Open and Save (part 7) · WPF Spreadsheet tutorial

Runnable code for this step

This lesson explains the ideas. The matching GitHub folder is a complete app snapshot you can clone and run as-is. Skim the code, run it, then come back here for the why.

Open snapshot on GitHub

fcc-wpf-spreadsheet/07-Open-and-Save

Run locally

git clone https://github.com/michaeldunga1/fcc-wpf-spreadsheet.git
cd fcc-wpf-spreadsheet/07-Open-and-Save
dotnet restore
dotnet build
dotnet run

Goal for this part

Load and save CSV workbooks.

Treat 07-Open-and-Save as the source of truth for this checkpoint. If your local tree drifted, re-clone that folder rather than mixing files from neighbors.

What you should already know

You do not need prior WPF experience for part 1. Later parts assume you finished the earlier snapshots on the same machine.

.NET 8 SDK is installed
You can run dotnet from a terminal
WPF snapshots target Windows

Why WPF fits Gridlane

WPF’s DataGrid is a natural teaching surface for cells, formulas-lite, and clipboard paste—without building a full Excel clone.

Bind a 2D cell model to the grid. Keep parsing and file I/O out of code-behind event handlers as the sheet grows.

Checkpoint

After you run the snapshot, you should recognize the behavior described in the goal—before you move on. If the window (or server) never appears, stop and fix the run steps.

Code shape

Snapshots stay small on purpose. Look for this kind of core call as you read the folder:

File.WriteAllLines(path, rows.Select(r => string.Join(",", r)));

How to run it

Clone the teaching repo, open 07-Open-and-Save, install what the README asks for, then run dotnet run.

git clone https://github.com/michaeldunga1/fcc-wpf-spreadsheet.git
cd fcc-wpf-spreadsheet/07-Open-and-Save
dotnet restore
dotnet build
dotnet run

Common mistakes

Ignoring platform-specific install notes in the snapshot README
Hard-coding paths that only work on your machine
Skipping confirmation on destructive actions
Mixing secondary-model IDs with primary ones