Why I dont have access to an public const c# in an other class

Question

I tried to access in my Test.cs to strings in my other class TerminalStrings.cs but was not able.... how can I access to them ?

TerminalStrings.cs :

namespace RFID_App
{
    class TerminalStrings
    {
        public static readonly string identiError = "ERROR";
        public const string identiSuccess = "SUCCESS";
    }
}

In Test.cs:

 namespace RFID_App
    {
          class Test
        {
            public Test()
            {
               string test;
               TerminalStrings stringlist = new TerminalStrings();
               test = stringlist.identiError; //this was not possible 
            }
        }
    }

@N4TKD wouldn't solve the problem at hand; may or may not be the accessibility he wants for the class. — Tim S., May 21 '14 at 17:11
@N4TKD, that has nothing to do with the error. OP is using both classes in the same namespace — Habib, May 21 '14 at 17:12

score 7 · Accepted Answer · answered May 21 '14 at 17:09

7

const are implicitly static, you can't access them with instance member instead you need the class name to access.

test = TerminalStrings.identiError;

See: Why can't I use static and const together? - By Jon Skeet

answered May 21 '14 at 17:09

Habib

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Is there a difference when I use "static readonly" or "const string" – Samy May 21 '14 at 17:12
[Yes.](http://stackoverflow.com/q/755685/781792) Using `const` means that code will hardcode it at compile-time. Only do this for things that can never, ever even theoretically change, like `PI`. – Tim S. May 21 '14 at 17:13
I wouldn't even use it for Pi due to the fact that it cannot be exactly represented with floating point numbers, so you'll find different values for Pi through-out different programs and you might want to change it later. I'd only use it for values that will never change and the exact value can be stored. 'Seconds in a day', 'feet in a mile', etc. – LVBen May 21 '14 at 17:23

score 2 · Answer 2 · answered May 21 '14 at 17:10

2

The consts are not member variables, they are on the class.

string test = TerminalStrings.identiError;

answered May 21 '14 at 17:10

krillgar

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score 1 · Answer 3 · answered May 21 '14 at 17:09

Constants in C# are automatically static. They're not part of the data of an instance, but of the class itself - after all, stringlist and stringlist2 don't have different copies.

So to access it, access TerminalStrings.identiError:

public Test()
{
   string test;
   test= TerminalStrings.identiError;
}

Why I dont have access to an public const c# in an other class

3 Answers3