RE: external *PRTF (was: RE: 'ILE RPG' or 'RPG IV' . What's the diffe rence!!!)

I think you hit on the difference in utility and convenience between
externally described print and display files--it's the development tool.
SDA works pretty well for throwing displays together and it's actually
better than RLU for print files except for not supporting a lot of the key
words and only allowing 132 columns.  If I had a better tool, I'd probably
use print files, but given the extremely low probability that my employer
will pay for Code Edit since it's only available with Visual Age for RPG,
I'll probably stick with O specs.

I'm lazy, selfish, and short sighted <g> and generally need a selfish reason
to give up something that does what I want it to do.  Acceptable selfish
reasons would include:  Greater ease of use without a sacrifice in function;
significant increase in function without sacrificing ease of use; the old
method disappears; employer compulsion/coercion.  RPGIV met the first two
criteria easily (and I only needed one.)  For what I do, O specs do a fine
job and are easier to code and maintain than print files.

Any resemblance of the above to the product of a diseased mind is
unintentional, but may be a valid description of its content.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Jon.Paris@halinfo.it [mailto:Jon.Paris@halinfo.it]
> Sent: Monday, April 10, 2000 7:16 PM
> To: RPG400-L@midrange.com
> Subject: Re: external *PRTF (was: RE: 'ILE RPG' or 'RPG IV' . 
> What's the
> diffe rence!!!)
> 
> 
> 
> 
>  >> Jon, please indicate why you think "it is just better and 
> safer to describe
> these things externally."
> 
> I could just as easily ask why you don't describe your 
> display files internally.
> Or your database files for that matter.
> 
> RPG programs are way too big and lumpy anyway.  Printer files 
> allow me to keep
> the physical definition separate from the logical definition. 
>  That makes it
> simpler to customize the output to the users needs (that is 
> who we are coding
> for right?) without having to keep messing around in the 
> source.  Every time I
> touch the source there is a chance I will screw up something 
> else.  If I need to
> modify a print file to split one line into two I can often do 
> so with no change
> at all to the program.  I can move fields around, modify 
> spacing/skipping, etc.
> etc.
> 
> I have never understood why the same programmers who so 
> eagerly embraced the
> S/38's external database and display definitions were so 
> determined to continue
> doing their print programs the hard way.  When I first 
> discovered the S/38 I was
> so delighted to get all that $#%@ out of my programs that I 
> wouldn't ever want
> to have to go back to doing it the old fashioned way.
> 
> Now that I have Code Designer to do the print layout it is 
> even simpler 'cos I
> can drag and drop, stretch fields, move groups of them, etc.  
> I used to use SDA
> and hand convert the final product 'cos I couldn't stand RLU 
> and SDA was what In
> used for the job on the S/38 anyway!
> 
> 
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