Most efficient way to insert text into a file

StumblingInTheDark · August 21st, 2006, 02:38 PM

I'm writing an app that creates a status text file. Any time there was a change I'd write to the file by:

Code:

Status_Message_Text = DateString + "   " + TimeString + "     " + Status_Message + vbCrLf
My.Computer.FileSystem.WriteAllText(File_Path, Status_Message_Text, True)

Elsewhere I display it in a Text Box:

Code:

txtStatusLog.Text = My.Computer.FileSystem.ReadAllText(File_Path)

It works fabulous except that the write appends the text at the end.

I'd like either a way to insert the text at the beginning of the file or somehow sort the display in the Text Box because I want to display the most recent status message first.

For now I changed the write so that the Status_Message_Text reads in the file and the write over-writes the file:

Code:

Status_Message_Text = DateString + "   " + TimeString + "     " + Status_Message + vbCrLf + My.Computer.FileSystem.ReadAllText(File_Path)
My.Computer.FileSystem.WriteAllText(File_Path, Status_Message_Text, False)

There's got to be a better way!

Any ideas?

THANKS!

PaulSmith68 · February 22nd, 2007, 01:09 PM

I just put an article on CodeProject that describes how to do this in C#:

Insert Text into Existing Files in C#, Without Temp Files or Memory Buffers

This uses a FileStream, a StreamReader, and a BinaryWriter to replace, delete, overwrite, or insert text at any desired position in the file. I know your main question was how to insert text into a file, but the other stuff might come in handy too.

The jist of it is that you could (a) buffer all the file contents that come after the insertion position, then write your text, and finally fetch the buffered text & write it back to the file, or (b) you can do this without any buffering or temp files by comparing the length of the text you're inserting with the length of the text that will come after it in the target file. Knowing that, you can shift the subsequent text just once, making exactly enough room for the text you want to insert.

Let me know if the article is clear and understandable; I'm happy to go back and try to improve the ugly stuff.