But then I emailed some people on the Windows PowerShell team, and I was able to figure out what I was doing wrong. Even the second and third times, it did not work. Inside scoop! I will admit that the first time I tried to do this, it did not work. Otherwise…well…if it is not done exactly right, it won’t work.

The trick is that it must be done exactly right. This is where the ordered dictionary objects come into play. And the whole point of Windows PowerShell is to reduce work, not to make more work. If you read this post, you know that it is possible to sort a hash table-it is, well, a bit of extra work. Note For some of the issues surrounding attempts to sort this type of hash table, see Weekend Scripter: Sorting PowerShell Hash Tables. I create a nice hash table, specify the letters in order, and boom! They become jumbled.Ī 28 Ordered dictionary objects to the rescue You don’t get it? Here is an example (a non-sorted hash table, not a soggy sandwich)… Well, maybe it is not THE most frustrating thing in the world, but it is right up there with cold popcorn at a movie or a soggy sandwich on an airplane. One of the most frustrating things in the world is the way that nice, pretty, well-organized Windows PowerShell hash tables randomly seem to become jumbled up. Note For a good overview of the ordered dictionary in Windows PowerShell, refer to this Hey, Scripting Guy! Blog post by June Blender: ConvertTo-OrderedDictionary. The difference is that it maintains its order. Basically, an ordered dictionary works like a Windows PowerShell hash table. One of the really cool things that was introduced in Windows PowerShell 3.0, is that I can create an ordered dictionary. Microsoft Scripting Guy, Ed Wilson, is here. In the Locals window it will appear as Object/Dictionary, meaning the container is Object (which is largely irrelevant to you, don't worry about this) but the nature/behaviour is Dictionary (which is what you want).Īddendum: This last sentence isn't quite as true as I thought it was.Summary : Microsoft Scripting Guy, Ed Wilson, talks about using Windows PowerShell to create an ordered dictionary. a Dictionary, then that's what it becomes. Think of Object as a container that can hold any kind of object - but once you put an object in it, e.g. no explicit reference set, letting the program figure things out at runtime): Public Sub SubRoutine(Dict As Object) You need to declare your Sub's parameter as a generic Object type, as is required when using late binding (i.e.

setting an explicit reference to the Microsoft Scripting Runtime library): Public Sub SubRoutine(Dict As Scripting.Dictionary) Instead of the following, which implies early binding (i.e. You are effectively asking how to use late binding instead of early binding ( one article discussing this, more articles).

Microsoft scripting dictionary