SortKey.Compare(SortKey, SortKey) Method

Definition

Namespace:

System.Globalization

Assemblies:

netstandard.dll, System.Runtime.dll

Source:

SortKey.cs

Compares two sort keys.

C#

public static int Compare(System.Globalization.SortKey sortkey1, System.Globalization.SortKey sortkey2);

Parameters

sortkey1

SortKey

The first sort key to compare.

sortkey2

SortKey

The second sort key to compare.

Returns

Int32

A signed integer that indicates the relationship between sortkey1 and sortkey2.

Value	Condition
Less than zero	sortkey1 is less than sortkey2.
Zero	sortkey1 is equal to sortkey2.
Greater than zero	sortkey1 is greater than sortkey2.

Exceptions

ArgumentNullException

sortkey1 or sortkey2 is null.

Examples

The following code example compares two strings using the Compare method and the equivalent CompareInfo.Compare(String, String, CompareOptions) method.

C#

// This code example demonstrates the CompareInfo.Compare() and
// SortKey.Compare() methods.

using System;
using System.Globalization;

class Sample
{
    public static void Main()
    {
    string lowerABC = "abc";
    string upperABC = "ABC";
    int result = 0;

// Create a CompareInfo object for the en-US culture.
    Console.WriteLine("\nCreate a CompareInfo object for the en-US culture...\n");
    CompareInfo cmpi = CompareInfo.GetCompareInfo("en-US");
// Alternatively:
//  CompareInfo cmpi = new CultureInfo("en-US").CompareInfo;

// Create sort keys for lowercase and uppercase "abc", the en-US culture, and
// ignore case.
    SortKey sk1LowerIgnCase = cmpi.GetSortKey(lowerABC, CompareOptions.IgnoreCase);
    SortKey sk2UpperIgnCase = cmpi.GetSortKey(upperABC, CompareOptions.IgnoreCase);

// Create sort keys for lowercase and uppercase "abc", the en-US culture, and
// use case.
    SortKey sk1LowerUseCase = cmpi.GetSortKey(lowerABC, CompareOptions.None);
    SortKey sk2UpperUseCase = cmpi.GetSortKey(upperABC, CompareOptions.None);

// Compare lowercase and uppercase "abc", ignoring case and using CompareInfo.
    result = cmpi.Compare(lowerABC, upperABC, CompareOptions.IgnoreCase);
    Display(result, "CompareInfo, Ignore case", lowerABC, upperABC);
// Compare lowercase and uppercase "abc", ignoring case and using SortKey.
    result = SortKey.Compare(sk1LowerIgnCase, sk2UpperIgnCase);
    Display(result, "SortKey, Ignore case", lowerABC, upperABC);
    Console.WriteLine();

// Compare lowercase and uppercase "abc", using case and using CompareInfo.
    result = cmpi.Compare(lowerABC, upperABC, CompareOptions.None);
    Display(result, "CompareInfo, Use case", lowerABC, upperABC);
// Compare lowercase and uppercase "abc", using case and using SortKey.
    result = SortKey.Compare(sk1LowerUseCase, sk2UpperUseCase);
    Display(result, "SortKey, Use case", lowerABC, upperABC);
    }

// Display the results of a comparison.
    private static void Display(int compareResult, string title,
                                string lower, string upper)
    {
    string lessThan    = "less than ";
    string equalTo     = "equal to ";
    string greaterThan = "greater than ";
    string resultPhrase = null;
    string format = "{0}:\n    \"{1}\" is {2}\"{3}\".";

    if      (compareResult < 0) resultPhrase = lessThan;
    else if (compareResult > 0) resultPhrase = greaterThan;
    else                        resultPhrase = equalTo;
    Console.WriteLine(format, title, lower, resultPhrase, upper);
    }
}
/*
This code example produces the following results:

Create a CompareInfo object for the en-US culture...

CompareInfo, Ignore case:
    "abc" is equal to "ABC".
SortKey, Ignore case:
    "abc" is equal to "ABC".

CompareInfo, Use case:
    "abc" is less than "ABC".
SortKey, Use case:
    "abc" is less than "ABC".

*/

Remarks

The Compare method compares the KeyData properties of the sortkey1 and sortkey2 parameters. The method yields the same results as the CompareInfo.Compare method.

For more information about the Compare method and the comparison of sort keys, see the SortKey class topic.

Applies to