How to support contextual implicit conversions of custom object in Visual Basic .NET? - vb.net

Question

I want to use named error codes within my app. This should ensure, that every developer does not confuse numeric-only error codes with other codes, and also reduces the time a developer needs to realize what the error code should represent.
Compare this example:
Function New() As Integer
Return 0
End Function
with this example:
Function New() As Integer
Return ErrorCodes.ERROR_SUCCESS
End Function
Of course, I could let the developers write like the following:
Function New() As Integer
Return 0 ' ERROR_SUCCESS
End Function
However, the code above raises a pitfall when a developer updates the actual return code but forgets about the comment. Some developer look at the actual return code and some at the comment. I want to mitigate that confusion.
I come up the following class (extract):
Public Class ErrorCodes
Private msName As String = Nothing
Private miValue As Integer = 0
Public Shared ReadOnly ERROR_SUCCESS As ErrorCodes = New ErrorCodes("ERROR_SUCCESS", 0)
Private Sub New(ByVal psName As String, ByVal piValue As Integer)
msName = psName
miValue = piValue
End Sub
Public ReadOnly Property [Name] As String
Get
Return msName
End Get
End Property
Public ReadOnly Property [Value] As Integer
Get
Return miValue
End Get
End Property
Public Overrides Function ToString() As String
Return String.Format("[{0}]{1}", msName, miValue)
End Function
End Class
Now I want to use this ErrorCodes class like in the following example:
Function New() As Integer
Return ErrorCodes.ERROR_SUCCESS
End Function
As expected, I will produce an exception (type conversion) since the actual value I return is a instance of the class ErrorCodes instead of the generic data type Integer.
As you can see with the ToString() function, I let the class automatically/implicitly converts the instanced object into the generic data type String, when the class instance is assigned to a String typed variable.
Is there a way to do the same with the generic data type Integer like I did with ToString()?
I am using the .NET Framework 4.0, as for compatibility reasons with Windows XP SP3.
Another way to say what I want:
Dim stringVariable As String = ErrorCodes.ERROR_SUCCESS ' should be "[0]ERROR_SUCCESS".
Dim integerVariable As Integer = ErrorCodes.ERROR_SUCCESS ' should be 0.
I do not want to trigger implicit conversion warnings/errors, or to force the developer to typecast explicitly.

Answer 1

Yes you can do that with the use of Conversion Operators.
Here is the code:
Public Class Form1
Public Class ErrorCodes
Private msName As String = Nothing
Private miValue As Integer = 0
Public Shared Widening Operator CType(ByVal ec As ErrorCodes) As String
Return ec.ToString
End Operator
Public Shared Narrowing Operator CType(ByVal ec As ErrorCodes) As Integer
Return ec.Value
End Operator
Public Shared ReadOnly ERROR_SUCCESS As ErrorCodes = New ErrorCodes("ERROR_SUCCESS", 0)
Public Shared ReadOnly ERROR_FAILED As ErrorCodes = New ErrorCodes("ERROR_FAILED", 1)
Private Sub New(ByVal psName As String, ByVal piValue As Integer)
msName = psName
miValue = piValue
End Sub
Public ReadOnly Property [Name] As String
Get
Return msName
End Get
End Property
Public ReadOnly Property [Value] As Integer
Get
Return miValue
End Get
End Property
Public Overrides Function ToString() As String
Return String.Format("[{0}]{1}", msName, miValue)
End Function
End Class
Private Sub Button1_Click(sender As Object, e As EventArgs) Handles Button1.Click
Dim em As String = ErrorCodes.ERROR_SUCCESS
Dim ev As Integer = ErrorCodes.ERROR_SUCCESS
Dim mm As String = String.Format("String: {0}, Value: {1}", em, ev)
MsgBox(mm)
End Sub
End Class
More info here
Hope this helps.

Answer 2

This, as jmcilhinney pointed out, uses Enums and the Description attribute.
Here is the class
'requires
' Imports System.Reflection
' Imports System.ComponentModel
Public Class ErrorCodes
Public Enum ErrCode 'these are the error codes
'note that the codes should be unique
<Description("Success")> ERROR_SUCCESS = 0
<Description("Error A")> ERROR_A = 1
End Enum
Public Class InfoForErrCode
Public TheDescription As String
Public TheValue As Integer
Public AsString As String
End Class
Public Shared Function Info(TheError As ErrCode) As InfoForErrCode
Dim rv As New InfoForErrCode
rv.TheDescription = GetDescription(TheError)
rv.TheValue = TheError
rv.AsString = TheError.ToString
Return rv
End Function
Private Shared Function GetDescription(TheError As ErrCode) As String
Dim rv As String = ""
Dim fi As FieldInfo = TheError.GetType().GetField(TheError.ToString())
Dim attr() As DescriptionAttribute
attr = DirectCast(fi.GetCustomAttributes(GetType(DescriptionAttribute),
False), DescriptionAttribute())
If attr.Length > 0 Then
rv = attr(0).Description
Else
rv = TheError.ToString()
End If
Return rv
End Function
End Class
And here is how it can be used
Dim foo As ErrorCodes.ErrCode = ErrorCodes.ErrCode.ERROR_SUCCESS
Dim inf As ErrorCodes.InfoForErrCode = ErrorCodes.Info(foo)
Stop 'examine inf
foo = ErrorCodes.ErrCode.ERROR_A
inf = ErrorCodes.Info(foo)
Stop 'examine inf