Variable name

The variable is used in a command to pass the value that it contains at the time the command is run. The change in value can result if one of the following conditions occur: the value is received from a data area, a display device file field, or a message; the value is passed as a parameter; a Change Variable (CHGVAR) command is run in the program; or another program that is called changes the value before returning it.

The types of variables are character string (includes names), decimal, logical, and integer. Decimal and logical values must match the type of value expected for the parameter. Character variables can specify any type of value. For example, if a decimal value is expected, it can be specified by a character variable as well as by a decimal variable.

The variable name identifies a value to be used; the name points to where the actual data value is. Because CL variables are valid only in CL programs, they are often called CL program variables or, simply, CL variables. CL variable names must begin with an ampersand (&).

CL variables can be used to specify values for almost all parameters of CL commands. When a CL variable is specified as a parameter value and the command containing it is run, the current value of the variable is used as the parameter value. That is, the variable value is passed as if the user had specified the value as a constant.

Because it is generally true that CL variables can be used for most parameters of commands in CL programs, the command descriptions usually do not mention CL variables. For parameters that are restricted to constants only (such as in the DCL command), to CL variables only (such as all of the parameters of the Retrieve Job Attributes (RTVJOBA) command), or to specific types of variables (such as on the RTVJOBA or Retrieve Message (RTVMSG) command), the individual parameter descriptions specify those limitations. Otherwise, if the command is allowed in a CL program, CL variables can be used in place of a value, even with parameters that accept only predefined values. For example, a KEEP parameter having only predefined values of *YES and *NO can have a CL variable specified instead; its value can then be changed to *YES or *NO, depending on its value when the command is run.

A CL variable must contain only one value; it may not contain a list of values separated by blanks.

The value of any CL program variable can be defined as one of the following types:

• Character: A character string that can contain a maximum of 9999 characters. The character string can be coded in quoted or unquoted form, but only the characters in the string itself are stored in the variable.
• Decimal: A packed decimal value that can contain a maximum of 15 digits, of which no more than nine can be decimal positions.
• Logical: A logical value of '1' or '0' that represents on/off, true/false, or yes/no.
• Integer: A two-byte or four-byte binary integer value that can be either signed (value may be positive or negative) or unsigned (value is always positive).