Re: advice on best technique for processing input parms... -- COBOL400-L


On 11/11/2006, at 7:57 AM, Michael Rosinger wrote:

We will be migrating COBOL programs from a VSE/ESA system to i5. Manyof ourCOBOL programs have optional input parameters that drive theprocessing. The
way the majority of them handle the parms is that the parms are coded
"in-line" in the JCL. The program defines the system reader device as a
"file". This technique has proven to be the most flexible since itenablesthe program to handle 0 to many input parms and keeps "reading" thefileuntil end-of-file (translated that means when the JCL card containingthe
"/*" card is read).
So, I would like opinions as to how best to adapt this type ofprocessing tothe iSeries world. Is there a way to define the system reader deviceas afile to the COBOL program which can read in the parameter cards thatare
"in-line" in the CL and *know* when to stop (EOF)?

If not, what is the closest method that would require the fewest logic
changes to the existing programs?

This is a very "mainframe" way of doing things. You can accomplishsimilar behaviour on iSeries by using CL job streams and in-line datafiles although most iSeries programmers will consider this an archaic,if not downright ugly, technique. See the COBOL Programmer's Guide forinformation about input data spooling. Here is a trivial example:


First the CL job stream:

//BCHJOB   JOB(BATCHJOB)
CALL       PGM(SHC/BCHJOBCBL)
//DATA     FILE(FILE1) FILETYPE(*DATA) ENDCHAR('/*')
Data for parm 1
Data for parm 2
Data for parm 3
Data for parm 4
/*
//ENDBCHJOB

Next, the COBOL program:

      * THIS PROGRAM IS JUST A SIMPLE EXAMPLE TO DEMONSTRATE
      * PROCESSING AN IN-LINE FILE LIKE MAINFRAME
      *
       IDENTIFICATION DIVISION.
       PROGRAM-ID. BCHJOBCBL.
       AUTHOR. SIMON COULTER.

       ENVIRONMENT DIVISION.
       INPUT-OUTPUT SECTION.
       FILE-CONTROL.

           SELECT FILE1
                  ASSIGN       TO DISK-FILE1
                  ORGANIZATION IS SEQUENTIAL
                  ACCESS       IS SEQUENTIAL.

       DATA DIVISION.
       FILE SECTION.

       FD  FILE1
           LABEL RECORDS ARE STANDARD.
       01  FILE1-RECORD              PIC X(80).

       WORKING-STORAGE SECTION.

       01 INPUT-END                  PIC X VALUE SPACE.
          88 END-OF-INPUT            VALUE "E".

       PROCEDURE DIVISION.

           OPEN INPUT FILE1.

           READ FILE1 INTO FILE1-RECORD
                AT END SET END-OF-INPUT TO TRUE
           END-READ
           PERFORM UNTIL END-OF-INPUT
              DISPLAY FILE1-RECORD
              READ FILE1 INTO FILE1-RECORD
                   AT END SET END-OF-INPUT TO TRUE
              END-READ
           END-PERFORM.

           CLOSE      FILE1.
           STOP RUN.                                   

Run the CL job stream using the SBMDBJOB command.


Regards,
Simon Coulter.
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