Learn C# Basics by Building Your Own Bot (ChatGPT enabled)

Learn C# from scratch by building a chatbot windows application which using OpenAI's GPT3 model

[Course fourth updated on Jul. 2023 and ChatGPT enabled!]

The goal of this course is to help you learn C# by building and distributing an interesting chatbot application to your users.

According to my experience, the most efficient way to learn new things is to pick up an interesting simple task and complete it from scratch. Since the task is simple and small, it's not hard to finish; and since it is interesting, you won't get bored during the learning process, especially when you get stock in the troubleshooting phases. Therefore, this is also the approach used in this course to help you learn C# easily.

This course is divided into eight sections. Well, actually there are nine sections. Section 4.5 is a brief two-video bonus section. At the end of this course, you will be able to plan a new application, build all its functions, and then encapsulate it in an installer to distribute it to your users. Here is a brief introduction of what you will learn from each section.

Section 1: Introduction

The reason to learn C# programming and the reason to choose this course.  You will know who the tutor is and his background to get a solid confidence of choosing this course.

Section 2: Preparing the tools

The steps of downloading and installing Visual Studio 2022, Microsoft SQL Server 2019 Express and Microsoft SQL Server Management Studio (SSMS).

Section 3: Architecture of C# and . Net

To understand C# program structure and . Net Framework architecture. All concepts will be introduced by using a simple interactive console application.

Section 4: C# Essentials

The most basic and necessary concepts of C# language are introduced in this section. And all concepts will introduced by build the core functions of the chatbot program via a console application.

Section 5 Make Reusable Library (original section 4.5)

This is a bonus section, and we are going to create a reusable and cross platform DLL library in . Net Standard for future use.

Section 6: GUI and File Access

We will create a Windows Form desktop user interface for the chatbot, and learn how to load initial settings from a config file. Exception handling will be introduced as well.

Section 7: Database

Two ways of accessing a database, including ADO . Net and Entity Framework, are introduced in this section. We start with using a local database, then transform it to a online SQL database.

Section 8: Program Installer

Two ways of building an application installer for distribute applications, ClickOnce and Microsoft Visual Studio Installer Projects, are introduced.

Section 9: BOT in .Net 6 WPF (Dec. 2022)

Create a WPF application with transparent background.

Section 10: Using OpenAI GPT3 Model (Jul. 2023)

Using C# to create the connectivity of the Chat Completion API provided by OpenAI to make our application more humanized.

What's next?

There are lots of things that you can do with C#, we will let you know what to learn next in this section.