How to draw a rectangle in console application?

Question

I need to draw a rectangle, with a number inside, in a C# console app and using extended ASCII. How do I go about it?

This is for a demo.

Solution 1

public class ConsoleRectangle
{
    private int hWidth;
    private int hHeight;
    private Point hLocation;
    private ConsoleColor hBorderColor;

    public ConsoleRectangle(int width, int height, Point location, ConsoleColor borderColor)
    {
        hWidth = width;
        hHeight = height;
        hLocation = location;
        hBorderColor = borderColor;
    }

    public Point Location
    {
        get { return hLocation; }
        set { hLocation = value; }
    }

    public int Width
    {
        get { return hWidth; }
        set { hWidth = value; }
    }

    public int Height
    {
        get { return hHeight; }
        set { hHeight = value; }
    }

    public ConsoleColor BorderColor
    {
        get { return hBorderColor; }
        set { hBorderColor = value; }
    }

    public void Draw()
    {
        string s = "╔";
        string space = "";
        string temp = "";
        for (int i = 0; i < Width; i++)
        {
            space += " ";
            s += "═";
        }

        for (int j = 0; j < Location.X ; j++)
            temp += " ";

        s += "╗" + "\n";

        for (int i = 0; i < Height; i++)
            s += temp + "║" + space + "║" + "\n";

        s += temp + "╚";
        for (int i = 0; i < Width; i++)
            s += "═";

        s += "╝" + "\n";

        Console.ForegroundColor = BorderColor;
        Console.CursorTop = hLocation.Y;
        Console.CursorLeft = hLocation.X;
        Console.Write(s);
        Console.ResetColor();
    }
}

Solution 2

This is an extension method to String, which will draw a console box around a given string. Multi-line support included.

i.e. string tmp = "some value"; Console.Write(tmp.DrawInConsoleBox());

        public static string DrawInConsoleBox(this string s)
        {
            string ulCorner = "╔";
            string llCorner = "╚";
            string urCorner = "╗";
            string lrCorner = "╝";
            string vertical = "║";
            string horizontal = "═";

            string[] lines = s.Split(new char[] { '\r', '\n' }, StringSplitOptions.RemoveEmptyEntries);
            

            int longest = 0;
            foreach(string line in lines)
            {
                if (line.Length > longest)
                    longest = line.Length;
            }
            int width = longest + 2; // 1 space on each side

            
            string h = string.Empty;
            for (int i = 0; i < width; i++)
                h += horizontal;

            // box top
            StringBuilder sb = new StringBuilder();
            sb.AppendLine(ulCorner + h + urCorner);

            // box contents
            foreach (string line in lines)
            {
                double dblSpaces = (((double)width - (double)line.Length) / (double)2);
                int iSpaces = Convert.ToInt32(dblSpaces);

                if (dblSpaces > iSpaces) // not an even amount of chars
                {
                    iSpaces += 1; // round up to next whole number
                }

                string beginSpacing = "";
                string endSpacing = "";
                for (int i = 0; i < iSpaces; i++)
                {
                    beginSpacing += " ";

                    if (! (iSpaces > dblSpaces && i == iSpaces - 1)) // if there is an extra space somewhere, it should be in the beginning
                    {
                        endSpacing += " ";
                    }
                }
                // add the text line to the box
                sb.AppendLine(vertical + beginSpacing + line + endSpacing + vertical);
            }

            // box bottom
            sb.AppendLine(llCorner + h + lrCorner);

            // the finished box
            return sb.ToString();
        }

Output like this

Solution 3

Like this?

This worked for me:

Console.OutputEncoding = Encoding.GetEncoding(866);
Console.WriteLine("┌─┐");
Console.WriteLine("│1│");
Console.WriteLine("└─┘");

[EDIT]

Answer to the sub-question in the comment:

Console.OutputEncoding = Encoding.GetEncoding(866);
Console.WriteLine("  ┌─┐");
Console.WriteLine("  │1│");
Console.WriteLine("┌─┼─┘");
Console.WriteLine("│1│");
Console.WriteLine("└─┘");

Comments

[MaddTheSane]

possible duplicate of Console.Write() - display extended ascii chars?

[David Heffernan]

C# doesn't use ASCII, extended or otherwise.

[user712923]

@Alex thanks for your example.That will definetely do the trick.Correct if I am wrong but what you did is not using ascii is it?Also what does "Encoding.GetEncoding(866) does?

[user712923]

@Alex how did you draw the top of the rectangle?

[Alex Aza]

@user712923 - Hold Alt key and type 218 on numeric keyboard. This will show ┌. Than you do the same with 196 and 191. Important - you need to use numeric keyboard (NumLock is On).

[user712923]

@Alex you have been very very helful .Can i ask you one last thing.Sorry.I have done the rectangle ,I need to draw another rectangle at the top right hand corner with a numnber inside.Any chance of help?thanks

[user712923]

How do you use it,if i need to draw number inside the rectangle

[Agi Hammerthief]

If you're drawing a box around the entire console area, decrease your width and height by two (because the first and last character in each dimension are not usable/available, being taken up by the corner characters).

[Mike]

is there any way to modify this so you can draw two rectangles (one inside the other) ? Because of the spaced the second rectangle overwrite the first rectangle left horizontal line

[Alex K.]

If you want to copy/paste:╔ ═ ╗ ╚ ╝

[IC_]

@Alex, you forgot ║