RE: REXX on AS/400- Can you call formatted screens -- MIDRANGE-L

Dave:

I imagine REXX and CL stay at basic levels under OS/400 because they're free. If they were enhanced to support much more than they do, there'd be much less need for compilers that cost money. As it is, I can do just about anything I need with REXX, CL, UIM and QM queries. But I don't run a business; I merely amuse myself.

For basic formatted screens in REXX, I'd probably write a CL program to SNDRCVF the display format. Variables coming in to and going out of the CLP would also be defined via a command definition. REXX handles command variables _fairly_ easily so the REXX variable pool doesn't _have_ to be manipulated. There are good reasons to go through the pool, but it might not be the bast place to start. The CL ought to be simple if all that's happening is a prompt screen.

Also, I'm not sure why REXX couldn't call the various UIM APIs and be more directly tied in to the process. I've never tried, but now that it's in mind, I probably will.

Tom Liotta

midrange-l-request@xxxxxxxxxxxx wrote:

  5. subject: Re: REXX on AS/400- Can you call formatted screens
     (Dave Odom)
Thanks to Vern Hamberg for his reply. I was hoping the AS/400 and its implementation of REXX had matured to the level of the VM operating system but I guess not.

You see in VM you can create screens using the XEDIT editor and call those screens from REXX thus quickly creating a professional looking and functioning application without all the extra work of a compiled language. While you are correct that an interpretive language like REXX, VB, etc., is never going to be as fast as a compiled language, nor is it going to enjoy static SQL calls to DB2 and the accompanying performance, if the application is relatively small and not hugely complex, REXX is a very capable and powerful language.
I also agree with you as to string functions.  REXX is probably one of
the best out there.
It seems like one of your ideas has merit for my use...   If I
understand you correctly, you say to create an RPG "driver" program,
called from my REXX program, that basically runs and manages the DSPFs
and takes the variables and puts them into the REXX variable pool.   If
its possible to architect such a thing such that it can be called and
called with all the variables getting messed up, that sort of sounds
like what is done in VM with XEDIT screens, except there XEDIT and REXX
can be more integrated with each other.
What do you think? Anyone else care to comment?


--
Tom Liotta
The PowerTech Group, Inc.
19426 68th Avenue South
Kent, WA 98032
Phone  253-872-7788 x313
Fax    253-872-7904
http://www.powertech.com