Question

An example is worth a thousand stupid questions so:

public class OuterClass
{
    public static class InnerClassEventArgs : EventArgs
    {
        public static int SomeInt;
    }
}

and in a galaxy far far away:

public void SomeFunkyFunc()
{
    OuterClass Instance1;
    OuterClass Instance2;

    Instance1.InnerClassEventArgs.SomeInt = 1;
    Instance2.InnerClassEventArgs.SomeInt = 2;

    //WHAT WOULD Instance1.InnerClassEventArgs.Someint == ?
}

Yes, I realize now that I’ve typed this that I’ve almost coded all I need to answer my own question. I’d rather not create a new project and go through the trouble if someone smarter than me knows off the top of their head.

Answer 1

Instance1.InnerClassEventArgs.SomeInt would equal 2. Static fields are shared across all instances of the class — or as MSDN puts it:

The static member is always accessed by the class name, not the instance name. Only one copy of a static member exists, regardless of how many instances of the class are created.

Note that your specific example won’t compile — you’ll get an error message that says “Cannot access static class ‘InnerClassEventArgs’ in a non-static context.”

You’d have to use the following code instead, which hopefully makes the behavior more understandable:

OuterClass.InnerClassEventArgs.SomeInt = 1;
OuterClass.InnerClassEventArgs.SomeInt = 2;