Use this key field-level keyword to specify that when sequencing the values associated with this numeric key field, the operating system is to consider the signs of the values (negative versus positive values).
This keyword has no parameters.
The following example shows six records with a zoned decimal key field:
| Record | Numeric key field (zoned decimal) | Hexadecimal representation |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 98 | F9F8 |
| 2 | 00 | F0F0 |
| 3 | 98- | F9D8 |
| 4 | 97 | F9F7 |
| 5 | 20 | F2F0 |
| 6 | 99 | F9F9 |
By default (with no sequencing keywords specified and without the ALTSEQ keyword), the key field has the SIGNED attribute. The records are sequenced in the following order:
| Record | Numeric key field (zoned decimal) | Hexadecimal representation |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | 98- | F9D8 |
| 2 | 00 | F0F0 |
| 5 | 20 | F2F0 |
| 4 | 97 | F9F7 |
| 1 | 98 | F9F8 |
| 6 | 99 | F9F9 |
If both SIGNED and DESCEND are specified, the records are sequenced in this order:
| Record | Numeric key field (zoned decimal) | Hexadecimal representation |
|---|---|---|
| 6 | 99 | F9F9 |
| 1 | 98 | F9F8 |
| 4 | 97 | F9F7 |
| 5 | 20 | F2F0 |
| 2 | 00 | F0F0 |
| 3 | 98- | F9D8 |
This keyword is not valid for a character, date, time, timestamp, or hexadecimal data type field. You cannot use it with the ABSVAL, DIGIT, UNSIGNED, or ZONE keywords.
SIGNED (a key field-level keyword) causes ALTSEQ (a file-level keyword) to be ignored. If you specify SIGNED for a key field, NOALTSEQ is automatically in effect for that key field even if ALTSEQ is specified at the file level. This occurs, whether NOALTSEQ is specified.
The following example shows how to specify the SIGNED keyword for a physical file.
|...+....1....+....2....+....3....+....4....+....5....+....6....+....7....+....8
00010A R RECORD
00020A FLDA 7S 2
00030A FLDB
00040A K FLDA SIGNED
A