RE: converting string to a numeric -- RPG400-L

Free to be, you and me...

Gack...

On Wed, 28 Jul 2004 09:07:45 -0700 (PDT), "Eduard Sluis"
<eduard@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> said:
> Free format is great.
> It makes it possible that all kind of programmers that have learned nasty
> languages as C, Java and so on can also create things on the AS/400 in
> the best language there is and in that way bringing new blood to the
> developers pool on the AS/400.
> Because of Free they understand what they are doing.
> For me that is the only reason why Free exist (and that is a very good
> reason)!
>  
> It is in no way a reason to start all kinds of wars between FixedFormat
> lovers and Free addicts. We can all exist without problems along each
> other.
>  
> If FreeFormat lovers think Free is more natural (because that is the way
> they have learned coding and they do not know nothing else), my pleasure.
>  
> If FixedFormat addict have problems to understand FreeFormat (because
> they are used to use the location of things to know it's meaning) and
> refuse to start using extra keystrokes to indicate what means what in
> Free, so be it.
>  
> The thing is that Free is not better than Fixed.
> In Free and Fixed you can create exactly the same.
>  
> So I normally do things Fixed.
> Not because I can not other.
> Back in 1990 I came from C++ to the AS/400 and RPG.
> Dear I loved that moment.
> A real DBMS and external defined files, views, screens (do you remember
> the terrible programs to sort a file, to paint a screen, to....).
> And the Gum (RPG) to fix it together?
> OK, Fixed, at first difficult but:
> - No searches anymore to find the mistyped Upper/Lower case names.
> - No searches anymore to find the forgotten delimiter, forgotten....,
> forgotten.... that did not add up to the thing to do, but only to the
> language..... 
> And now, I can't help, I like fixed.
> I do not like to type to much.
> I want to see at ones what what means.
> I do not feel any constraint, have not any urge to use Free.
> But do not see any reason why others would not use Free.
> I could use Free when I think it is appropriate for a very specific part
> in a program.
> I won't feel myself silly when I do.
>  
> Kind regards,
> Eduard.
> Chris Payne <CPayne@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> If you're going to argue that RPG started as fixed format, and therefore
> should not be used in free format, you could just as easily say that RPG
> was
> designed for punch cards, and should not be keyed in using 5250
> terminals.
> 
> Chris Payne
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: rob@xxxxxxxxx [mailto:rob@xxxxxxxxx] 
> Sent: Wednesday, July 28, 2004 9:20 AM
> To: RPG programming on the AS400 / iSeries
> Subject: Re: converting string to a numeric
> 
> 
> 
> Can you actually see someone making the argument that an existing free
> format language needed to be converted into fixed format?  If RPG had
> started out as /free can you imagine people actually arguing for fixed
> formatting?  Are there strong debates in other languages to convert them
> into fixed format?
> 
> Rob Berendt
> --
> Group Dekko Services, LLC
> Dept 01.073
> PO Box 2000
> Dock 108
> 6928N 400E
> Kendallville, IN 46755
> http://www.dekko.com
> 
> 
> |-----------------------------+-------------------------------------------|
> | "James H H Lampert" | |
> | | |
> | Sent by: | To|
> | rpg400-l-bounces@midrange.| | com | ange.com> |
> | | cc|
> | 07/26/2004 05:43 PM | |
> | | Subject|
> | Please respond to | Re: |
> | RPG programming on the | converting  st|
> | AS400 / iSeries | ring to a |
> | | numeric |
> | | |
> | | |
> | | |
> | | |
> | | |
> | | |
> |-----------------------------+-------------------------------------------|
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> 
> > Call me old-fashioned but because indicators are such dangerous little
> > suckers I'd rather see an explicit SETON or SETOFF operation.
> >
> > Use numeric operations for numeric operands, character operations for
> > character operands, and indicator operations for indicator operands.
> 
> AMEN! And leave languages that are naturally fixed-source-format AS
> fixed-source-format: if you're working in FORTRAN, for example, you can
> indent all you want BEYOND Column 7, but keep the statements at or beyond
> that column, and the continuations in 6, and the labels in 1-5. When a
> language is designed to have a fixed source format, free-formatting the
> source just makes it harder to read.
> 
> You want free-format source? Use Pascal, C, ALGOL, PL/I, LISP, Java, or
> Modula-2. They're designed for it.
> 
> --
> JHHL
> 
> 
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