Professional Visual Studio® 2008

41.5. Watch Windows

Earlier in this chapter you saw how datatips can be used in the code window to examine the content of a variable by hovering the mouse over a variable name. When the structure of the object is more complex it becomes difficult to navigate the values using just the datatip. Visual Studio 2008 has a series of watch windows that can be used to display variables, providing an easy-to-use interface for drilling down into the structure.

41.5.1. QuickWatch

The QuickWatch window is a modal dialog that can be launched by right-clicking on the code window. Whatever you have selected in the code window is inserted into the Expression field of the dialog, as shown in Figure 41-6 where a Customer object is visible. Previous expressions you have evaluated appear in the drop-down associated with the Expression field.

Figure 41.6. Figure 41-6

The layout of the Value tree in the QuickWatch window is similar to the datatip, without the annoyance of its disappearing. Each row shows the variable name, the current value, and the type of object. The value of the variable can be adjusted by typing in the Value column.

Use the Add Watch button to add the current expression to one of the watch windows. These are variables to be continuously watched.

41.5.2. Watch Windows 1–4

Unlike the QuickWatch window, which is modal and shows a variable value at a particular execution point, ...