What are some practical use cases for collections in C#?

What are some practical use cases for collections in C#?

Collections in C# are used to store, manage, and manipulate groups of related objects. Common use cases include managing lists of items, storing unique values, and organizing data for quick access.

Can you give me an example of when to use a List versus a Dictionary?

Sure! Use a List when you need an ordered collection of items, like a list of students. Use a Dictionary when you need to associate keys with values, like storing student IDs with their names.

What about using HashSet? When should I use that?

A HashSet is ideal when you need to store unique items and perform operations like union, intersection, or difference. It's great for scenarios where duplicates are not allowed.

Are there performance considerations I should be aware of?

Yes, different collections have different performance characteristics. For example, accessing an item in a List is O(1), while searching in a HashSet is O(1) on average, but inserting into a List can be O(n) if resizing is needed.