ppWhat is namespace in C#?

In C#, a namespace is a fundamental concept used to organize and group related code elements, such as classes, structs, interfaces, enums, and delegates. Namespaces serve as containers that help avoid naming conflicts between different parts of a program and provide a hierarchical structure to the codebase.

The syntax for declaring a namespace in C# is as follows:

namespace MyNamespace
{
    // Code elements (e.g., classes, structs, etc.) go here
}

Here’s a brief explanation of how namespaces work:

1. Organizing Code: By using namespaces, you can logically group related types together. For example, you might have a namespace for handling mathematical operations, another for UI components, and so on.
2. Avoiding Name Clashes: Namespaces help prevent naming conflicts between different libraries or code components. If two libraries have a class with the same name, you can differentiate between them using namespaces.
3. Access Control: Namespaces also influence the accessibility of code elements. By default, code within a namespace is accessible only within the same namespace. However, you can control access by using access modifiers like public, private, internal, etc.

Here’s an example of using namespaces in C#:

using System;

namespace MathOperations
{
    class Calculator
    {
        public int Add(int a, int b)
        {
            return a + b;
        }
    }
}

namespace MyApp
{
    class Program
    {
        static void Main()
        {
            MathOperations.Calculator calc = new MathOperations.Calculator();
            int result = calc.Add(5, 10);
            Console.WriteLine("Result: " + result);
        }
    }
}

In this example, we have two namespaces, “MathOperations” and “MyApp.” The “Calculator” class is defined within the “MathOperations” namespace. To access the “Calculator” class from the “MyApp” namespace, we use the fully qualified name, “MathOperations.Calculator.”

By utilizing namespaces effectively, you can create well-organized, modular, and easily maintainable C# codebases.