edition • Common templates • Console Application project • Windows Application project (what we will use) • Class Library project • ASP.NET Web Application project (see CIS 4342, 4344) • Web Service project (CIS 3309 (intro), 4342)

  21. Applications Templates

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