Previously we used properties for field validation. By applying public and private, we can also use properties to control access to fields.

Recall our imaginary Area property. Say we want programs to get the value of the property, but we don’t want programs to set the value of the property. Then we either:

1. don’t include a set() method, or
2. make the set() method private.

This shows approach 1 — don’t include a set():

public string Area
{
  get { return area; }
}

We can still get Area, but if we try to set Area we get an error:

error CS0200: Property or indexer 'Forest.Area' cannot be assigned to (it is read-only)

This shows approach 2 — make set() private:

public int Area
{
  get { return area; }
  private set { area = value; }  
}

We can still get Area, but if we try to set Area in Main() we get an error:

error CS0272: The property or indexer 'Forest.Area' cannot be used in this context because the set accessor is inaccessible

Notice that in approach 1 we get an error for setting Area anywhere. In approach 2 we only get an error for setting Area outside of the Forest class. Generally we prefer approach 2 because it allows other Forest methods to set Area.