C# Performance Architect
Learn how to write high-performance C# code.
A couple of years ago I was living and working in Belgium. I joined a small team of SharePoint specialists to build a custom application for a financial institution in Brussels. We were writing a lot of hand-coded C#.
I worked with a colleague who was fresh out of college with a computer science education under his belt. But I noticed something very interesting: even though he could write perfectly functional C# code, nobody had ever taught him how to write fast and efficient code.
Here's an example. Take a look at these two code snippets:
Which code snippet do you think is the fastest?
Now, to be fair, my colleague had heard of a StringBuilder. But nobody had ever explained to him why it exists, so he didn’t realize when he should use it.
Seasoned C# developers will know that the code on the left is extremely inefficient for large loops because in C# strings are optimized for comparing, not for modifying. The heap will be littered with out-of-scope copies of the string. We're supposed to use the StringBuilder class here, because it is optimized for modifying.
But let’s face it: the NET Framework is huge. For any given problem there are many competing solutions, and it is not always clear which solution is the best choice.
I created this course specifically for people like my colleague: developers who already have a working knowledge of C# programming, but who want to learn how to write fast and efficient code, and gain more understanding of what is going on under the hood of the .NET Framework.
“Great job at explaining the fundamentals of memory and IL before proceeding into the list of recommendations organizing by beginner, intermediate and advanced ... Great and organized content ... great course”
- Andrew Akindele
In the course, I cover many common performance bottlenecks. I introduce each problem with a small test program to measure the baseline performance. Then I’ll demonstrate a couple of possible solution, and benchmark how each solution measures up.
I also added a section on Common Intermediate Code (CIL), the ‘machine’ language that the C# compiler compiles to. The CIL language is very easy to read and understand, I cover all the basics in a short 15-minute lecture.
Being able to read CIL code is an extremely useful skill that will help you analyze the output of the C# compiler, and help you avoid many performance pitfalls of the NET Framework.
Course Curriculum
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StartSection Introduction (1:57)
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StartTest Your Knowledge: The Stack
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StartThe Stack (5:23)
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StartTest Your Knowledge: The Heap
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StartThe Heap (6:18)
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StartTest Your Knowledge: Value Types
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StartValue Types (5:50)
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StartTest Your Knowledge: Reference Types
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StartReference Types (5:29)
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StartTest Your Knowledge: Boxing And Unboxing
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PreviewBoxing And Unboxing (6:28)
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StartTest Your Knowledge: Immutable Strings
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StartImmutable Strings (6:43)
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StartSection Recap (3:29)