Get the first character of string using VB.NET

Question

Let’s say that my string is:

test!

I want to get the first character

t est!

Also I want to get the last character

test !

How can I do that?

Solution 1

The easiest is using LINQ:

Dim firstChar = str.First()
Dim lastChar  = str.Last()

You can use LINQ since a String is also an IEnumerable(Of Char) implicitely.

• Enumerable.First Method
• Enumerable.Last Method

You can also use it like a Char-Array(String.Chars is the default property) and access the first and last char via index:

firstChar = str(0)
lastChar  = str(str.Length - 1)

Solution 2

Dim test As String = "test!"
Dim first As String = test.Substring(0, 1)
Dim last As String = StrReverse(test).Substring(0, 1)
MessageBox.Show("First: " & first & " Last:" & last)

Comments

[asawyer]

Addressing your edit, I'd say the opposite is true. The linq statements clearly expresses the intent of the code, while this example is more muddled in the implementation.

[Olly]

Frankly, I would often just use Linq too. The arguments against? It's (as I understand it) significantly higher overhead. Often this may be irrelevant, but there is a case for saying it's better to be in the habit of writing more efficient code, especially when there's not much else to choose between them. Linq also forces a dependency on .Net 3.5; the character index method has existed since v1.0. But, in the end, it's horses for courses!

[Olly]

A straightforward suggestion, but if performance is at all relevant, just consider what work is being done internally to get the last character: the entire string must be reversed character-by-character simply to get a single character back. It's an easy to read, concise solution though if performance is not an issue.

[talha2k]

Yeah Linq option is a better way. But this is a simple and straight solution. :)