DescriptionAttribute

By applying the [Description] attribute to an enum member, Enum Utilities provides convenient methods for retrieving and parsing descriptions.

Example

using System.ComponentModel;

[EnumGenerator]
public enum PaymentMethod
{
    [Description("The payment by using physical cash")]
    Cash,
    Cheque
}

This will generate code on the following classes:

• PaymentMethodExtensions
• PaymentMethodFactory

Additional Features

1. GetDescription()

   • A generated extension method in <EnumName>Extensions that reads the text specified by [Description("...")].
   • If [Description] is omitted on a member, the generator returns null.

2. TryCreateFromDescription()

   • A method in <EnumName>Factory that attempts to parse a string back into the enum based on the corresponding DescriptionAttribute.
   • Example:

     bool success = PaymentMethodFactory.TryCreateFromDescription(
         "The payment by using physical cash",
         out var method
     );
     // success == true
     // method == PaymentMethod.Cash

When to Use

Use DescriptionAttribute when you want a user-friendly label or explanation for an enum member, often displayed in UIs or printed in logs. This attribute is straightforward to apply and makes your enum values more descriptive for end users or developers.