RE: Using *blank in a CL program

["M. Lazarus" <mlazarus@xxxxxxxx>]

Bob, Jim,

  The compiler probably made it into a constant, i.e. '*blank', similar to
any field if the "&" gets left off.

  -mark

At 9/12/01 01:59 PM -0500, you wrote:
>This isn't an RPG question, but, CL relaxed it's syntax checking to
>accept anything with * in front of it several releases ago. I'm sure the
>compiler should have caught this by SEU probably didn't.
>
>Bob Cozzi
>cozzi@rpgiv.com
>Visit the new on-line iSeries Forums at: http://www.rpgiv.com/forum
>
>
> > We have a young programmer.  He was writing a CL program and wanted to
>test
> > and determine if a field was blanks.  He wrote  If (&testfld = *blank)
>....
> > We found that program compiled this way but did not accurately test
>for a
> > blank field.  We changed the program to test for '  ' and the program
> > worked.
> > We found no reference to *blank in the CL manuals and are surprised
>that
> > program compiled with this value entered.  Does anyone have a thought
>on
> > this?
> >
> > Jim Hawkins
> > Pgmr/Analyst
> > Triple S Plastics, Inc.