If you want TSO/E REXX to wait only a certain duration after having called another program (ISPEXEC), there is no such function. REXX waits for the called program to return control. Sounds like you want ISPF to have an option that when a panel is displayed it would 'timeout' if the user did not press an interrupt key (ATTN). Not the normal behavior for an interactive application. Similar to how some other functions, CONSOLE() and SOCKET() come to mind, have their own settings for how long they can have control before returning control back to the caller.
ISPF was designed to be interactive, so it waits for the user to interact, not optionally interact. Just like CICS displaying a map and waiting for the user to do something, then running the transaction without letting the user start another transaction or press a PFKEY. In CICS it could ugly if users tried running three transactions at the same time that all displayed a different map to be used for data entry. Same with ISPF. The CONTROL LOCK option seems to be trying to match the windows 'progress bar' method of keeping the user occupied while doing things that take awhile and let them know the system is fine, just has a lot to do. That is how ISRDDN search uses it, and I use it to display which member my PDSEDIT code is currently executing on. Since you have just the one active TCB doing your work there is no ISPF reason to let them press any keys while your Rexx code is doing your work. They could not swap to another screen because you did not spin off a disconnected process under another TCB. You can't scroll around because your code is still executing. Generically it makes no sense to let the user change the display if your program is going to display a different panel. ISPF is not a multi-tasking operating system, only one TCB is active at a time, when control returns to them, they can swap to another ISPF session/screen and do something else, there are no swap but leave the session running in the background options. It stops running when they swap. Although I have wanted the ability to scroll down a long data set list while something else was chugging away. And having to press the attention key to break out to my multi-session monitor so I can swap logical terminal sessions is dangerous if I hit it twice, it sends the attention to my rexx code. Ask John L. to open an ISPF Requirement for a TIMEOUT parameter on ISPEXEC SELECT and DISPLAY PANEL(). It would be nice to have some code running under session 1, swap to session 2 and leave session 1 running while continuing to do work under session 2. The lack of that functionality is what led users to have multiple tso userids and being able to logon with the same userid on multiple systems in a JESPLEX. And more recelty asking why not use the same userid more than once on the same system. On Fri, 19 Sep 2008 14:28:25 -0400, Barkow, Eileen <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote: >Dave, >thank you very much for your synopsis on this. >we were trying to find a way whereby the process can be interrupted. > The programmer did manage to do this with an assembler program that >waits and accepts an interrupt from the attention key - if none is >received the panel is jus reinvoked with the time updated. > >unfortuneatly, I do not see a WAIT facility in TSO REXX - there is one >in Netview- which would have eliminated the need for an assembler >program. > >you are correct about the attention key, but that can be set with >emulators. > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- 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
