I just added the following as comments to this RFE (https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/rfe/execute?use_case=viewRfe&CR_ID=73693), but I thought I'd post them here was well in order to encourage more people to vote for this requirement.
---------------------- Firstly, OCCURS UNBOUNDED is only allowed in the linkage section. This means it is limited to: - Data passed to a program (you cannot create an 'unbounded' table in COBOL working-storage). - Data created using dynamic memory allocation (such as through CEEGTST and CEECZST, as mentioned below). You'd place the table definition in the linkage section, allocate memory for it, and then point the LS item to the address. Even the latter is of some limited use, because you have to know the number of elements in the table before you can allocate it. Dynamic-capacity tables, as defined by the COBOL 2014 standard, can have elements added (to the end) dynamically at run-time. There is no need to know ahead of time how many elements will end up being added to the table. I would imagine that these tables would be implemented at run-time using some sort of linked-list process (though in behavior they are required to act in almost all cases just like a fixed-length or occurs-depending table). I personally see this as one of the most important features that can be added to COBOL. As for adding COBOL 2002 features prior to adding COBOL 2014 features, I don't agree. Features should be added based on their usefulness, and not just how long they have been, ummm, "standard". Note that the TRIM function was only added to 2014! This is not to say I am not all for adding most of the features of COBOL 2002; I definitely am. But to me there are some things that aren't a priority, such as the Validate feature. I'd had for time to be spent on that feature that could be better spent elsewhere. ---------------------- I want to thank everyone who has voted so far for any of the requirements. A pretty good response, I think! Frank > Date: Tue, 7 Jul 2015 14:12:35 -0600 > From: [email protected] > Subject: Re: Some RFEs for Enterprise COBOL > To: [email protected] > > Not even close. OCCURS UNBOUNDED only allows you to state that a table > received via the LINKAGE section has a size based on a particular variable. > But there is no direct way that I know of to CREATE an unbounded table in > COBOL. > > Or, I think, you could use dynamic memory allocation (getmain et al) to > allocate the entire table at once, and then point to it using a LINKAGE > SECTION "unbounded" table. > > At least that is my understanding. > > Frank > > > Date: Tue, 7 Jul 2015 15:30:16 -0400 > > From: [email protected] > > Subject: Re: Some RFEs for Enterprise COBOL > > To: [email protected] > > > > I have voted, but I am not sure about dynamic-capacity table. Wasn't that > > delivered with the new 'unbounded' table feature in Cobol 5.1? > > > > On Tue, Jul 7, 2015 at 12:46 PM, Frank Swarbrick < > > [email protected]> wrote: > > > > > I would love some votes on these! > > > > > > Perform until exit (73686): > > > https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/rfe/execute?use_case=viewRfe&CR_ID=73686 > > > User defined constants (73687): > > > https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/rfe/execute?use_case=viewRfe&CR_ID=73687 > > > Boolean support and bit manipulation (73688): > > > https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/rfe/execute?use_case=viewRfe&CR_ID=73688 > > > TRIM Intrinsic function (73689): > > > https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/rfe/execute?use_case=viewRfe&CR_ID=73689 > > > Implement dynamic-capacity tables (73693): > > > https://www.ibm.com/developerworks/rfe/execute?use_case=viewRfe&CR_ID=73693 > > > > > > Frank Swarbrick > > > FirstBank - Lakewood, CO USA > > > > > > > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > > For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, > > > send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN > > > > > > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > > For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, > > send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN > > ---------------------------------------------------------------------- > For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, > send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN ---------------------------------------------------------------------- For IBM-MAIN subscribe / signoff / archive access instructions, send email to [email protected] with the message: INFO IBM-MAIN
