Command parts

The parts of a command include a command label (optional), a command name (mnemonic), and one or more parameters. The parameter includes a keyword and a value.

• Command syntax
  A command name and parameters make up each command. The parameters used in CL commands are keyword parameters. The keyword, usually abbreviated the same way as commands, identifies the purpose of the parameter. However, when commands are entered, some keywords may be omitted by specifying the parameters in a certain order (positional specification).
• Command label
  Command labels identify particular commands for branching purposes in a CL program. Labels can also be used to identify statements in CL programs that are being debugged. They can identify statements used either as breakpoints or as starting and ending statements for tracing purposes.
• Command parameters
  Most CL commands have one or more parameters that specify the objects and values used to run the commands.
• Command delimiters
  Command delimiters are special characters or spaces that identify the beginning or end of a group of characters in a command.
• Command continuation
  Commands can be entered in free format. This means that a command does not have to begin in a specific location on a coding sheet or on the display. A command can be contained entirely in one record, or it can be continued on several lines or in several records.
• Command comments
  You can enter comments within CL programs to describe the expected behavior of the code.