How do I use DateTime.TryParse with a Nullable?

Question

I want to use the DateTime.TryParse method to get the datetime value of a string into a Nullable. But when I try this:

DateTime? d;
bool success = DateTime.         


        

Answer 1

This is the one liner you're looking fo:

DateTime? d = DateTime.TryParse("some date text", out DateTime dt) ? dt : null;

If you want to make it a proper TryParse pseudo-extension method, you can do this:

public static bool TryParse(string text, out DateTime? dt)
{
    if (DateTime.TryParse(text, out DateTime date))
    {
        dt = date;
        return true;
    }
    else
    {
        dt = null;
        return false;
    }
}