C# Academy · Lesson

char, Unicode basics, simple parsing/formatting

Understand char (UTF-16 code unit), surrogate pairs for some characters, basic UTF-8 encoding/decoding, and simple number parsing/formatting.

char, Unicode basics, simple parsing/formatting is a free C# Academy lesson on CoddyKit — lesson 3 of 3. You can read the complete lesson below for free — then practise it hands-on in the browser with a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor. It is part of the C# Academy learning path, one of 3 lessons in the course, and your progress syncs across the web and the CoddyKit app.

Overview

Goal: Handle low-level text safely.

char is UTF-16
Some symbols use surrogate pairs
Encode/decode with UTF-8
Parse and format numbers

char basics

char is a 16-bit UTF-16 code unit; you can inspect category helpers like char.IsLetter.

using System;

public class Program
{
  public static void Main(string[] args)
  {
    char ch = 'A';
    Console.WriteLine("ch = " + ch);
    Console.WriteLine("UTF-16 code unit = " + (int)ch); // 65
    Console.WriteLine("IsLetter? " + char.IsLetter(ch));
    Console.WriteLine("ToLower = " + char.ToLower(ch));
  }
}

Surrogate pairs

Some characters need two UTF-16 code units (a surrogate pair). Length counts code units, not user-perceived characters.

using System;

public class Program
{
  public static void Main(string[] args)
  {
    // Smiling face U+1F603 represented as a surrogate pair in UTF-16
    string s = "\uD83D\uDE03";
    Console.WriteLine("Text: " + s);
    Console.WriteLine("Length (chars) = " + s.Length); // 2
    Console.WriteLine("First char high surrogate? " + char.IsHighSurrogate(s[0]));
    Console.WriteLine("Second char low surrogate? " + char.IsLowSurrogate(s[1]));
  }
}

UTF-8 roundtrip

Use System.Text.Encoding.UTF8 to convert between strings and bytes for storage or I/O.

using System;
using System.Text;

public class Program
{
  public static void Main(string[] args)
  {
    string text = "Café ☕"; // includes an accent + emoji
    byte[] bytes = Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes(text);   // encode to UTF-8
    string back = Encoding.UTF8.GetString(bytes);  // decode
    Console.WriteLine("Original: " + text);
    Console.WriteLine("Bytes UTF-8 = " + bytes.Length);
    Console.WriteLine("Roundtrip: " + back);
  }
}

Parse & format

Parse with culture awareness; use TryParse to avoid exceptions. ToString formats values (e.g., N2, C).

using System;
using System.Globalization;

public class Program
{
  public static void Main(string[] args)
  {
    // Parsing (safe)
    int n;
    bool ok = int.TryParse("123", out n);
    Console.WriteLine("ok=" + ok + " n=" + n);

    // Parsing (throws if invalid)
    try
    {
      double d = double.Parse("3.14", CultureInfo.InvariantCulture);
      Console.WriteLine("d=" + d);
    }
    catch (Exception ex)
    {
      Console.WriteLine("Parse error: " + ex.Message);
    }

    // Formatting
    double price = 1234.5;
    Console.WriteLine(price.ToString("N2", CultureInfo.InvariantCulture)); // 1,234.50
    Console.WriteLine(price.ToString("C", CultureInfo.GetCultureInfo("en-US"))); // currency example
  }
}

Trim & split

Use Trim to remove whitespace and Split to tokenize; always trim tokens for clean results.

using System;

public class Program
{
  public static void Main(string[] args)
  {
    string input = "  apple, banana ,  cherry ";
    string trimmed = input.Trim();
    string[] parts = trimmed.Split(',');

    for (int i = 0; i < parts.Length; i = i + 1)
    {
      string item = parts[i].Trim(); // clean each token
      Console.WriteLine("Item: " + item);
    }
  }
}

char definition

Quick check: In C#, what does a char represent?

Recap

Recap: char = UTF-16 code unit; emojis may be surrogate pairs. Encode with UTF-8 for bytes. Parse safely with TryParse and format with ToString patterns.

Frequently asked questions

Is the “char, Unicode basics, simple parsing/formatting” lesson free?

Yes — the full text of “char, Unicode basics, simple parsing/formatting” is free to read here on the web, and the C# Academy course includes 3 lessons in total. To practise it interactively (a built-in code editor and a 24/7 AI tutor) and unlock the rest of the C# Academy course, upgrade to CoddyKit PRO.

What will I learn in “char, Unicode basics, simple parsing/formatting”?

Understand char (UTF-16 code unit), surrogate pairs for some characters, basic UTF-8 encoding/decoding, and simple number parsing/formatting. You practise C# Academy with hands-on code you run directly in the browser, and a 24/7 AI tutor answers your questions as you work through the lesson.

Do I need any experience to start C# Academy?

No prior experience is required. C# Academy on CoddyKit is structured for beginners through advanced learners; this is — lesson 3 of 3, so you can start here or from the beginning and move at your own pace.

How long does the “char, Unicode basics, simple parsing/formatting” lesson take?

Most CoddyKit lessons take about 5–10 minutes. Each one is bite-sized and interactive, so you make steady progress and pick up exactly where you left off across the web and the app.

Can I write and run code in this C# Academy lesson?

Yes. Every C# Academy lesson includes a built-in code editor, so you write and run real code right in your browser and get instant AI feedback — no local setup required.

All lessons in this course

Strings & Text: immutability, interpolation, verbatim, StringBuilder, comparison
StringBuilder, comparison & culture notes
char, Unicode basics, simple parsing/formatting

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