re: external data area

Date:   7/1/97 12:38 PM

RE:     re: external data area

At 12:24 AM 7/1/97, you wrote:
>>I want one of the fields in a 57 character external data area to be
>>numeric.  I can not figure out how to do that in CL.  It seems to be
>>insisting on *CHAR only, no numerics.  Can I put numeric values in the
>>data area?  say...  put a minus 3500 starting at postion 45
>>
>>     CHGDTAARA DTAARA(SMPLDA (45 4) VALUE(-3500)
>>
>>doesn't work.  Any ideas?


>You can't put a numeric value in a character data area.  However, you can
>change the numeric value into a character format, and then put into into
>the data area.  However, you will lose the sign for a negative value.
>
>Al


Thats not entirely true Al,   You just have to remember to leave room for 
the negative sign out front.   
>
CHGDTAARA DTAARA(SMPLDA (45 5)   VALUE(-3500)

But while laying out formats(the layout) of data area including the LDA 
people forget to remember that if they want to represent a number in a 
character form to add an extra byte.   I normally use a physical file
to define the layout of these.  Including the LDA and use an externally
defined data structure in RPG.  In CL (we don't have structures)
I would 

DCLF   TEMPLATE  /* This defines all the variables automatically */

Then do something like  

CHGVAR  &NUMBER   (-3500)
CHGVAR   %SST(*LDA  45  5)   &NUMBER

John Carr
EdgeTech

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