Implicit conversion

[azzurit]

Hello

I need the following code to work:
int a = "1234"

How can I modify the int type to accept string (or in ideal case to accept both string and int)???

Can I somehow modify it?
(I tried to inherite int to change its properties, but the compiler returns an error becouse of inheriting (I can't derive int)).

I would appreciate any help.

[tlhintoq]

You don't.
An int holds a number. A string holds text.

You need to convert your text to a number before you can assign it to an int.
http://msdn.microsoft.com/en-us/library/sf1aw27b.aspx

[azzurit]

It's clear. But instead of
int a = Int32.Parse("1234");
I need to write only
int a = "1234";

Maybe the operator overriding could help... What do you think?

[tlhintoq]

I think you can either do it the way the C# language is meant to do it... or you can fight it.

*WHY* do you think you need to write it only as

int a = Int32.Parse("1234");

What is the reason you can't do

int a = Int32.Parse("1234");

Why do you need to do it differently than the other 3 million C# programmers?

[azzurit]

Becouse my prof wants me to do this if I want A:-D

[tlhintoq]

Your professor wants you to do what isn't defined in the C# language?
Hmmm....
You can't do what the language doesn't support.

int a = "123";

simply cannot be done in C#.
an int cannot hold a string. Period. That's the laws of physics as far as the C# language is concerned.

MSDN for int
MSDN for string

If you look at how memory is allocated for the different datatypes you can see why. An int is 4 bytes big. "1234" at its smallest is 5 bytes: 4 for the numbers plus one for the null termination.

[azzurit]

I don't want int to hold a string.
I want it to convert string to int automatically (without using Parse), when assigned...

[tlhintoq]

I want my VW beetle to haul 20 tons of cargo like an 18 wheeler; but it ain't gonna happen.

What you *want* and what you *can accomplish* are often very different things.

[artov]

Have you thought that your answer could be "I cannot do it, since there is no implicit conversion from string to int, since strings can contain characters that are not numbers"?