Re: Subprocedure questions

-----Original Message-----
From: Scott Johnson <sjohnson@highsmith.com>
Newsgroups: comp.sys.ibm.as400.misc
To: Midrange List <MIDRANGE-L@midrange.com>
Date: Thursday, January 20, 2000 6:19 PM
Subject: Subprocedure questions


>
>Do you use subroutines within a subprocedure???

I have on procedures that were more akin to a program in size and complexity
and required many processes to complete it's purpose, like
"RebalanceReserves" or "LoadWorkRecords" involving dozens of workfiles.
This has always been in a service program where it also used many local
procedures (no exports) as well as subroutines.  The subroutines seemed more
comfortable where global variables needed to be manipulated or used and
passing parms seemed awkward.

The vast majority of my procedures are quite small (less than one screen)
and the need just doesn't come up.



>Do you think it is a good idea to mix subroutines into a
>nomain module???


As they say, use the right tool for the job.  There's no hard and fast
rules.  But small is beautiful, less is more, etc, etc.

>I am looking for some general opinions.  We had somebody
>inhouse write a bunch of procedures that in turn contained
>subroutines.  I found them difficult to follow.  If they
>had been subprocedures instead I think the code would have been
>a lot easier to read.


They are more difficult to follow....just as difficult as a program with
many subroutines.  Clean simple procs are much simpler to read.  Whether
they are simpler to follow is another question.

As I said, I don't use subroutines often, maybe 10-12 times out of 300 or so
"public" procedures.

>--  THANKS
>------------------------------------------------------
>Scott P. Johnson
>Microcomputer Development Specialist
>IBM Certified Specialist - AS/400 RPG Programmer
>Highsmith Inc.
>W5527 Hwy 106, PO BOX 800
>Fort Atkinson, WI 53538-0800
>TEL:  920-563-9571                FAX:  920-563-7395
>sjohnson@highsmith.com
>www.highsmith.com
>------------------------------------------------------
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