Creating a method that will procedurally write out console text like a mini game & dynamically changing still-text

Question

I am creating a presentation for my Internship project and I figured what would be a cooler and more appropriate way than to do it in a Console Application.

I need help with 2 code snippets

1. This snippet procedurally writes out text and it works well but runs sub-optimally (hogs resources)

    static void SleeperText(string text, int interval) { char[] SlowPrint = text.ToCharArray(); foreach (char letter in SlowPrint) { Write(letter); Thread.Sleep(interval); } 

2. This snippet is meant to be a graphic representation of what a salt would look like (for demonstration purposes) but flickers the whole Console.

    static char RandomAsciLetter() { char charsi = (ascii[r.Next(tempstring.Length)]); return charsi; } static string RandomAsciCombo() { string stringsi = String.Format("{0}{1}{2}{3}{4}{5}{6}{7}{8}{9}", RandomAsciLetter(), RandomAsciLetter(), RandomAsciLetter(), RandomAsciLetter(), RandomAsciLetter(), RandomAsciLetter(), RandomAsciLetter(), RandomAsciLetter(), RandomAsciLetter(), RandomAsciLetter()); return stringsi; } void Main() { do { while (!KeyAvailable) { Thread.Sleep(10); Clear(); Write("[ Esc ] to exit."); Write("\\r\\n\\r\\n\\r\\n\\r\\n"); WriteLine(String.Format("Salt:\\t{0}{1}", RandomAsciCombo(), RandomAsciCombo())); } } while (Console.ReadKey(true).Key != ConsoleKey.Escape); ReadLine(); } 

What is a better way to run the first snippet, and how do I remove the flickering for the second?

Answer 1

To remove flickering, do not clear the screen but rather set cursor position and write there.

To remove the annoying cursor position change, just hide it.

using System;

namespace ConsoleApp1
{
    internal static class Program
    {
        private static readonly Random Random = new Random();

        private static void Main(string[] args)
        {
            Console.CursorVisible = false;

            while (true)
            {
                if (Console.KeyAvailable && Console.ReadKey(true).Key == ConsoleKey.Escape)
                    break;

                Console.SetCursorPosition(10, 10);
                Console.Write(GetString());
            }
        }

        private static char GetChar()
        {
            return (char) Random.Next(65, 92);
        }

        private static string GetString()
        {
            return $"{GetChar()}{GetChar()}{GetChar()}{GetChar()}{GetChar()}";
        }
    }
}

This is just a skeleton, you will likely need some extra helpers ...