In a recent note, Chris Mason said: > Date: Thu, 14 Dec 2006 05:52:00 +0100 > > http://publibz.boulder.ibm.com/bookmgr/pictures/iea2a660.p1z.gif > <quote> > > For a good example of how your primary mode programs can pass parameters, > consider the way the system uses a register to pass information in the PARM > field of an EXEC statement to your program. Unlike the parameter list > produced for an EXEC statement, a general parameter list can have multiple > parameters, there is no system-imposed limitation on the length of any > parameter, and no parameter has a system-defined format. Lengths and formats > of parameters are defined by the called service. > > </quote> > > "Lengths and formats of parameters are defined by the called service." would > make more sense if it were replaced by "In general, lengths and formats of > parameters are defined by the called service. However, for the case of the > PARM field of an EXEC statement, it is clearly the *calling* service." The > "asterisked" word would be in italics. > Not really. I'll agree with the manual here. The called service always defines the lengths and formats. The EXEC statement or the programmer may pass parameters that don't conform to the definition by the called service, in which case the called service will properly report an error. A couple examples (using TSO for convenience rather than JCL, but the interface is identical, even to the 100-character limit):
READY call *(GIMSMP) 'foobar' PAGE 0001 - NOW SET TO ZONE DATE 12/14/06 TIME 06:46:07 SMP/E 33.18 SMPOUT OUTPUT GIM42401I THE FOLLOWING PARAMETERS WERE SPECIFIED ON THE EXEC STATEMENT FOR GIMSMP: 'FOOBAR'. GIM20307T ** THERE IS A SYNTAX ERROR IN THE EXEC PARM STATEMENT AT CHARACTER 01. ... the format of the passed parameter did not meet the requirements of the called service, which reported an error. READY call *(CSNBOWH) 'wombat' IKJ56641I CSNBOWH ENDED DUE TO ERROR+ READY ... CSNBOWH defines a requirement for multiple parameters. Neither CALL nor EXEC can define it otherwise, but when either passes only a single parameter, CSNBOWH fails with an error. -- gil -- StorageTek INFORMATION made POWERFUL ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] with the message: GET IBM-MAIN INFO Search the archives at http://bama.ua.edu/archives/ibm-main.html
