Re: Parameter prototype question

[Charles Wilt <charles.wilt@xxxxxxxxx>]

If you specified VALUE on myDossier....the calling procedure will
never see the value from GetMyDossier.

VALUE & CONST both mean a parm is input only and is protected from
being updated.

Options(*VARSIZE) would work as another suggested....but if you use
it, you should also pass another parm that indicates the size of
myDossier.  That way if GetMyDossier expects at least 7 bytes, if
somebody comes along and only gives you 5 bytes, you can deal with the
issue.  Otherwise you'd be corrupting memory.

The easiest way to deal with this is to pass the dossier back as the
RETURNED VALUE from GetMyDossier

evalr DisplayField_myDossier = GetMyDossier ( inputParm );

D GetMyDossier     PR             LIKE ( Ref_myDossier )
D inputParm                           LIKE ( Ref_InPutParm ) CONST

Of course you lose the Boolean returned value, but depending on how
you are using it, there are other options.

HTH,
Charles

On Wed, Jun 16, 2010 at 4:28 AM, David FOXWELL <David.FOXWELL@xxxxxxxxx> wrote:
> One more post before I drop this thread!
>
> Here I want to populate a display field before showing the screen :
>
> IF NOT GetMyDossier ( inputParm : DisplayField_myDossier );
>
> D GetMyDossier     PR              N
> D inputParm                           LIKE ( Ref_InPutParm ) CONST
> D myDossier                           LIKE ( Ref_myDossier )
>
> DisplayField_myDossier is 7A and Ref_myDossier is 9A so it won't compile like that. Ref_myDossier has been prolonged to 9A in our data dictionary, but the actual length of dossiers is 7A. So, I <want> the parameter that is returned to be truncated. I put VALUE on it so that it will compile. I hope I've done right as I've not used this before.
>
> Still, I find it baffling that the compiler protects me from truncating the output parameter but I not the input parameter that although I have indicated <don't change this parameter> by the use of CONST.
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