C# - Windows Application - Saving List

Question

I have made a simple TO-DOs program that gets input from a text box then place it in another text box. With tick boxes next to it, this is all fine except i Cannot save the list eg. the item and if it's finished or not. Please could anyone help me be able to save this list of items.

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.ComponentModel;
using System.Data;
using System.Drawing;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Threading.Tasks;
using System.Windows.Forms;

namespace TO_DOs
{
    public partial class Form1 : Form
    {
        private bool text1, text2, text3, text4, text5, text6, text7, text8;

        public Form1()
        {
            InitializeComponent();

        }

        private void button1_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {
            if (text1 == false)
            {
                textBox2.Text = textBox1.Text;
            }
            else if (text2 == false)
            {
                textBox3.Text = textBox1.Text;
            }
            else if (text3 == false)
            {
                textBox4.Text = textBox1.Text;
            }
            else if (text4 == false)
            {
                textBox5.Text = textBox1.Text;
            }
            else if (text5 == false)
            {
                textBox6.Text = textBox1.Text;
            }
            else if (text6 == false)
            {
                textBox7.Text = textBox1.Text;
            }
            else if (text7 == false)
            {
                textBox8.Text = textBox1.Text;
            }
            else if (text8 == false)
            {
                textBox9.Text = textBox1.Text;
            }


        }

        private void textBox2_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {
            text1 = true;

        }

        private void textBox1_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {

        }

        private void textBox3_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {
            text2 = true;
        }

        private void textBox4_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {
            text3 = true;
        }

        private void textBox5_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {
            text4 = true;
        }

        private void textBox6_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {
            text5 = true;
        }

        private void textBox7_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {
            text6 = true;

        }

        private void textBox8_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {
            text7 = true;
        }

        private void textBox9_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
        {
            text8 = true;
        }
    }
}

Answer 1

I would do it like this:

Create a class to store your values in:

public class ListEntry
{
    public string Text { get; set; }

    public bool Finished { get; set; }
}

Then I would create 2 Methods:

public List<ListEntry> UI_To_List(); //Create UI from your saved file

public void List_To_UI(List<ListEntry> entries); //Process your UI 

Now it's your choice on how to store your list.

You could store it as JSON or XML.

A few recommendations:

1. I would create a UserControl for your TextBox + CheckBox
2. Display the 'List of UserControls' in a FlowLayoutPanel
3. => then you can process the FlowLayoutPanel.Controls List.
4. This will make your List dynamically size to an 'unlimited' amount of items.

---

Short example:

1. Create a UserControl (Rightclick project for that):

2. Add these 2 methods to the code of your UserControl (F7 / rightclick => View Code):

   public void SetText(string text)
   {
       //Set the Text of your TextBox in the UserControl:
       textBox1.Text = text;
   }
   
   public void SetFinished(bool finished)
   {
       //Set the Checked of your CheckBox in the UserControl:
       checkBox1.Checked = finished;
   }
   

3. In your MainForm add an FlowLayoutPanel (from ToolBox).

4. Add your Data like this (using class from above):

   /// <summary>
   /// 
   /// </summary>
   /// <param name="entries">You will get them from loading your previously saved file</param>
   public void CreateUI(List<ListEntry> entries)
   {
       foreach (ListEntry entry in entries)
       {
           //Create new instance of your UserControl
           TaskView view = new TaskView();
           view.SetFinished(entry.IsFinished);
           view.SetText(entry.Text);
   
           //Add that to your UI:
           this.flowLayoutPanel1.Controls.Add(view);
       }
   }
   

The result will look like this:

Answer 2

Lets see the answer from Felix D. He tells you exactly how to create a class and save the items into it. But now you only have a List that will be available as long as your software is running. You still need to save it somewhere on your desktop.

Lucky for you, you got a really simple pattern. string; boolean

So how about you make it yourself simple? Just create a textfile and write your entries, as example in a csv marked with a ; for every information?

Example:

class Program
{
 public class tmpClass
    {
        public string Text;
        public bool tick;
    }

    public List<tmpClass> tmpList = new List<tmpClass>();

    static void Main(string[] args)
    {
           //Stuff         
    }

    public void WriteToFile()
    {
        string tmpTextFilePath = @"C:\User\Desktop\SaveText.txt";

        using (StreamWriter tmpWriter = new StreamWriter(tmpTextFilePath))
        {
            string tmpTextToWrite = String.Empty;
            for (int i = 0; i < tmpList.Count; i++)
            {
                tmpClass tmpEntry = tmpList[i];
                tmpTextToWrite += tmpEntry.Text + ";" + tmpEntry.tick;
            }
            tmpWriter.WriteLine(tmpTextToWrite);
        }
        //Now we wrote a text file to you desktop with all Informations
    }

    public void ReadFromFile()
    {
        string tmpTextFilePath = @"C:\User\Desktop\SaveText.txt";
        using (StreamReader tmpReader = new StreamReader(tmpTextFilePath))
        {
            string tmpText = tmpReader.ReadLine();
            string tmpInput = String.Empty;
            tmpClass tmpClass = new tmpClass();
            int i = 0;
            foreach (char item in tmpText)
            {
                if(item.Equals(";".ToCharArray()))
                {
                    if (i == 0)
                    {
                        tmpClass.Text = tmpInput;
                        i = 1;
                        tmpInput = String.Empty;
                    }
                    else
                    {
                        if (tmpInput == "True")
                            tmpClass.tick = true;
                        else
                            tmpClass.tick = false;
                        i = 0;
                        tmpInput = String.Empty;
                        tmpList.Add(tmpClass);
                    }
                }
                tmpInput += item;
            }
        }
    }
 }

This should simply write a txt File to your desktop with your information and read one and save it to your list.

Answer 3

You can use a CheckedListbox to hold all tot actions. You can then tick the itemsand for instance in the OK button you include a save action:

 foreach(var item in MyCheckedListbox.CheckedItems)
    {
    Console,WriteLine(item.Text);
    }

Answer 4

You are casting textboxes wrong. For example when you change textBox4, you gave text3 true.

    private void textBox4_TextChanged(object sender, EventArgs e)
    {
        text3 = true;
    }

Then you cast

TextBox4.Text = TextBox1.Text;

It changes TextBox4.Text to TextBox1.Text.

You probably want to save TextBox4.Text here at TextBox1.Text so you sould change all if blocks like that. So you have to give only one "true" function for changed textBox sign and change if blocks

if(text(boolNum))

 TextBox1.Text = TextBox(Number).Text;

Just swap them and try like that.

If you want to save another thing by another way. You have to be more spesific.

Answer 5

I'm not sure what exactly it is that you want to save in a list... but here's just a tip when checking conditions, instead of using if (text1 == false), simply do if (!text1) as this means "is not true" because by default if (text1) will return true.

private void button1_Click(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
    if (!text1)
    {
        textBox2.Text = textBox1.Text;
    }
    else if (!text2)
    {
       textBox3.Text = textBox1.Text;
    }

   // Left out the rest of the else ifs
}