.NET Enumeration allows comma in the last field

Question

Why in this planet .NET enumeration are allowed to have comma in the last field? Is this has any special meaning?

[FlagsAttribute]
public enum DependencyPropertyOptions : byte
{
           Default = 1,
           ReadOnly = 2,
           Optional = 4,
           DelegateProperty = 32,
           Metadata = 8,
           NonSerialized = 16,
}

Answer 1

It has no special meaning, just the way the compiler works, it's mainly for this reason:

[FlagsAttribute]
public enum DependencyPropertyOptions : byte
{
           Default = 1,
           ReadOnly = 2,
           Optional = 4,
           DelegateProperty = 32,
           Metadata = 8,
           NonSerialized = 16,
           //EnumPropertyIWantToCommentOutEasily = 32
}

By comment request: This info comes straight out of the C# Specification (Page 363/Section 19.7)

"Like Standard C++, C# allows a trailing comma at the end of an array-initializer. This syntax provides flexibility in adding or deleting members from such a list, and simplifies machine generation of such lists."

Answer 2

For the same reason this is perfectly legal:

while ( someCondition )
{
     DoSomething();;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;;
}

The comma, or semicolon in this case, is a statement separator, and a null statement is a legal statement.

Answer 3

Also (to Nick Craver post) its much easier to add new enumerations.

This behaviour appropriate not uniquely to enums. Consider following:

var list = new int[] { 1, 2, 3, };

Answer 4

One other reason: It makes it easier to code gen.