VB -> C#: XML literals should be XML-decoded

[HeinziAT]

VB.Net input code

Dim v = <xml>&lt;</xml>.Value

Erroneous output

string v = new XElement("xml", "<").Value;

Expected output

string v = new XElement("xml", "<").Value;

Details

• Product in use: icsharpcode.github.io/CodeConverter
• Version in use: 9.0.4.0
• Console.WriteLine(v) outputs < in VB.NET (expected result) and < in C# (actual/erroneous result).
• Prior to Visual Studio 2015, XML literals were the canonical workaround to create multi-line strings in VB.NET, so this pattern might (unfortunately) be common in old code.

[GrahamTheCoder]

Thanks, good context on likelihood there too. Looks reasonably straightforward to fix. Wherever the code that creates the xmlelement is just needs to xml decode first. In the case of a literal that can be done at conversion time but presumably needs a runtime call in other cases?

[HeinziAT]

Unless I missed something, I think the issue only exist for literals, so I don't see (yet) where a runtime call would be needed. Dim x = <xml>a <%= "<" %></xml>, for example, gets converted correctly.

[GrahamTheCoder]

Ah good, I wasn't sure what would happen if you referenced a variable containing "<" and stuff like that. I don't remember what is possible in vb's xml syntax