How to use MSDN?

[Fromethius]

Well.. I don't know if there is a topic about this but all you gurus are always telling us novices to use msdn on fiquring stuff out. However, and I'm sure TONS of people new to .Net will agree with me on this, we got no clue. First of all, I can never find what I am looking for. Second, it's always gives you code that you do not understand at all how to use. And Third, I don't know how to word what I am looking for. Sometimes it is so specific and you can't really tell MSDN that without writing a sentence. So.. I'd really 'preciate it if one of you pros wrote a little something up for me because I would really like to harness the power of MSDN

Thanks, also, if this topic already exists.. woops. Sorry!

[techgnome]

You're right, searching MSDN can be a bit daunting..... check out this thread which contains some helpful hints on using MSDN properly.

http://vbforums.com/showthread.php?t=417525

-tg

[Fromethius]

Thanks, I didn't know about that parent thing

[jmcilhinney]

MSDN can be a bit tricky but that's bound to be the case because it contains so much information. Also, the code examples can't be too specific in most cases because they have to be applied to so many diverse sets of circumstances. Also, it is a feature-based reference for the most part, although it does have a lot of task-based examples too.

First rule:

If you're using a particular class then the first place you should look for information is the help topic for that class, then the help topic for its member listing. This rule should be tatooed on the inside of every .NET developer's eyelids. I've lost count of the number of times I've answered questions on this and other forums on topics I have no prior knowledge of simply by doing that. I've answered a large number of questions on the DataGrid control and I've NEVER used a DataGrid myself. All I did was go to the member listing and see what names looked likely and followed the links.

Also, don't just use MSDN when you've got a problem. If I'm reading a post on this forum and someone mentions a class or member that I haven't heard of, the first thing I do is go to MSDN and look it up. Even if I don't need the information now, I have it for future reference. Always be on the lookout for opportunities to learn. At times, I'll go to MSDN and just pick some randome topic from the .NET area that sounds interesting and read it. Maybe that makes me a super dork rather than a super developer, but that's a risk I'm willing to take.

As for writing a sentence when searching, it's usually a bad idea because you simply confuse the issue. The term "key word" is not use for nothing. Leave out any words that don't add value to the search. How many people ask how to write a text file? Would you not search for "write text file"? Just like searching the Web, successful searching on MSDN comes down to good selection of key words. The ability to select good key words is something that improves with practice.

If you want information specific to .NET development then at least try a search with ".net" as a key word. Using "c#" or "visual basic" will also help to weed out irrelevant links.

Don't be afraid to use the table of contents. It's a logically arranged tree of data that can help you find things by topic

If you don't understand the code they provide then I can't help specifically with that, but the ability to read others' code is a skill you need to develop. Firstly, don't look at a block of code in its entirety if you find it confusing. Look at it one line at a time. There are very few times that, if you know the types and members used, you cannot understand what one single line of code does. If you don't know the types and members then look them up. Once you understand what one line does then go to the next. Once you know the actual mechanics of what each line does, THEN you can look at the block as a whole and divine its overall function. A car engine is a pretty confusing piece of machinery, but if you analyse each individual component and understand them then you'll understand the whole. "Divide and conquer" should be every developers mantra. Every problem is just a combination of a number of small problems. Break each problem down into its components until each subproblem is simple enough to solve. Once you have solved each subproblem you have inherently solved the original problem.

The list of namespaces in the .NET Framework is much smaller than the list of classes. Get to know the namespaces, or at least the most common ones, and what they are generally for. If you want to do something related to I/O then go directly to the help topic for the System.IO namespace. It will list the member types and a description of each. I've answered many a question on this and other forums by doing just that and following the links from there.

I'd guess that at least 99 times out of 100 I've been able to find some or all the information I need to solve a problem by using MSDN. That includes back when I was teaching myself VB.NET from scratch with MSDN as my primary reference. If I can do it anybody can.

[Fromethius]

*Rates post*

Thanks jmc!

[jmcilhinney]

Another good lesson is to learn from your mistakes. Like I said, using MSDN is a skill that develops over time. I'm one of the most outspoken proponents of using MSDN as your primary resource for .NET development and I can back that up because I have always done so, but I'm better at it now than I was to start with. If you have trouble finding the information you need and it takes you a few goes to get it or someone else points you to the right place, think about the difference between what worked and what didn't and use that knowledge to do better next time. This is the sort of idea that can be applied to anything in life, as are many of the ideas I posted previously. That's why I tend to think of proper use of MSDN as largely common sense.

[Crash893]

i find that google usually has better results for the correct msdn page than msdns internal serach

the reason is that people will link to certian problems in msdn and google uses extrenal links to meausre value and thus rank

[Fromethius]

yea that is what i usually do. use google. i want to learn msdn though because it's better

[Crash893]

why you got a tool thats better already

and bouns point you know how to use it

and bonus bonus point you might come up with something not on msdn that is just as usefull ( thats how i found this site)