The String is both a reference type and a value type in .NET
In .NET the string class is a special type. It is a hybrid of both a value type and a reference type. A typical reference type is stored on the heap, and a typical value type is stored on the stack. Classes are reference types, for example, Windows.Forms.Textbox Numbers are value types, for example, Integer and Double. Value types are able to be stored on the stack because they have a finite length. Reference types have variable length. So for reference types, .NET keeps a memory reference on the stack to a location on the heap where the actual value is stored. This allows the stack to be very fast and compact while still being able to store large values like a string variable that contains the preamble to the Constitution. An analogy: A comparison to Sqlserver variables is the difference betwnee the char and the varchar data types. The char always has a fixed length, the varchar does not. So the string is a special animal. You can use it without always having to use a constructor. G...
