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I am going to have to start working with C# for some programming in windows with excel, and some database work. I was wondering if anyone has some good suggestion for an introductory book to C#. I have quite a bit of programming experience in Java and C.
I have seen a few books on Amazon and know of some good authors such as Jeffrey Ritcher. But i am looking for some quick start.

Thanks much.
Posted

Apress[^] has some good books on C#. I use Pro C# 2010 and the .NET 4 Platform[^]. Since you know Java and C I'm assuming you know a thing or two about programming and are familiar with the syntax. While this book goes from very easy to more advanced it usually gives a good overview of what's possible in what aspects (Interfaces, Generics, LINQ, Reflection, IO, ADO.NET etc.). It's a BIG book, but covers many aspects and it's more of a reference than an actual learning book.
A coworker is currently reading the VB2008 equivalent of Accelerated C# 2010[^] and he finds it very useful (he's more of a beginner). Perhaps this is the book for you.

You could also check out Manning[^]. They have some 'out of the box'-type of books, that might give you those 'aha!'-moments. Maybe not what you're looking for, but interesting none the less: C# in Depth, Second Edition[^].

Of course you could also skip the books and go right to articles and examples. You mention database work so perhaps you're interested in ADO.NET. In that case there's plenty of articles to be found.
Using ADO.NET for beginners[^]
A Beginner's Tutorial for Understanding ADO.NET[^]
ADO.NET Code Examples[^]
ADO.NET Entity Framework[^]

The pro to articles is that it's mostly a bit of reading and a lot of copy paste, which will get you up and running in no time. Books usually give a better understanding, but require more time and effort from the reader. You should certainly consider reading some articles if all you want is to do 'some programming'.

Good luck learning C#, hope this helps! :)
 
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Comments
Clifford Nelson 10-Jul-12 19:24pm    
Why all the ADO articles since he was asking about C#, not about ADO?
Sander Rossel 11-Jul-12 1:54am    
I wanted to make a point about how articles can be of great help so I needed some articles on a topic the OP would probably need. Since the OP mentioned he was going to do some database work, which in C# usually requires the use of ADO.NET techniques, I decided to look up some ADO.NET articles. Of course they could've been articles on whatever the OP needs, but other than ADO.NET I wouldn't know. Unless maybe some introductions to the C# language, but when the OP sees some examples of real code I don't really think he needs that since he should already be familiar with the syntax :)
Shahin Khorshidnia 10-Jul-12 23:52pm    
Perfect answer Naerling. My +5
Sander Rossel 11-Jul-12 1:51am    
Thank you :)
devmr 11-Jul-12 2:17am    
Really Nice Answer! +5!
You may want to wait if you can since 2012 is just around the corner. I also like the Apress book, particularly since can get the pdf of the book. The new version is due in August: http://www.amazon.com/Pro-NET-Framework-Professional-Apress/dp/1430242337/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341962472&sr=8-1&keywords=pro+c%23+2012[^]
 
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